Fireplace Buyer’s Guide

Your Guide to Choosing the Right Fireplace
Designers interested in the client experience have always been drawn to including a fireplace in their work. When properly chosen, a fireplace can act as a visual focal point in a room design. For the client, it can become a natural gathering place, a place for socializing with friends and family. Or it can serve as a place for individual reflection or relaxation. Its effect is incalculable to a home or a commercial space. 

Working with your client to choose the right fireplace can be far more complicated than it might initially seem given the large number of functional and design considerations, not to mention the staggering number of styles now available. 

The decision to choose gas over wood is far more common these days for safety and environmental reasons, as well as cost. It actually costs more to install, maintain and purchase fuel for a wood fireplace than a gas unit. 

Choosing gas is just one of dozens of questions you need to answer. That’s why Ortal has created a Buyer’s Guide, Selecting a Luxury Fireplace for your Next Project for both you and your client. It covers trends in fireplace design, features to consider, environmental benefits, safety considerations and more. 

For example, a few things you and your clients should consider: 

• Are you considering a traditional fireplace or one that with a more contemporary style? 

• Would your design be enhanced by placing the fireplace against a wall, using it as a room divider, centering it in a room or even placing it where it can be accessed from two adjoining rooms?

• Are you interested in placing it in an area where venting doesn’t seem possible (because there are ways to make it work)? 

• What is your preference regarding the interior of the fireplace? Should the flame realistically look like a wood burning fire? A modern linear flame emanating from glass or stone or other media? Should the background look like brick or polished glass?

• If smaller children will be present, do you need to choose a brand that offers reliable safety measures?

• As a designer, would you be interested in using non-traditional surround materials that ordinarily crack or combust if those options were available? 

• Would your clients like the option of hanging art or a television above the fireplace?

• Does the company that manufacturers the fireplace provide support, consultation, product selection assistance, CAD and BIM files and thorough documentation?

Download the free Ortal Buyer’s Guide. It will walk you through the many things you should consider when choosing a fireplace for any project, whether it’s for residential use or commercial. 

If you have any questions not answered by our guide, we always invite architects and designers to take advantage of our free A&D consulting services. We offer virtual or onsite consultations, review and red-line of your drawings, assistance selecting from our more than 300 fireplace styles and more. Just click here. The link will take you to a form that will let us know who you are and how we can help. We’ll quickly get in touch and help in any way we can.