How to Choose Gas Logs: Vented vs Vent-Free, Sizing and Burners

Gas logs turn a wood-burning fireplace into a gas fire you light with a match, a knob, a wall switch or a remote. Four choices decide which set is right: vented or vent-free, logs or a complete set, the size your firebox can take, and how you light it. This guide takes them one at a time, using the published specs of the gas fireplace logs we carry from Real Fyre, Hargrove and Grand Canyon, the three brands that make up most of our gas logs collection.

The short answer

Vented or vent-free: vented logs need a wood-burning fireplace with a working chimney and burn with the damper open. They give the tallest, most natural-looking flame. Vent-free logs burn with the damper closed, so their heat stays in the room, but they are not allowed in every state, city or room. Logs and burner: Real Fyre and Hargrove sell their vented logs and burners as separate products in matching sizes, and Hargrove's vent-free sets come with the burner and valve. Size: measure the front width, rear width, depth and height of the firebox and compare them with the burner's minimum fireplace dimensions. Lighting: a match-lit burner is natural gas only, so a propane fireplace needs a safety pilot, a remote or electronic ignition.

Step 1: Vented or vent-free (ventless) gas logs

Decide this first, because vented and vent-free logs and burners do not cross over. A vent-free burner is certified only with the log sets made for it, placed the way its manual shows, and vented logs go only on a vented burner.

The vent-free pairings are strict. Real Fyre makes each of its vent-free log sets for one burner. The G9, for example, takes the Golden Oak Designer, Split Oak and Meadow Oak vent-free sets and nothing else, and the G8E, G10, G18 and G19A each have their own. Hargrove builds its vent-free sets complete, and it tests them to both the vent-free (ANSI Z21.11.2) and vented (Z21.60) standards. That dual listing means a Hargrove vent-free set can run vent-free with the damper closed, or as a vented set in a wood-burning fireplace with the damper open.

Before you choose vent-free, read our guide to direct vent vs vent-free gas fireplaces, which covers where vent-free isn't allowed. If you want a complete vent-free fireplace rather than logs for one you already have, see vent-free fireplaces.

Step 2: Logs, a burner, or a complete set

A gas log fire has two parts: the logs, and the burner they sit on. The burner sets the flame pattern, the heat input and how you light the fire. The three brands package them differently:

• Real Fyre: logs and burner systems are separate products, and the log titles say "Logs Only." The logs are hand-painted refractory ceramic reinforced with steel rods. A burner system such as the G45 Triple T comes with the valve and regulator installed, a custom grate, glowing embers, sand for natural gas or vermiculite for propane, a connector kit, log locators and a damper clamp. Each log set page lists the burner model numbers that fit it.
• Hargrove vented: you order the log kit and a burner kit in the same size. The burner kit brings the grate, valve, burner media, volcanic cinder, fittings, flex connector and damper stop clamp.
• Hargrove vent-free: each set ships with the logs, burner, grate, ODS pilot, ember material and volcanic cinder, with the valve factory installed.
• Grand Canyon: burners, pans, connection kits, valves and remotes are listed alongside the log sets. If you are replacing logs on a burner you already have, check its model before you order.
• Logs for one fireplace: many Empire, Superior, Napoleon, Majestic and Kingsman sets are replacement logs for a specific fireplace, and they fit that model only. The product title names it.

Step 3: Measure the firebox, not the opening

A log set's size describes the set. What decides the fit is the firebox. Measure the front width, the rear width, the depth and the height, then compare them with the minimum fireplace dimensions for the burner. Two 24" burners show why all four numbers matter:

With enough depth and height, a firebox 34" wide at the front and 24" at the back fits the Hargrove kit but not the Real Fyre burner, which needs 28" at the rear. A firebox only 13" deep is the reverse. Choose the size whose minimums your firebox meets, with room for the set to sit centered. Real Fyre also says not to install the G45 in a fireplace with an ash lip or recess deeper than 3/4".

• Shallow or tall fireplaces: Hargrove's Pinnacle burner works in standard fireplaces as shallow as 10" and in tall Rumford fireplaces. Its Full Pan burner needs at least 14" of depth, and its See-Thru Shallow burner is made for fireplaces with about 17".
• Large fireplaces: Real Fyre vented sets run up to 72" and Hargrove's up to the 66" Hargrove Select. Grand Canyon's jumbo and linear sets reach 120", such as the 24" to 120" Linear Western Driftwood.

Step 4: Choose how you light it, and the fuel

Most burners are listed once for each way of lighting and controlling the fire:

• Match lit: no valve or pilot on the burner. You light it by hand and control it from the fireplace gas valve. Natural gas only.
• Manual safety pilot: a standing pilot that shuts off the gas if the flame goes out, run by a knob on the burner.
• On/off remote: a safety pilot valve with a remote that turns the fire on and off.
• Variable remote: adds flame height control to the remote.
• Millivolt valve with wall switch: Hargrove's works with its millivolt remotes, thermostats and switches.
• Electronic ignition: lights the fire from a remote. Real Fyre offers an electronic valve with remote, and Hargrove offers electronic ignition on its Stealth, Pinnacle, System 4 and Control System Concealer kits.

Our guide to millivolt vs electronic ignition explains the difference between the two.

Every burner is built for natural gas or propane, so order the fuel your home has. Real Fyre burners are not field convertible. For propane, Hargrove also makes the System 4, a sandless burner with no vermiculite that Hargrove says reduces sooting. Hargrove's valve kits come burner mounted or as a cool mount valve, which sits off to the side on a flexible connector, where it stays cooler and is easier to hide.

Step 5: See-through, outdoor and contemporary fires

See-through fireplaces

A fireplace open on two sides takes a see-through set, finished on both faces, on a see-through burner. Real Fyre makes see-thru sets in its Classic, Designer and Charred Series and for its G9 and G18 vent-free burners. Hargrove's See-Thru burner needs 22" of depth and its See-Thru Shallow burner about 17", for two-sided, three-sided and corner fireplaces. Grand Canyon builds see-through sets too. Our see-through fireplace guide covers the fireplaces themselves.

Outdoor fireplaces and fire pits

Indoor logs are not built for the weather, so use logs and burners made for outdoor use:

• Real Fyre: the G45 Triple T comes as a stainless steel outdoor burner system, and the G52 Radiant Fyre has outdoor versions, both for vented log sets. The ODG15 is a stainless steel ventless burner certified for outdoor fireplaces only, for the 24" and 30" Foothill Oak, Foothill Split Oak, Driftwood and Lakeshore sets.
• Hargrove: the Wilderness fire pit sets, 20" to 50", sit on the stainless steel fire ring burner kit. For an outdoor fireplace, the Rugged Craft metal log sets, 18" to 36", go on Hargrove's outdoor stainless steel burner kit.
• Grand Canyon: outdoor fire pit log sets in Arizona Weathered Oak, Western Driftwood and Aspen Birch from 18" to 48", plus round flat-stack and tall-stack fire pit kits.

For ideas on the fireplace itself, see outdoor fireplace ideas.

Contemporary fires without logs

For a modern look, Real Fyre's vented P45 pan takes Shoreline logs, Fyre Spheres, or Fyre Glass and Fyre Gems, and its vent-free G21 and G23 burn through Fyre Glass or Fyre Gems and 4" Fyre Spheres. Hargrove's Full Pan burner takes ceramic cannon balls or river stones, and its S-Burner and Glass H-Tube run under fire glass in a vented fireplace. Its Element Series is a vent-free linear burner for reflective fire glass.

Real Fyre vs Hargrove vs Grand Canyon

Which one fits depends on your fireplace more than on the brand:

• Real Fyre, made by R.H. Peterson Co., pairs its Classic, Designer and Charred logs with a choice of burners: the basic match-lit G4, the G45 Triple T in the most sizes and controls, and the G46, G52 and G31. Its indoor and stainless steel burners carry a ten-year warranty, excluding controls.
• Hargrove, made by Hargrove Premium Products in Sand Springs, Oklahoma, suits three cases: a vent-free set that can also run vented, a shallow or Rumford fireplace with the Pinnacle burner, and a large fireplace with the stacked Kodiak sets. Its logs carry a limited lifetime warranty, and its burners and grates five years.
• Grand Canyon is the one to look at for an oversized masonry fireplace or a long linear burner, with sets past 60" and up to 120".

Before you order

• Check the fireplace: vented logs need a working wood-burning fireplace and chimney, and the damper has to stay fully open.
• Check your local code: for vent-free, check whether it is allowed in your area and in that room, and the room size requirement in the burner manual.
• Measure the firebox: front width, rear width, depth and height.
• Know your fuel and gas line: the Real Fyre G45 calls for 5" to 10.5" w.c. on natural gas and 11" to 13" w.c. on propane, with a 1/2" minimum supply pipe. Hargrove calls for 1/2" inside diameter pipe up to 30 feet and 3/4" for longer runs. A qualified gas installer makes the connection.
• Pick the valve: match lit, safety pilot, remote, millivolt or electronic ignition.
• Plan the finish: glowing embers, bark chips and pine cones dress a set. Real Fyre burner systems come with glowing embers, and Hargrove makes a CK-6 combo kit.

Frequently asked questions

Do gas logs need a chimney?

Vented gas logs do. They go in a wood-burning fireplace with a working chimney, and they burn with the damper clamped fully open. Vent-free logs burn without venting through a flue, with the damper closed, in the places where local code allows them.

Are vented or ventless gas logs better?

Vented logs look more like a wood fire, with taller flames, but more of their heat goes up the chimney. Ventless logs keep their heat in the room and burn a shorter, cleaner flame, and they come with code limits on where they can go. Choose vented for the look and vent-free for heat, after checking your local code.

What size gas logs do I need?

Measure the front width, rear width, depth and height of your firebox, then choose the largest size whose minimum fireplace dimensions your firebox meets. The minimums differ by burner: a 24" Real Fyre G45 needs 28" at the rear, and a 24" Hargrove E-Burner needs 23" at the rear but 14" of depth.

Do gas logs come with a burner?

It depends on the set. Real Fyre and Hargrove sell their vented logs and burners separately in matching sizes, and Real Fyre's log titles say "Logs Only." Hargrove's vent-free sets include the burner, grate and valve. Sets made for a specific fireplace sit on that fireplace's own burner.

Can I put vented logs on a vent-free burner?

No. A vent-free burner is certified only with the log sets made for it, placed the way its manual shows, and vented logs go on a vented burner in a fireplace with a working chimney.

Can I close the damper while vented gas logs are burning?

No. The damper has to be fully open whenever a vented set burns. The Real Fyre G45 comes with a damper clamp and every Hargrove burner kit with a damper stop clamp, so the damper can't close all the way.

Can gas logs run on propane?

Yes, on a burner built for propane. Burners are made for one fuel or the other, and Real Fyre burners are not field convertible. Match-lit burners are natural gas only, so a propane fire needs a safety pilot, a remote or electronic ignition.

Can gas logs be used outdoors?

Only logs and burners made for outdoor use, such as Grand Canyon's outdoor fire pit logs, Hargrove's Wilderness and Rugged Craft sets, and Real Fyre's outdoor G45 and G52 burners and ODG15 ventless burner.

Need help matching logs to your fireplace?

Send us the front width, rear width, depth and height of your firebox, your fuel and a photo of the fireplace, and we will match the logs, burner and valve. Call a product specialist at 888-486-2909, seven days a week, or send us a message. You can also browse every set in our gas logs collection, or by brand: Real Fyre, Hargrove and Grand Canyon.