what on earth does electricity cost near you?

[Larry Caldwell]

A fireplace will suck more heat out of your house than it will put in. Have you ever heated with wood? There's much work involved. Cutting, splitting, hauling, lifting several times.

Yep, for heat a fireplace is next to worthless. We have an insert that does a creditable job of heating the house. If I want to look at flames, I just leave the insert doors open. You need power to the fireplace to get the circulation fan running, which really improves the efficiency of the insert.