Electric Fireplace Plug-In

Bring into focus

Every well decorated room has a focal point. If you are lucky enough to have a fireplace, you should make the most of it. Give it importance by enhancing it with a mirror or art and inserting an electric fireplace into the firebox.  The art or mirror needs to be in proportion to the scale of the mantel. Art that is too small will look ridiculous hanging over an elaborately carved mantel. A mirror with a simple frame will look equally out of place. Interior designers are using fewer large accessories on the mantel shelf; the fireplace is the focal point, not the accessories; they should enhance the mantel not overpower it.   

A fireplace mantel is certainly the focal point of a room on cold winter nights when the snow is falling.  With warm temperatures around the corner, you don't have to see your fireplace go under utilized. The introduction of an electric fireplace insert into a home's firebox allows homeowners to not only maintain a strong visual focal point but enjoy functionality of the fireplace.  An electric fireplace has a flame only setting.  That's right, you can have a fire in your fireplace without generating any heat, so you can have the romantic, cozy feeling Spring into Summer.

Electric log inserts enhance a room's focal point once they're easily placed into the opening, plugged in, press a button and BAM (sorry Emeril) a blazing flame.  I have seen designers and homeowners place a stack of cut logs, which just sit dark in the box, or candles, which have to be manually lit and  extinguished while dripping messy wax in the firebox.  An insert can be installed either temporarily or permanently.  An electric fireplace log insert can be plugged into a nearby outlet.  Homeowners wanting a permanent change can have an electrician put an outlet inside the firebox and introduce a plug-in electric fireplace, electric logs on a grate with lighting housed inside a metal box.

Every room needs a center of gravity to pull it together, and the fireplace is the most naturally eye catching one to bring life into your room.  Strengthen the fireplace as focal point by accessorizing with an electric fireplace.

Can extension cords be used with electric fireplaces?

From time to time, we are asked if an extension cord can be used with the electric fireplaces. We don't recommend using them.  Avoid using an extension cord because the extension cord may overheat and cause risk of fire. However, if you have to use an extension cord, the cord must be Number 14 AWG minimum size and rated not less than 1875 Watts. The extension cord must be a three wire cord with grounding type plug and cord connection. Lastly, the extension cord should not be longer than 20 feet.

Whether unused by choice or due to safety concerns, many homes have a fireplace and mantel surround which may be converted into a functioning feature in the home by inserting an electric fireplace log set. It is typical to see an outlet on the wall right beside the fireplace mantel surround.  Electric fireplace's cords are typically between six and seven feet long. The cord is usually adequate, allowing the electric fireplace to be plugged right in. Once the electric fireplace is installed (plugged in) you will hardly notice the cord.

Do not operate an electric fireplace with a damaged cord, damaged extension cord, or damaged plug; nor if the unit malfunctions. Contact the manufacturer, who may replace the damaged supply cord.  Qualified service persons should carry out repairs. One last note, don’t try to slip the cords under the rug to hide it either!

The Dimplex Purifire Fights Allergens

Allergies bogging you down?

The air in our homes may not be as clean as we would like it to be... Pet dander, pollen, and dust can trigger unpleasant allergies.  Many people resort to air purifiers, which sometimes look like household fans or may have futuristic designs, but even with a sleek design it is still hard to camouflage a air purifier; they don't easily fit into modern decor.

Consider an Dimplex Electric Fireplace with a Purifire firebox. The patented firebox is a breakthrough air filtering system that cleans air 24/7. The washable 20 x 10 allergy reduction filter can filter particles as small as 1 micron. It cleans the air in an average (12 x 14) size room 4 times per hour!
The Purifire comes in built-in inserts as well as part of mantel packages.
 
Other Features Include:

• Uses a 10" x 20" high-efficiency, washable filter.
• Air filter operates with the heater or may be run with the air-circulating fan only to provide continuous, quiet cleaning.
• Exceeds MERV 10 (Minimum Efficiency Reporting Value) rating - filters particulates and allergens as small as one micron
• Circulates and cleans the air of an average room four times per hour. (Based on a 12' x 14' room)
• Filter needs to be washed/replaced only once per year on average.

The air purification system from Dimplex is truly revolutionary. It can be used with or without heat - creating the ambiance of a fireplace and cleaning the air in your home at the same time. Visit us at www.electricfireplacesdirect.com to get yours today!

Dreaming about work

    If you dream about your job, can you charge for those hours?  I had the craziest dream last night. As is the case with most dreams, it had one foot cemented in reality and the other off in dream-ville. In the dream Rick, my boss and Commodore of the netDirect fleet, wanted to create a healthier and more balanced work environment for all of his darling employees.  He petitioned us for suggestions and after brainstorming we quickly dismissed: doing wall sits while talking to customers, doing handstands in between calls, and using medieval back braces to promote good posture. (I won't disclose who suggested what, so you won't be scared when you call). We did however agree upon replacing all of our chairs with stability balls. 

    Sitting on a big green bouncy ball seems logical enough, but this is where the subconscious entered deep REM sleep and twisted logic until it cracked. My work station is on, what I like to call,the creative end of the building.  We have a open work space in a renovated 100+ year old building across from the Florence Post Office.  Our building is absolutely beautiful, and our end of the office is on the top floor with dark red brick walls and built in slate colored desks.  There are five of us here. One computer expert, two sales reps, one order processor, and me. 

    On this day in my dream we had just received the new ElectricFlame Fire F/X.  This is a redesigned version of their 2006-2007 Electric Fireplace Insert.  The model we received to play with was a 28EF024GRS. Everyone was so excited because the new Fire F/X has eight features that all operate independently of each other.  The logs actually spark in unison to a popping, crackling noise.  Each effect is controlled by remote control and the version in my dream came with enough remotes for all 5 of us to have one.

    So there we were bouncing on our balls clicking buttons on the remote. Downlight on. Downlight off. Chimney sounds on. Chimney sounds off. Crackle. Pop. High flame, low flame, flame no heat, flame high heat. It got to the point we were in an all-out remote control war. Alliances were made; battles were won one click at a time. Bouncing and clicking, bouncing and clicking. Well, I'm not sure who came up with the idea first, but we decided to synchronize our bouncing to the sparks. Every time the logs would spark and the fire would pop we had to bounce as high as we could. It was quite a bit of fun until Anna Kate's 4 inch red stiletto went flying through the air and smacked into one of our friendly white Macs who never even saw it coming. The point of the heel left a bruise looking semi-circle on the LED screen forever to remind us of the time we had until the boss took the bouncy balls away.