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Gel Fuel and Ventless Fireplaces

By Ben Mester

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Gel fuel is a relatively new substance, and its possibilities are really intriguing to me. Gel fuel is an alcohol-based product that doesn't give off smoke or odor, or at least not odors that are toxic or noxious. It's primary use is in fireplaces, but it has uses in catering or any other indoor event where odorless fire could be helpful. The applications for gel fuel are pretty amazing. When I first heard about it I was pretty excited. Imagine being able to install a fireplace that doesn't need a vent?

I think we're all suckers for a good fire every now and again, especially on a cold night where indoor coziness is required. Gel fuel even crackles like a normal wood burning fire. And one little container of gel fuel burns for about 3 hours. The cool part is, installing a fireplace for gel fuel doesn't even require demolition. If you get creative, you can build a modern fireplace in a lot of different ways. The greatest thing about ventless fireplaces is that they can be freestanding. There are companies online that sell freestanding ventless fireplaces that sit against the wall and give off the appearance that they're actually a part of the wall itself. These require no installation or demolition whatsoever, and still give off the beauty of a regular fireplace.

But I think the main reason why I like gel fuel is because of the added value it can bring to a home. I'm soon to be in the market for a fixer-upper condo. When I buy it, I'll not only be replacing all the old, rundown aspects, I'll be looking for cheap ways of installing new features to up the property value. And you can be very sure that if it doesn't already have a fireplace, I'll be installing a ventless fireplace for gel fuel use.

One of the best things about gel fuel is its simplicity. Gel fuel can be made safely at home and ready for use. Just like wax candles, gel fuel can be created in large quantities for those who don't want to spent the coin. It's combustible property is just isopropyl alcohol, which is the same thing as rubbing alcohol. It generally sells for about $1 per quart so it's very economical. You'll also need a thickening agent to turn the rubbing alcohol into a gel. There's some debate on what the best thing to use for this is. Some have said that soy wax will do the trick. But more people seem to like a substance called calcium acetate, which can actually also be made at home, but is very cheap to buy as well. It costs about $40 for 500 g, but that should last you a very long time. There are a bunch of different recipes online for making different forms of calcium acetate for use with both alcohol and ethanol, but it's probably best to just buy it.

Once you have the calcium acetate, the combination is simple. The total compound must be more than 90% alcohol or else it won't burn. Combine 2 parts water to every 3 parts calcium acetate and stir them until the substance is dissolved. To make enough to fill a couple of soup cans, mix 2 cups of water with 3 cups of calcium acetate and dissolve it. Then pour the substance into the soup can until 10% of the can is full. Then fill the rest of the 90% with the rubbing alcohol. The substance will thicken and gel on its own. And just like that, you have your own gel fuel!

One extra tip. If you want the gel fuel to crackle just like a normal wood fire, you have to add something to it that will pop when the fire gets to it. Oil and water work very well for this. If you take 1 tsp of oil and 2 tsp of water for each soup can and mix it into the gel, it will make the fire occasionally crackle and pop when it comes across those small pockets of oil and water. It's pretty neat. I hope you enjoy!

Thanks for reading about Gel Fuel and Ventless Fireplaces. For more about fuel and fuel saving, check out another article on fuel injector cleaner.

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