Plugging air drafts around ventless fireplace

[JonnyNashville]

My wife and I recently moved in to our first home about 7 months ago, built in 1998/99, with several updates. It features a Temco American Dream Built-In Unvented Fireplace with Prime Heat Unvented Gas Log Heater. The fireplace is located in our living room, which has a two-story ceiling with stairs up, is open to our kitchen, and leads to the office and dining room around the corner.

As the temperature dropped, I noticed a cold draft from around the fireplace, most notably from the front/left side between the "white brick" and the black metal box, and extending upward along the side. There was also a similar, albeit softer, cold draft on the right side as well. The drafts were present both when the fireplace was and wasn't turned on.

I got a tube of black heat-curing fireplace mortar and patched said holes, and the drafts have been eliminated! However, I feel like the air quality in the vicinity has been reduced as a result. I know that oxygen is burned off by the fireplace, but given the size of this room and the overall layout (along with a ceiling fan pointing down in the winter) I didn't think this would be an issue. Two questions:

-Is what I did safe, in eliminating those drafts?
-What do you suggest I do moving forward?

Attached are pictures of the fireplace as well as the main areas patched.

 

[jsiets]

I do not reccomend running any unvented heat source inside of a house, especially with todays tighter and newer homes as the air exchange is not there and all the exhaust is coming into the house, basically the same as running your car in the garage without opening the door.