What to do with my vented fireplace??

[ccleveland]

I have an existing Majestic vented gas fireplace with a gas log lighter from when the home was built in 1989. We moved into the house last year an we would like to modify the setup to generate heat, rather than just look nice (which it doesn't even do now). I would like to heat our common family room/kitchen which is about 400-500 sq ft w/ 8' ceilings.

I have read elsewhere on the forum that vented gas fireplaces are not efficient at producing any heat, but a salesman at a local store says that the newer gas logs radiate much more heat than they used to. It also appears that the unit could be retrofitted with a blower, but the salesman said they don't sell blowers anymore because they don't improve heating very much.

Looking for some help/direction on whether there are gas logs that would be effective at what I am trying to accomplish. I live in Northern California, so it's not like I need to heat the area for 6 months of the year, and it rarely gets below 30 degrees. Or do I really need to rip out the current vented system and replace with a nonvented system to generate some heat. Obviously there is a large cost difference between the two options. Maybe there are other options that I haven't thought of.

Any help would be appreciated. I am hoping to make this my Christmas gift to my wife!

 

[Metal]

I would never put in a non vented unit. The newer gas units actually heat very well and if you are just using it intermittently and don't want to mess with wood they would be a great replacement. The one in your house now is probably a builder grade model and there for looks.

 

[jtp10181]

Sounds like you have a Majestic WOOD fireplace with a log lighter?

Get a direct vent gas insert to put out some heat, they can be over 70% efficient.

Here is an example:
http://www.heatnglo.com/products/inserts/gasInsertDetail.asp?f=07900