Firebacks: Which Type Is Better
for My Fireplace?
What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of
Cast Iron Firebacks and Stainless Steel Firebacks
© 2005, PennVentures LLC

Fireplace owners eager to hold down fuel costs this winter are 

increasingly turning to a low-tech but very efficient fireplace accessory tool, the fireplace fireback. Firebacks are metal inserts placed in the back of your fireplace. Firebacks reflect and radiate the heat of your fireplace back into your room, increasing the amount of warmth your fire provides.

Firebacks come in two types: stainless steel firebacks and cast iron firebacks. Both types can be merely leaned against the back of your fireplace or stood in "feet" or brackets. (The photo below shows a

Pennsylvania Fireback in its brackets, called Saf-T-Boots, with a grate.) And both types of firebacks also protect the back wall of your fireplace. But each type of fireback does have its own advantages.

The traditional cast iron firebacks come in a wider range of sizes than the stainless steel firebacks do. Cast iron firebacks can be bought for the smallest fireplaces up to mansion-size fireplaces. Some cast iron firebacks are plain, but most have a decorative design cast into them. The designs range from classical urns, to Old World coats of arm, to colonial era motifs such as pineapples, to modern smiling suns. There are patriotic eagles and flags, and there are designs with your favorite animals, such as swans, deer, ducks, or horses.

Cast iron firebacks work much like old fashioned iron radiators do. That is, they are warmed by a heat source (hot water for radiators and your fire for the firebacks) and then they radiate that heat into the room. The mass of the cast iron firebacks makes them even more efficient "radiators" than the stainless steel firebacks.

The newer, stainless steel firebacks do not come in as wide a range of sizes as the cast iron one do. All of them are plain, without a design. These stainless steel firebacks are not recommended for gas fireplaces, as the intensified heat may damage the gas shut-off valve.

But the stainless steel firebacks have three advantages when compared with the cast iron ones. First, they reflect more of the fire's light into your room. Second, they are much lighter weight than castiron firebacks. This makes a difference to those concerned about managing the placement of the much heavier cast iron firebacks. For example, a small, 15" square iron fireback weighs about 30 pounds; a 23" by 20" iron fireback weighs about 70 pounds, and a 31" by 34" iron fireback weighs almost 300 pounds. The third advantage of the stainless steel firebacks is their price. They cost about half as much as a similarly sized iron fireback.

The stainless steel firebacks are the no-frills version of this fireplace accessory, most appropriate for those who value price over appearance. They are great for cabins or rooms that are more functional than decorative. The cast iron firebacks are more appropriate for traditionalists and for those who value not only energy-saving but also value maintaining the visual appeal of their fireplaces.

Either stainless steel or cast iron firebacks will make your fireplace more energy efficient. But consider whether a stainless steel fireback or a cast iron fireback will best meet your price, weight, light-reflection properties, and appearance preferences.

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