Keep Your Family Warm and Safe—No Matter What

For most Redan homes, no—not as a primary heat source. With winter lows averaging 33°F and a fairly short, mild heating season each year, the local climate simply doesn't demand it the way colder regions do. Where it does make sense: homeowners who want backup heat for the occasional ice storm and power outage, people restoring or upgrading an existing masonry fireplace in an older DeKalb County home, or anyone who wants the ambiance of a real wood fire in a family room. We won't tell you wood heat is essential here, because it isn't—but it's a legitimate choice for the right household.

Because wood heat is uncommon in this part of Georgia, fewer local installers specialize in it compared to gas or electric work, which can affect pricing and availability. A freestanding wood stove installation typically runs in the $3,000-$6,500 range depending on hearth pad requirements and chimney work, while converting an existing masonry fireplace to a wood insert generally falls between $4,000 and $7,500. Homes without an existing chimney will land at the higher end once Class A pipe and roof penetration are factored in. A trusted local dealer can give you a firm number after seeing your specific setup.

Yes—new wood-burning installations require a building permit through the DeKalb County Building Department (or the applicable municipal office, depending on your exact address within the 30058, 30074, or 30088 zip codes). Unlike parts of the country with national forest land nearby, there's no cutting-permit system here since firewood is purchased from local suppliers rather than harvested on public land. Most hearth dealers who install wood stoves in this area handle the permitting paperwork as part of the job.

No—DeKalb County and the surrounding metro Atlanta area are not designated non-attainment zones for wood smoke, and there are no seasonal burn curtailment periods like you'd find in wood-heavy western states. That said, any new stove you install should still meet current EPA emissions standards, which is standard on virtually every stove sold today. Practically speaking, air quality just isn't a limiting factor on wood heat decisions here the way it is in, say, the Pacific Northwest.

Oak, hickory, and pine are the common species around DeKalb County. Oak and hickory are generally preferred for wood stoves because they burn longer and hotter with less resin buildup; pine is more readily available and burns hot but fast, and needs to be well-seasoned to avoid creosote issues. Because there's no significant public timberland nearby, most Redan households buy seasoned firewood by the cord from local tree services and firewood suppliers rather than cutting their own.

The clearest case is backup heat during winter storms. Metro Atlanta ice storms—the kind that knock out power for days, like the January 2014 event—are infrequent but real, and a wood stove is one of the only heating appliances that keeps running with zero electricity. Beyond that, homeowners with existing masonry fireplaces in older DeKalb County homes sometimes want to bring them back into real use, either for occasional fires or as supplemental heat on the coldest nights of the year, which given local averages are still fairly mild.

Gas is the more practical choice for most Redan homeowners. It lights instantly, requires no fuel storage or ash cleanup, and fits the area's mild-winter reality where you want occasional supplemental warmth rather than an all-night burn. Wood makes more sense specifically if backup heat during power outages matters to you, or if you already have a masonry fireplace and want the experience of a real fire rather than a switch-operated flame. Many DeKalb County homes that have both use gas for everyday use and keep a wood option for ice-storm backup.

Electric fireplaces are simple, inexpensive to install (often $400-$1,200), and require no venting or chimney—a good fit if you mainly want visual ambiance without heat output demands. At Georgia Power's residential rate of about 15.5 cents per kWh, running one occasionally costs very little. Wood, by contrast, delivers real radiant heat and keeps working without electricity, which matters if you're specifically planning for storm-related outages. If ambiance and low upfront cost are the priority, electric wins; if backup heat capability matters, wood is the better tool.

Because wood heat is a smaller niche in this market compared to gas and electric, it's worth specifically confirming a dealer installs and services wood-burning appliances rather than assuming every hearth shop does. Look for NFI-certified installers and CSIA-certified chimney sweeps for any masonry fireplace work—these credentials matter more here precisely because wood expertise is less common than in colder-climate markets. We match Redan homeowners with local dealers who genuinely stock and install wood-burning equipment, rather than sending you to a big-box store guessing at venting requirements.

New wood stoves are 70%+ efficient, so far less heat goes up the flue—which also means less draft to get a fire established. The rule: build a genuinely hot fire for about 45 minutes before you choke it down. Skip that and you get smoke in the room, creosote in the chimney, and a fire that never takes off. Most performance complaints trace straight back to this.

An insert does two things: it seals the chimney completely, so you stop losing air you already paid to heat, and it radiates warmth into the room through the firebox and glass. Most add a heat-exchange fan that pulls cool room air underneath, wraps it around the hot firebox, and pushes it back out warm. Your home is more efficient before you've even lit the first fire.

It's a visit where a hearth professional measures your space, confirms the model you picked actually works in your home, and walks the specs—framing, gas line, venting, finish work—before anything is ordered. Some details you just can't know until you see the house. Never make a down payment without one; it's the single most-skipped step that burns buyers.

Yes—by creating a comfort zone. A furnace heats every square foot of the house just to warm the one room you're in; a gas fireplace on low burns roughly a sixth of the gas a typical furnace does. Set the furnace around 55–60 degrees as a baseline, then heat the rooms your family actually uses. Families who heat this way commonly save $20–$60 a month.