Gas Heat That Never Waits for a Burn Ban to Lift.

A typical gas fireplace or insert installation here runs $4,500 to $10,500, depending on the unit and the venting path. A direct-vent insert dropped into an existing masonry fireplace with a gas line already nearby sits on the lower end. A new built-in gas fireplace during a remodel—with framing, direct-vent piping, and a fresh gas line run from the meter—lands in the middle to upper end. Homes outside Avista's natural gas service area that need a propane tank installed run highest. A local dealer will give you a firm number after seeing the space in person.

Yes, and it's a common project for the older masonry fireplaces scattered around Town and Country—especially since Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency burn bans during winter inversions can shut down uncertified wood-burning on short notice, making an open wood fireplace an unreliable heat source. A gas insert typically runs $4,500 to $9,000 installed, using your existing chimney fitted with a stainless liner as the vent path. Homes already on Avista natural gas service usually see costs toward the lower end; homes needing propane or new gas line work run higher.

It depends on where your home sits relative to the gas main. Avista Corp runs natural gas lines through much of Town and Country and the surrounding Spokane County area—if your water heater or furnace already runs on Avista gas, adding a fireplace is a straightforward tap-in. Homes on the fringes of the CDP, particularly those served only by Inland Power & Light Company for electricity, often sit outside the natural gas footprint. For those properties, propane delivered and stored in a tank on the property is the standard workaround, and most gas fireplace models can be configured for either fuel.

In most cases, yes. Spokane County sees more ice-storm-driven outages than wind events, and both Avista and Inland Power & Light Company can take a day or more to fully restore service after a bad one. Direct-vent gas fireplaces with IPI (intermittent pilot ignition) include a battery backup—usually a few AA batteries tucked inside the unit—that keeps the pilot and blower running through an outage. Just swap those batteries each fall before burning season. Valor takes a different approach: their units generate their own electricity through the pilot's thermocouple, so there's no battery to remember at all, which is worth asking about if outage-proof heat is a priority.

A gas fireplace is a fully built-in unit framed into a wall—the right call for new construction or a full remodel. A gas insert is sized to slide into an existing masonry fireplace opening, sealing it up and venting through the existing chimney with a liner. A gas stove is a freestanding cabinet unit that sits on the floor like a wood stove but runs on gas, and it doesn't require an existing fireplace opening at all. For the smaller number of Town and Country homes with an older masonry fireplace, an insert is usually the most cost-effective upgrade; homes without one typically go with a built-in fireplace or a freestanding stove.

Yes. Town and Country is unincorporated, so building permits for a new gas fireplace or insert go through the Spokane County Building and Planning Department, along with a separate gas-fitting permit covering the line work itself. Most hearth dealers handle both permits as part of the installation and schedule the required inspections, so homeowners typically don't have to file anything on their own.

Vented, direct-vent gas fireplaces pull combustion air from outside and exhaust it back outside through a sealed pipe—they're the standard choice across Washington and the most universally code-friendly option. Vent-free (ventless) units burn gas directly into the room with no outside venting; Washington allows them in many jurisdictions, but Spokane County enforces strict room-sizing and oxygen-depletion-sensor requirements, and some builders avoid them here altogether given how tightly newer homes are sealed against the cold. For most Town and Country installs, a direct-vent unit is the simpler, safer, and more commonly recommended route—ask your local dealer which options your specific jurisdiction allows.

Plan on an annual inspection, ideally in early fall before the first cold snap. A certified technician checks the burner, pilot assembly, venting, and gas connections, and cleans the glass and interior—a much lighter job than chimney sweeping, but still important since a dirty burner or degraded seal can affect both safety and efficiency. Local gas appliance service providers typically charge $150 to $250 for this visit, and it's worth scheduling before the coldest stretch of Inland Northwest winter arrives.

Wood and pellet stoves aren't a common option here—winter burn bans from the Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency make them unreliable as a primary heat source—so the real choice for most homeowners is gas versus electric. Gas delivers genuine radiant heat and, with a battery-backup or self-powered ignition system, can keep working through a power outage. Electric fireplaces install for far less ($400 to $1,200, no venting or gas line required) and are simple to add to any room, but running cost depends on which utility serves your address—Avista's residential rate runs close to 11.9 cents per kWh, while Inland Power & Light customers pay closer to 9 cents. For a quick supplemental heat source or a room where running a gas line isn't practical, electric often wins; for whole-room warmth and outage resilience, gas is usually the better fit.

Open fireplaces suck—literally. As the fire burns, it consumes air your furnace already paid to heat and pulls it out through the chimney, so the house is actually colder after the fire goes out than before you lit it. An insert fixes this: it seals the chimney, puts fixed glass across the front, and turns that hole in your house into a real heat source.

If it was installed more than 15 years ago, probably. Older gas fireplaces keep a standing pilot light burning all the time, and that little flame can cost a couple hundred dollars a year. Newer models use pilot-on-demand ignition—the pilot lights only when you use the fireplace and goes out when you turn it off.

For an average home—covering the fireplace, the vent pipe, and basic installation—a budget between $3,900 and $5,500 gives you a lot of options across wood, gas, and pellet. By the time you add finish work, gas line, and electrical, the average complete installation lands between $5,000 and $12,000 all-in. In a remodel or new build, a good rule is to put about 2.5% of the total project cost toward the fireplace.

If you're putting a fire in your house on purpose, it's best to work with an expert. Unless you're genuinely experienced in framing, gas line, vent pipe, and the national code on clearances to combustibles, have a professional do it—and ideally the same company that sells you the fireplace, so warranty, service, and liability all live under one roof.