Probably depends on what you’re cueing off of. I recently stayed in a bed and breakfast with a gas fireplace, and while it was visually pretty close to the wood fires of my childhood (especially if you’re using it as background scenery rather than actually looking at it) it smelled and sounded very different. I actually felt a bit of Uncanny Valley-style dissonance for the first couple of hours, although I got over it pretty quickly once I realized that it was my only option for heating.
A quick googling reveals a number of ways to get that wood-fire smell. These include: a tin can of soaked wood chips with holes cut in placed next to the fire, cedar or pine incense on/near logs, and a nearby fire scented candle
There is even a product (seen here ) of a hollowed ceramic log and refillable granules that create both the wood burning smell AND the crackling sound.
There is even a product (seen here ) of a hollowed ceramic log and refillable granules that create both the wood burning smell AND the crackling sound.
… and the cancer-provoking microscopic particles! For only ten times the price!
More seriously, I’ll look up if incense has the same problems. I don’t see why it wouldn’t.
Some thoughts- Even if incense also creates cancer-provoking particles, I would guess that it creates much fewer, since you are only burning say 2 grams of material, versus a couple of large logs .
Also, I would guess that oil-based incense and candles are likely to be safer (Oil-based incense is what I was thinking of when I wrote the grandparent)
Both of these thoughts though, are subject to change if/when provided any contrary research on the matter.
I haven’t dug too deep, it would be nice if someone would make a nice summary page of the different kinds of smoke (from cigarettes, exhaust pipes, wood fire, coal fire, incense, leaf and grass fires (as in wildfires), cooking, various kinds of factories, etc.) and summarize the potential health hazards of each. Green wood emits more smoke, but does that mean it’s more of a hazard? etc.
Incense may be only 2 grams, but it’s also 2 grams optimized for smoke emission, and it’s also rarely burnt just under a chimney that absorbs most of the smoke. Though yeah, I agree incense is probably less of a hazard than a wood fire, it’s probably mostly a problem in places like Buddhist temples.
She’s hoping to sell the house. I’m not sure if that’s the sort of renovation that would increase its sale price or the odds of its sale.
And I don’t think a gas fireplace would be as pretty and crackly, anyway. It might be warm, but I rarely just want warm.
My in-laws converted to the gas option, other than the smell it’s hard to distinguish from the real thing, to the point of double-take.
Probably depends on what you’re cueing off of. I recently stayed in a bed and breakfast with a gas fireplace, and while it was visually pretty close to the wood fires of my childhood (especially if you’re using it as background scenery rather than actually looking at it) it smelled and sounded very different. I actually felt a bit of Uncanny Valley-style dissonance for the first couple of hours, although I got over it pretty quickly once I realized that it was my only option for heating.
A quick googling reveals a number of ways to get that wood-fire smell. These include: a tin can of soaked wood chips with holes cut in placed next to the fire, cedar or pine incense on/near logs, and a nearby fire scented candle
There is even a product (seen here ) of a hollowed ceramic log and refillable granules that create both the wood burning smell AND the crackling sound.
… and the cancer-provoking microscopic particles! For only ten times the price!
More seriously, I’ll look up if incense has the same problems. I don’t see why it wouldn’t.
Some thoughts- Even if incense also creates cancer-provoking particles, I would guess that it creates much fewer, since you are only burning say 2 grams of material, versus a couple of large logs .
Also, I would guess that oil-based incense and candles are likely to be safer (Oil-based incense is what I was thinking of when I wrote the grandparent)
Both of these thoughts though, are subject to change if/when provided any contrary research on the matter.
I haven’t dug too deep, it would be nice if someone would make a nice summary page of the different kinds of smoke (from cigarettes, exhaust pipes, wood fire, coal fire, incense, leaf and grass fires (as in wildfires), cooking, various kinds of factories, etc.) and summarize the potential health hazards of each. Green wood emits more smoke, but does that mean it’s more of a hazard? etc.
Incense may be only 2 grams, but it’s also 2 grams optimized for smoke emission, and it’s also rarely burnt just under a chimney that absorbs most of the smoke. Though yeah, I agree incense is probably less of a hazard than a wood fire, it’s probably mostly a problem in places like Buddhist temples.