Empire Gas Logs

Empire Gas Logs, Formerly White Mountain Hearth

Empire Comfort Systems is a family-owned manufacturer founded in Belleville, Illinois, in 1932 and still run by the Bauer family. For years its hearth products carried the White Mountain Hearth name, and its manuals still call the logs the White Mountain Log Collection. Empire now sells the same range as Empire Hearth, under the same model numbers, so a White Mountain Hearth log set and an Empire log set of the same name are the same product.

Vented Empire Log Sets: Slope Glaze and Elite Radiant

• Slope Glaze vented burner. Certified to ANSI Z21.60 as a decorative gas appliance for a wood-burning fireplace, and rated up to 75,000 BTU in the 24- and 30-inch sizes. We list it with Birch Burncrete, Ponderosa, Super Sassafras and Super Stacked Wildwood log sets.
• Elite Radiant vented burner. Built around a radiant fiber heat sink instead of a sand bed, and rated 33,000 to 65,000 BTU. Its manual approves two log sets only: Pioneer in refractory and Kensington Forest in ceramic fiber.

Both run with the chimney damper held open by a damper clamp, which ships with the Slope Glaze burner. Empire does not approve a thermostat on a vented log set, and the glass doors on the fireplace must stay open while it burns. See all Empire vented gas log sets.

Elite Radiant or a Sand Pan Burner

Many vented burners, Empire's own Sand Pan line among them, bury the gas ports under a bed of sand or vermiculite. The gas spreads out as it rises through the bed, so it burns as a wide, loose flame across the pan, much like a wood fire. Sand pan burners are built for size: Empire rates its Sand Pan burners from 80,000 BTU at 18 inches to 150,000 at 36 inches. The double version pairs a rear burner for taller flames with a front burner for glowing embers.

The Elite Radiant replaces the sand bed with a fiber heat sink that holds heat and sends it back into the room. Empire says it radiates more heat into the room and uses less fuel than a standard vented burner, without the mess of sand or vermiculite. It is rated lower, up to 65,000 BTU in the 30-inch size.

Choose a sand pan burner when you want the biggest, fullest flame for a large firebox and heat is not the goal, since a vented fire sends much of it up the chimney. Choose the Elite Radiant when you want more of the warmth to reach the room on less gas, without a sand or vermiculite bed.

Vent-Free Empire Log Sets

The vent-free Slope Glaze burner is certified both as an unvented room heater and as a vented decorative appliance, so it runs with the damper closed or open. It goes in a masonry or UL 127 factory-built wood-burning fireplace and is rated up to 38,000 BTU in the 30-inch size. We list it with Driftwood Burncrete logs. With no flue, the water vapor from burning gas stays in the room, about an ounce for every 1,000 BTU each hour. Vent-free appliances are also restricted in some states and cities, California and parts of Massachusetts among them.

Outdoor Carol Rose Inserts

For an outdoor fireplace, Empire's stainless Carol Rose inserts come in two looks: Carol Rose Harmony with a log set and Carol Rose Loft with fire glass. More options are in outdoor gas logs.

Natural Gas or Propane: Whether It Converts Depends on the Burner

Every Empire log set here comes in natural gas or propane, chosen on the product page. The vented burners can change fuel later: the Slope Glaze manual includes propane and natural gas conversion steps, and Empire lists propane conversion kits for the Elite Radiant. The vent-free Slope Glaze cannot, because Empire states it is not convertible for use with other gases.

Explore Related Gas Logs

Looking for something else? Browse the rest of the gas log range:

• Gas Fireplace Log Sets, every brand, vented and ventless
• Vented Gas Logs, for a fireplace with a working chimney
• Ventless Gas Logs, for a fireplace without one
• Real Fyre Gas Logs and Grand Canyon Gas Logs, other brands