Touchstone Sideline Steel Recessed Electric Fireplace with Mesh Screen

A Mesh Screen Across the Front, in 50 and 60 Inches

The Touchstone Sideline Steel is an electric fireplace that goes into the wall like a built-in or hangs on it, with a black steel mesh screen across the front instead of a plain reflective face. There is no chimney, no gas line and nothing to vent. The mesh is the whole reason to pick it: it gives the unlit fireplace the look of a real firebox rather than a dark panel.

The Mesh Is What Kills the Reflection

A reflective fireplace front spends most of its life switched off, mirroring the room, the window and whatever is on the opposite wall. The steel mesh scatters that instead, so the front reads matte black when the fire is off and the flames look less like a screen when it is on. It is the closest an electric fireplace gets to the look of a traditional open firebox.

Three Flame Colors, Run From the Remote

Three flame color options and a timer that runs from 30 minutes to 7.5 hours, all from the included remote. This is not a smart fireplace: there is no app and no voice control, which is part of why it is one of the more affordable ways into the Sideline line. A faux log set and glass crystals are both in the box.

Heat to 400 Square Feet, Out of the Front

Two heat settings, 5,000 BTU, and enough warmth for a room up to about 400 square feet. The heating vent is on the front face rather than the top, which is what lets the fireplace mount flush in the wall and lets a television sit close above it.

Frame to 47 1/2 or 56 25/32 Inches, Depending on the Size

The 50-inch model needs a rough opening 47 1/2 inches wide; the 60-inch needs 56 25/32. Both are 20 1/2 inches high and 5 3/4 deep. The fireplaces themselves are 50 3/8 by 21 1/2 inches at 45.2 lbs and 60 by 21 3/8 inches at 65 lbs, both 5 1/2 inches deep. Either plugs into a 120-volt outlet or can be hardwired.

Best Where a Glass Front Would Catch the Room

Pick this one for a wall opposite a window, a bright room, or anywhere the fireplace will be looked at far more often than it is lit. Pick a standard Sideline instead if you want color-changing flames, app control, or the cleanest possible modern face.