People often buy electric furnaces expecting to make energy savings, and they are disappointed.
In fact, the electric fireplace is not any more efficient than an electric room heater.
The costs will depend on the price of electricity where you stay.
However, for those who want atmosphere along with zone heating, without having to spend tons on having a real fireplace installed, it is a good thing to have.
You can place it anywhere in your condo or vacation home that doesn't have a fireplace or chimney.
The corner fireplaces come with a foldable support for placing it in the corner or against a wall as desired.
It will mimic a fireplace without you having to mess with fuel to get it started.
You don't need any vents either.
You can have a traditional fireplace without all the hard work, smoke and toxic fumes.
This is one of the main reasons why well-informed people buy one.
Of course it will also add to the ambiance.
You can turn it on in your living room when you have friends over.
You can select only the flame option or have it work as a heater as well.
It can lend your living space a cozy, traditional charm that an electric heater does not.
You can customize what the fireplace looks like - you can have flames pictured on it or glowing coals.
Moreover you don't have to spend thousands of dollars on having a real wood fireplace fitted in your home.
These electric fireplaces are quite inexpensive - you can find them starting at around $200.
Which brings us to another feature of the fireplace.
It is not going to heat your entire house.
It is more like a space heater that will work for zone heating.
So even though your running costs will not go down, you can save energy when you heat only the room that you're in.
A lot of energy is otherwise wasted when central heating is used even when you and your family are all assembled in a single room.
So the electric heater is aesthetic, but be aware that you can't expect it to look as realistic as the real thing.
The flames are created simply by the refraction of light from a light bulb.
The light refracts in 3D, in a random order.
That is the secret of the 'realistic' flames.
But these units are definitely much safer than the real thing.
The process going on inside a fireplace unit that is running is simple.
There are metal coils inside that heat up when you plug the unit to a power source.
This heats the air inside.
A fan blows the heat out into your room.
If you touch the fireplace itself, you will find it cool against your hand.
However remember that nearby fabrics can catch fire from over-heated air.
Remember that a corner electric fireplace will not cut down on your utility bills.
You are running it on electricity after all.
It will more likely cost as much as an electric space heater would.
But you won't find too much of an increase in your energy bill.
Further, if what you want is ambiance, then it will be the thing for you.