R.W.FLAME 25" Electric Fireplace Heater Review: a solid fake fireplace that actually heats

I’ve been using this R.W.FLAME 25" electric fireplace heater for a while now in a medium-size living room, roughly 300–350 sq ft, and I’ll be honest: I bought it mainly for the look, not expecting much from the heating. In practice, it does both jobs fairly well. It’s clearly a fake fire, you’re not fooling anyone, but as a space heater with some visual interest, it’s pretty solid.

My setup: older house, one room that never gets enough heat from the central system. I dropped this fireplace in there as a backup/comfort heater. I’ve mostly run it on the 1500W setting in the evenings, a few hours at a time. I also use the flame-only mode a lot when I just want the vibe without turning the room into a sauna or burning extra power.

What surprised me is how usable the controls are. The remote actually works from the couch, and the different flame and log colors are not just a gimmick. I ended up sticking with the more classic orange/red combo, but the blue and mixed options are nice when you’re bored of the same look. Also, the flame speed adjustment sounds silly on paper, but I found myself using it more than I expected.

It’s not perfect. The heat output is decent but not the hottest I’ve seen at this wattage, and there’s a faint fan noise when the heater is running. But for the price, the mix of looks, features, and heating performance feels fair. If you’re expecting a realistic wood stove replacement, you’ll be disappointed. If you just want a good-looking electric heater that makes the room feel cozier, it gets the job done.

On value, I’d put this fireplace in the “good for the price” category. You’re not paying top-tier money, but you’re getting more than a basic white box heater. It heats a medium room reasonably well, looks nicer than a standard space heater, and gives you plenty of options for flames, colors, and speed. For what it costs, that’s a decent bundle of features.

Compared to cheaper heaters I’ve used, this one wins on looks and comfort. The infrared heating feels less harsh, and the metal body plus glass panels give it a more solid presence in the room. If you only care about raw heat and don’t care about appearance, you can probably get a stronger-feeling blast of hot air from a plain ceramic or oil-filled heater at a similar or lower price. But you won’t get the fireplace vibe with those.

The downsides for value: the heat output, while adequate, isn’t mind-blowing, and the flame realism, while decent, is still clearly artificial. Some folks might expect more realistic flames for the money. Also, you’re running up to 1500W on high, so if you use it many hours every day, your power bill will reflect that, just like any other heater at this wattage. It’s not magically efficient; it’s just a standard electric heater with some extra flair.

Overall, if your goal is a combination of usable heat + nicer ambiance without paying for a built-in or super high-end unit, the value is pretty solid. If you just want the cheapest way to heat a room and don’t care what it looks like, you can save money with a more basic unit. For people who want both function and a bit of style, this hits a reasonable middle ground.

Design-wise, this thing leans hard into the vintage stove vibe. It has that cathedral-style arched door and fence design on the front, plus glass on three sides, so you get a 180° view of the fake flames. From across the room, it looks pretty good. Up close, you can obviously tell it’s not a real fire, but that’s the case with pretty much every electric fireplace in this price range.

The black lacquered finish is simple and neutral, which I like. It doesn’t scream “cheap plastic heater.” It blends in fine with normal living room furniture, especially if you tuck it against a wall or into a corner. The footprint is fairly compact: about 10.7" deep, 23.5" wide, and 24.25" high. It’s big enough to look like a piece of furniture, but not so big that it takes over the room. I’ve had it under a TV and also in a corner near a chair, and both setups looked okay.

One design detail I actually appreciate: the air outlet is on the top, not the front. That means the front glass and sides stay cool, and you don’t get hot air blasting straight at your legs if you’re sitting nearby. Also, the sides and back stay cool to the touch, which is good if you’ve got kids or pets wandering around. The top gets warm but not scorching, so you’re not going to burn yourself by brushing against it.

From a pure style point of view, it’s not high-end furniture, but it looks better than a bare metal space heater sitting in the middle of the room. If you want something that gives a bit of “stove” character without doing a full built-in fireplace, this is a reasonable compromise. Just go in knowing it’s a decorative heater, not a true wood stove substitute.

The body of the unit is mainly steel/iron with glass panels, and that’s a big step up from those all-plastic tower heaters. It weighs about 32 pounds, so it’s not flimsy. When you nudge it, it doesn’t feel like it’s going to tip over easily. The legs are metal as well, and once they’re screwed in, the whole thing sits stable on the floor. I tested it on hardwood and on a low-pile rug, and in both cases it felt secure.

The glass on three sides gives a clear view of the flame effect. It doesn’t feel like super thick glass, but it’s solid enough and doesn’t flex or rattle. The door on the front is mainly for looks; you’re not really opening it all the time for anything, since it’s not a real firebox. The hinges and handle feel basic but not loose. Nothing on mine squeaks or wobbles after repeated use.

The finish is a black lacquered paint. It’s not fancy, but it hasn’t chipped or scratched easily in my use. I’ve bumped it a couple of times moving furniture around and didn’t see any obvious marks. The top surface gets warm when the heater is running, but not hot enough to damage things. I wouldn’t stack books or electronics directly on top while it’s heating, but a small decoration or picture frame is probably fine as long as you’re not blocking the vent.

Overall, materials feel decent for the price bracket. You can tell it’s not a premium cast iron stove, but it doesn’t feel like a toy either. If you treat it as a mid-range electric heater with a metal shell and glass windows, that’s pretty accurate. I don’t see any obvious weak points in normal use, though like any heater, I wouldn’t be rough with it or drag it around by the legs all the time.

In terms of durability, I obviously can’t simulate years of use in a short period, but I can talk about how it feels after regular daily use. I’ve been running it most evenings for a few hours, switching between flame-only and high heat. So far, no odd noises, no burning smells, and no flickering LEDs. The fan sound has stayed the same from day one, which is a good sign that nothing is wearing out quickly.

The exterior metal body hasn’t warped or discolored, even with long runs on the high setting. The sides and back stay cool, and the top just gets moderately warm. That gives me some confidence that the internal heat management is decent. The overheat protection is there as a backup; I haven’t triggered it, but it’s good to know it exists in case someone blocks the vent by accident.

Physically, the unit has handled being moved around a few times without issues. I’ve picked it up and shifted it between rooms, and the legs haven’t loosened, the glass hasn’t rattled, and nothing inside sounds loose when you bump it. For a 32-pound heater, that’s about what I’d expect. It’s solid enough that you don’t feel like you have to baby it, but I also wouldn’t treat it like a heavy-duty wood stove you can drag everywhere.

There’s a limited warranty, which is pretty standard, but nothing standout. For the price, I’d say the durability feels fair. It doesn’t scream “built for decades,” but it also doesn’t feel like it’s going to fall apart after one season. If you use it as a supplemental heater during cold months and don’t abuse it, I’d expect it to last several seasons without drama. Still, if you want something truly long-term and bombproof, you might look at more expensive brands or actual cast-iron electric stoves.

On the visual and control side, this heater has more options than I expected. You get multiple flame colors (like orange, blue, mixed) and separate log colors, plus adjustable flame brightness and speed. It sounds like overkill, but it actually lets you dial in something that doesn’t look too cheesy. I ended up using a slower, orange-ish flame with dimmer brightness most of the time. For fun, I messed with the blue flames and faster speed when people were over, just because it’s different.

The remote control is simple but does what you need: you can switch power, change heat settings, tweak flame colors and brightness, and set timers. The buttons are clear, and I didn’t have to squint at tiny icons to figure it out. Response is quick, and I didn’t notice any lag. The panel buttons on the unit itself are also straightforward if you lose the remote or don’t want to hunt for it.

The separate heating and flame system is honestly one of the best features. In shoulder seasons or when the room is already warm from the main heat, I often just run the flames with no heat. It gives the room some visual warmth without actually raising the temperature. When it’s properly cold, I kick on the heat plus flames and let it run on high for a while, then drop to low once the room is warmed up.

Day to day, it’s pretty low effort. Plug it in, set the mode you want, and forget it. No weird smells after the first short burn-in, no flickering lights, and no annoying rattles so far. It’s not the strongest heater or the most realistic flame effect on the market, but the combo of decent visuals, usable heat, and easy controls makes it practical for regular use.

Out of the box, the R.W.FLAME 25" fireplace is pretty straightforward. The unit itself comes mostly assembled, and you just have to screw in the four legs with the supplied screws. No wiring, no mounting, no drilling. I had it unpacked and running in about 15–20 minutes, including tossing the packaging. For something that looks like a small stove, the setup is about as easy as plugging in a regular space heater.

In the box you get: the fireplace body, four base angles (the legs), screws, a basic remote control, and a user manual. The manual is nothing fancy but clear enough. The specs match what’s advertised: 1500W max, two heat settings (roughly 500W and 1500W), and coverage listed around 300 sq ft. In my use, that coverage number feels realistic. It won’t heat an entire open floor plan, but in a closed room or semi-closed space it does a decent job.

Function-wise, the main thing to know is that heating and flame effects work separately. That’s a big plus. You can run flames only (no heat) or heat with flames, and you can tweak flame colors, log colors, brightness, and flame speed. The remote controls pretty much everything, so you don’t have to get up once you’re settled. I tested the range from different corners of the room and it worked fine within normal living-room distances.

Overall, the first impression is that it’s a feature-heavy space heater dressed up as a mini fireplace. You’re not getting some high-end piece of furniture here, but for the price point it feels like you get a fair amount: decent heat, a bunch of visual options, and a plug-and-play setup that doesn’t require any kind of installation skills.

On the heating side, this unit runs at 500W (low) and 1500W (high), with a listed heat output of around 5100 BTU and coverage of about 300 sq ft. In real life, that seems about right. In my roughly 300–350 sq ft living room, it takes the edge off the cold in about 15–20 minutes and makes it properly comfortable in 30–45 minutes, depending on how cold it is to start with. It’s not instant, but it’s not weak either.

The infrared heating is a plus if you hate the super dry feeling some heaters give. I noticed the room didn’t feel as dried out as with my old cheap ceramic heater. You still want some air circulation, but I didn’t wake up with that dry throat feeling after running it in the evening. On low (500W), the air feels just mildly warm, more like a background boost. On high (1500W), it’s noticeably hot coming out of the top vent, and you can feel the difference across the room after a while.

One thing to know: a few people say other heaters feel hotter, and I kind of agree. I’ve had smaller fan heaters that blast more intense hot air directly, but they also feel harsher and dry the room out more. This one is more of a steady, comfortable warmth. It’s not going to heat multiple rooms at once, but it can handle one main room and maybe bleed a bit into an adjacent area if the doors are open.

Noise-wise, the fan is there, but it’s about the level of a regular room fan on low. With the TV or some music on, I mostly forget it’s running. When the heat is off and you’re just using the flame effect, it’s basically silent. There is a small quirk: when you turn it off, it doesn’t stop instantly; it runs for about 20–30 seconds to cool down, then shuts off. That’s normal behavior and not a defect, but it can surprise you the first time. Overall, for a supplemental heater in winter, it gets the job done without being overbearing.