Can you put an electric fireplace on a smart plug?

Two answers circulate, and each is half right#

In November 2024 a Kasa owner asked TP-Link's forum whether a Smart Plug Mini could run their electric fireplace. "It seems to turn on the power but won't turn on the ambiance or heat." A TP-Link moderator gave the accepted answer in one line: "The smart plug controls the power supply only."

That is true, and it explains the problem. The plug gave the fireplace power, and the fireplace's own electronics then sat and waited, as many models do. The plug cannot press their buttons.

The other answer comes from a SmartThings thread in December 2017. A member wrote that "cutting main power to the whole unit is not the correct way and hard on the heater elements". That one is wrong as a rule, since Dimplex once shipped its own on/off box that does exactly that. But the worry behind it is real. Electric fireplaces keep the fan running after the heat goes off, and a plug that cuts power skips that step.

So both posts point at the same fact: the plug is a power switch, nothing more. What happens next is up to the fireplace, and the manual says what.

The terms the answer turns on#

• Electric fireplace. An appliance that makes a flame picture with lights and a screen, plus a separate fan heater, usually 1,500 W. The flame can run without the heat: Dimplex says that with the main switch on, "the flame effect operates without heat". Some plug into an outlet, and some are wired into a junction box in the wall, where a plug cannot go in front of them.
• Smart plug. A plug-in switch you control from an app, a voice assistant or a schedule. It gives the fireplace power or takes it away, and that is all it can do.
• Power-on behavior. What the fireplace does in the first seconds after power arrives. Some resume what they were doing, some reset to factory settings, and some wait for a button. The maker decides, and a few say so in the manual.
• Thermal cutout. A safety switch that shuts the heater off if it overheats. Dimplex says it "will not come back on without being reset", and on several models the reset is unplugging the unit for a few minutes.
• Fan run-on. The fan keeps going for a few seconds after the heat stops, to clear the heat. Napoleon says it is there "to blow out remaining heat".

What each manual says happens when power comes back#

These are the seven manuals read for this page, in November 2026. "Not stated" means the manual is silent, not that the unit fails.

Napoleon BEF33H and BEF40H: built for a flame schedule. The manual says it plainly: after a power failure, with the main switch on "I" and the remote on, "the flame generation lights will come back on at the high setting, when the power supply returns." Its startup line adds the other half: switch the main power on, and "the flame will be at the brightest setting and the heater will be OFF." The outage note mentions only the flame, and the startup line says the heater starts off, so power from a plug gives you the flame on high and no heat.

SimpliFire Allusion Slim: everything comes back. Under "Setting Retention", SimpliFire says that if power is removed while the fireplace runs, it "will return to the same setting/operating modes once power is restored." The Power button works differently: press it and the unit resumes your settings "except Timer and Heater". The power-loss line makes no such exception, so a plug that cuts power with the heater running can bring the heater back next time.

C3 Furnishings: back to defaults. C3 says the fireplace remembers your settings when you use the On/Off button. But "if the fireplace is disconnected from the main power source, it reverts to the default settings." The manual does not say what the defaults are, or whether the unit starts on.

Howard Miller: a 5 second burst, then a blank slate. "Each time the fireplace is plugged in or main power is interrupted, the fan and heater will turn on for 5 seconds." Its memory keeps heat level and flame brightness "unless the main power to the unit has been interrupted." The manual does not say the fireplace turns itself on after that burst, which fits the Kasa owner's report of power on and no ambiance.

Dimplex XHD: memory on the button, silence on power loss. The Power button turns the unit on "with previous settings", including heat if it was on. The manual says nothing about what happens when power returns from the wall.

Dimplex DFI2309: switches that hold their place. This older insert has three rocker switches: main on/off for the flame, low heat and high heat. A rocker stays where you put it, so with main on and both heat switches off, power from a plug brings back the flame alone.

Twin-Star ClassicFlame 36EB: not a plug question. This builder's box wires to a junction box. Its Power button puts it in "standby mode", which holds the settings in memory. That is the button, not a power cut, and the manual says nothing about outages.

The receiver that settles "never cut the power"#

The DFI2309 manual includes a remote control kit. The steps: "Plug fireplace insert into the outlet located on the receiver. Plug receiver into the wall outlet." The receiver is an on/off box that sits between the fireplace and the wall, just like a smart plug, and Dimplex rates it "for use on electrical devices with 15 amp resistive load or 1/3 HP inductive load".

So Dimplex itself shipped a way to switch the fireplace at the outlet, and the same manual says "Always unplug the fireplace when not in use." Howard Miller says the same: "If possible, ALWAYS unplug the fireplace when not in use." Cutting power is what these makers ask for, not what they forbid.

No manual read for this page warns against timers either. Compare the space heater page, where Vornado says not to use a timer that turns its heater on or off.

What the newer manuals do rule out is cords and strips. Dimplex's XHD manual says: "Always plug the fireplace directly into a wall outlet/receptacle. Never use the fireplace with an extension cord or relocatable power tap (outlet/power strip)." Howard Miller says "NEVER use an extension cord or power strip." A smart plug is neither by name, but it is not "directly into a wall outlet" either. If you use one, use a single plug straight into the wall with nothing else on it, and never a power strip under it.

Flame and heat are two different loads#

The flame is small: the DFI2309 uses two 60 W bulbs, so 120 W, or 1 A at 120 V. Newer LED models do not print a flame figure, but the flame is not where the amps are.

The heater is the big load, and SimpliFire and Dimplex XHD both print 12.5 A and 1,500 W. Napoleon's service manual checks for "approximately 10A" on the heater wire. Dimplex adds that the XHD draws 1,500 W at 0°C (32°F) and 1,350 W at 25°C (77°F), but size the plug to the rated 12.5 A.

TP-Link's plug FAQ says "the load should not exceed 80% of the rated maximum capacity." On a 15 A plug that is 12 A, or 1,440 W. So:

That is the same arithmetic the space heater page runs, and it ends the same way. A 15 A plug survives full heat, but it is not run inside its maker's own rule. A 10 A plug is out for heat at any setting printed here. Both Dimplex manuals also want a 15 A, 120 V circuit, with a dedicated one "preferred". What smart plug energy numbers are worth covers plug ratings in general.

Worked through: a 5 pm to 10 pm flame schedule#

Here is one case, walked through the manuals. Suppose you want the flame on from 5 pm to 10 pm for the look, and a smart plug runs the schedule.

With a Napoleon BEF40H. Leave the main switch on "I" and the remote on. At 5 pm the plug turns on, and by the manual the flame comes back on high with the heater off. At 10 pm the plug cuts power, and that is the whole job, done the way the manual describes. If someone turns the heat on at 9 pm, the startup line says the next 5 pm start still has the heater off.

With a SimpliFire Allusion Slim. At 9 pm someone presses the heater on, and at 10 pm the plug cuts power with it running. By the manual, the unit returns to "the same setting/operating modes" when power returns. So at 5 pm the next day the heater can start too, maybe with nobody home. To avoid it, turn the heat off with the remote before 10 pm every night, or skip the plug and use the unit's own timer.

With a Howard Miller. At 5 pm the plug turns on, and the fan and heater run for 5 seconds, as the manual says they will. The settings are gone, and the manual never says the flame comes on by itself. Expect what the Kasa owner got: power, and no fire.

The cutout reset a plug can do without you#

On several models, the overheat reset is just a long unplug. C3: "unplugging the unit and waiting 5 minutes before plugging the unit back on." Dimplex XHD: "unplug the unit and wait 5 minutes." Howard Miller: unplug, "wait 10 minutes", plug back in.

A plug that is off for hours does the same thing, so if the heater tripped because something blocked the vent, the plug resets it with nobody there to clear the vent. The space heater page makes the same point about Vornado's cutout. The difference here is that you can keep the heat out of it.

Turn the heat off first, then cut power#

Four of these manuals give a fan run-on time. Napoleon: 8 seconds. C3: the element shuts off "then the fan after 10 seconds". Howard Miller: 20 seconds. Dimplex XHD: 60 seconds.

A plug that cuts power stops that fan at once. No manual read here says that harms the unit, but the run-on is there to clear the heat, so let it run. Turn the heat off with the remote, wait a minute, and then let the plug cut power. If the plug only ever runs the flame, this never comes up.

Lock the heat out if your fireplace can#

Three of these fireplaces can disable the heater from the panel:

• Dimplex XHD: hold Heat and Temp together for 2 seconds. The display then shows "--" for the heater.
• C3: hold the Heat icon for 10 seconds. The ember bed flashes 6 times.
• Twin-Star 36EB: hold Power for 10 seconds.

None of these manuals says whether the lockout survives a power cut, and C3's reset to defaults may clear it. So set the lockout, run the test below, and check that the heat is still locked after.

Check yours in two minutes#

Do this at the wall, not through the smart plug, so you test the fireplace alone. Then check the plug's own power-on setting, which decides whether the plug turns back on after an outage, and what still works when the internet goes down covers it.

Heat only while someone is home#

Four of the manuals warn about leaving the unit alone. Howard Miller says "Never leave the fireplace unattended", twice. SimpliFire and both Dimplex manuals say "extreme caution is necessary" when the fireplace "is left operating and unattended". The SmartThings thread raised the same point. One member thought the lack of Z-Wave and Zigbee fireplaces was "probably intentional". The Bluetooth apps that do exist keep the user close enough to respond.

The rule this page takes from them: a plug may run the flame on a schedule, but heat should run only while someone is home and awake. That rules out away schedules and routines that fire when you are out. Automation design has the broader rule. A room with any heater in it also needs a working alarm; smart smoke alarms covers adding one.

Better ways to schedule the heat#

• The fireplace's own timer. Napoleon has 1 to 5 hours. C3 has 30 minutes to 6 hours. Dimplex XHD has 0.5 to 8 hours. Howard Miller has up to 9. Twin-Star has 30 minutes to 9 hours. A built-in timer turns the unit off without cutting its power. So C3 and Howard Miller keep the settings a plug would wipe.
• The built-in thermostat. SimpliFire, Napoleon, C3, Dimplex XHD and Howard Miller all switch the heater on a room temperature setting.
• A remote bridge. In the SmartThings thread, members suggested learning the fireplace's remote with a Harmony hub, a Zmote or a Bond. One owner used Bond for "emergencies" and watched the room with temperature sensors and a camera. These are forum reports, not maker instructions. A room sensor is the safer part; sensors covers which ones report often enough.
• Central heat. If the goal is a warm room at 6 am, a smart thermostat on the furnace or heat pump does it with no portable heater in the loop.

A gas fireplace is a different question, with no plug and no 120 V heater. Smart thermostats for millivolt fireplaces covers how to put a Wi-Fi thermostat on one.

Where this page stops#

This page covers seven manuals as of November 2026: Napoleon BEF33H and BEF40H, SimpliFire Allusion Slim, C3 Furnishings C3P23C9-2067W, Howard Miller 497227, Dimplex XHD and DFI2309, and Twin-Star ClassicFlame 36EB. Other models from the same brands may behave differently, and Dimplex's newer lines and fireplaces with their own Wi-Fi apps were not read. The DFI2309 and Twin-Star manuals are older, so treat them as how those units work, not how current ones do.

The table reads only what each manual prints. Where a manual is silent on power loss, only the test can tell you, and its result holds for your unit alone. A clean test does not make heat safe to run unattended, and the warnings above apply whatever the plug does. Hardwired units, including the Twin-Star and SimpliFire when wired in, need an electrician and a smart switch rated for the load, not a plug. Renters should start with a smart home for renters.