Catty1....Sorry, been there, done that.

In an old house, it is more than likely a wood fireplace that has been converted over to a gas log. It all depends on the age of the fireplace. A modern construction gas log fireplace has most likely been put in with that in mind. In an older house, however, the fireplace was more than likely constructed as a wood heat source for the house, in which case the gas log can be removed and the fireplace reverted to wood burning with little trouble. As stated in my prior post, however, an inspection and cleaning is an absolute neccesity.