Yes, though almost certainly not in the way you are picturing. Gas produces very little creosote, so there is essentially nothing for a brush to remove. Sweeping a gas fireplace is close to pointless.
What a gas system does need is the things sweeping does not cover: intact venting, a burner operating correctly, a glass seal doing its job, and a flue that has not become home to something.
The Failure Mode With No Symptom
This is the whole argument, and it deserves stating directly.
When a wood fire vents badly, smoke fills the room and you know within seconds. When a gas appliance vents badly, nothing visible happens at all. The products of gas combustion are not visible, and carbon monoxide has no smell.
That is not a reason for alarm — gas appliances are generally reliable. It is a reason to check them deliberately rather than waiting for a symptom that will not arrive.
A working carbon monoxide alarm on the relevant floor is the cheapest safety item in this entire trade, and it is what compensates for an appliance that cannot warn you itself.
What Actually Gets Checked
The list is short and none of it involves a brush.
- Venting integrity and clearance — first, because it is the item with no symptom
- Burner condition and flame pattern
- Pilot assembly, thermocouple or thermopile, and ignition system
- Glass and its gasket, which on a sealed unit is a functional component
- Log placement, which is specified by the manufacturer and is not decorative
- The flue itself, for animal intrusion and debris
Why the Pilot Goes Out
The most common gas fireplace complaint, and usually one of a small number of causes.
On a standing-pilot system, a thermocouple or thermopile sits in the pilot flame and generates a small electrical current when heated. That current tells the gas valve it is safe to stay open. The component degrades with age, and eventually it no longer produces enough signal to hold the valve — so the pilot lights, then goes out when you release the control.
It can also be a dirty or misaligned pilot, a failing gas valve, or on electronic ignition a module fault. These parts are appliance-specific, which is why diagnosis beats substitution.
More on those faults on the gas fireplace repair page.
Blackening Glass Is a Message
Some deposit after a long idle period is normal — dust burning off. Rapid, repeated blackening is not.
It usually indicates incomplete combustion: a burner needing attention, an incorrect air shutter setting, or logs positioned so they obstruct the burner. That last one catches a lot of people, because gas logs look like decoration and are in fact positioned to a specification. If someone has rearranged them, putting them back is worth trying before anything else.
The Chimney Is Still There
Converting a wood fireplace to gas is frequently presented as the end of chimney maintenance. It is not.
The flue still vents combustion products. The cap still corrodes. Animals still find open flues. The damper is often clamped partly open for the gas installation and then forgotten, which means outside air comes down the flue continuously. And the liner ages on the same schedule it always did.