Gas fire places

[thebullettrain]

I am looking to buy a gas fire place - some hints and tips would be appreciated together some links to good places to buy from.

[fatboy b]

Do you have a chimney? If so, ditch the gas, and put a wood-burner in.

[thebullettrain]

Yes, it's a proper chimney. A wood burner's food for thought!

[AcidReflux]

Lots of competition online, it seems, with many websites showing POA for lots of their models instead of the price.

We bought ours from a local fireplace centre in Sussex and they almost price-matched. They had the fire in stock.

If you go with gas...
I did every part of the installation of ours except the final plumbing of the fire. I built a new oak mantle and slate-tiled surround, cleaned out the hole and repointed with fire cement. Based on my experience, if you plan to change any aspect of the fireplace and its design or surround I'd recommend that you get a Gas Safe fitter to come round first (after you've chosen the fire) and give you advice. There are detailed rules that control many aspects of how a gas fire can be installed and if you make any mistakes you won't be able to get the installation certificate needed when/if you come to sell the house.

Gas fires can be dangerous - it's best to get a professional to advise you from the beginning IMHO.

Oh, and all the advice I saw told me NOT to choose a flueless fire!

[Zippee]

fatboy b said:

Do you have a chimney? If so, ditch the gas, and put a wood-burner in.

I second that! We're just waiting to see if our offers been accepted on a house we want and we'll be going down this route. Chimney currently bricked up with a horrid log effect gas fire in it's place so it'll be one of the first things we rip out!