Guide to choosing the right Fireplace, Fire or Wood Burning Stove for your home

A house is not a home without a fireplace! Not only do they offer a main focal point

to plan your room around, they can also be a efficient form of heating which can save you money on your heating bills in this tough climate. There is a endless selection of fireplace styles available and whilst you may have the perfect design in your mind, this is notnecessarilythe fireplace that is suitable for your home.

Most older houses in the United Kingdom were built with a full chimney. These were often used for a real coal fire and if you do live in a home with a chimney, this tends to mean that you can have most fires & fireplaces. The firstdecisionyou will need to make is what style will suit your home. Current fashion has been 'hole-in-the-wall' fireplaces that create acontemporarylook and do not require a hearth to be fitted. Other peoplebelievethat a mantelpiece is vital to display ornaments, family photos and most important - stockings for Santa! No matter what style you prefer, there will be a vast array of fire options to combine.

Gas Fires

A roaring fire at the turn of switch (or even by pressing a button on a remote control!), gas fires are the mostconvenientway of instant warmth and controllability. As well as the traditional styled outset gas fires that feature ceramic bars, there now is a massive choice of gas fires that offer incrediblerealismandincorporateburning logs, coals and modern fuel effects such as pebbles! Environmental concerns have now resulted in most fire manufacturers concentrating on efficiency and the latest, high efficiency gas fires can provide much more heat than older models as well as reduced running costs.

If you have a full chimney, you are lucky enough to be able to have virtually any gas fire fitted. First thing to do is get your chimney checked by a Gas Safe registered engineer. The engineer will perform a series of tests to determine whether the chimney is working as it should. Older properties may suffer from cracks, holes etc inside the chimney and then a flue liner may need to be fitted. This is a flexible metal pipe that is fitted inside the chimney and runs from the top of the chimney stack right down in onecontinuoslengthto the top of your new fire. The chimney is now bypassed and the flue liner ensures that nopoisonousfumes can leak into the rooms above. The diameter of the flue liner you go for will ultimately determine which type of gas fires you can go for so if you do have a particular style of fire in mind, make sure you tell your fitter!

Electric Fires

With most modern homes, double glazed windows a gas central heating are normally standard items. Some people feel that they do not require a gas fire as they'd rarely use it but would still like a focal point for their living space. Electric fires used to be a poor substitute to a real fire and were only used in secondary rooms to fill the space where a real fire would normally go. Over the past 30 years, modern house builders decidedthat the additional building costs involved to include a full chimney in their house were not worth it - therefore most modern built homes end up with a flat wall and no allowance for a feature fireplace. Fortunately, this has resulted in fire manufacturers bringing a huge range of electric fires to suit all tastes. These include wall mounted 'plasma' style fires, free-standing electric fireplace suites and inset electric fires that can be combined within any type of fireplace surround. The main benefit of an electric fire opposed to a gas fire is that you can enjoy the flame effect without the need to use the heater function. Most modern electric fires now include LED bulbs which cost a fraction to run compared with normal bulbs and have a much longer life-span.

Wood Burning & Multi-Fuel Stoves

Nothing compares to a real, flickering flame. Open coal & logs fires offer a spectacular visual statement but sadly do not provide the efficiency expected in modern living. A Wood Burning Stove gives you the visualimpactplus the added attraction of muchimprovedefficiency rating and safety. From classical cast iron stoves to ultra-modern double sided cassette stoves, whatever wood burner you choose you will need to make sure that you get one that not only suits your tastes but offers the right output for your room. A basic calculator which will help work out what kW output matches your room can be found online. This will not take into account open-plan spaces and homeowners who plan to leave doors open to allow the heat to travel around the house. Never be tempted to get a stove that will be too big for your room just because you've fallen in love with the design. This will result in you having to open all the windows every time you light a fire or under-firing which is never good for the stove.Take into account your lifestyle. If you're aprofessionalperson who's fast-paced life revolves round work, socialising etc do you have time for a wood burning stove? A constant supply of seasoned wood will be needed meaning log storage will be required.

Guide to choosing the right Fireplace, Fire or Wood Burning Stove for your home

By: Adam Ricker

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