Conventional Open Fronted Gas Fires
Chimney Types:
The main consideration when choosing your gas appliance will be its compatibility with your existing chimney or flue. A chimney or flue relies on the natural circulation of air through the room and up the chimney/flue to expel the combustion gases of an appliance.
The quickest way of determining which type you have is to look up to the roof of your building. There are three common types of chimney/flue found in UK houses today. These are Class 1, Class 2 and Pre-cast. Whether your home has a chimney or flue, or even none at all, it is possible to have a Superior Fires product.
Class 1 - Conventional Brick 7"
Commonly in older houses, earlier than 1960. The Class 1 chimney is identifiable by 7” (180mm) or greater diameter flue. The existing chimney must be structurally sound, please check before the installation of a new fireplace.
Fires suitable for Class 1 chimney are: Chewton Range, Asaba Range, Grosvenor Range, Whatley Range, Walther Range
Class 2 - Lined 5"
Either an older house where the existing chimney has been lined by a proprietary steel flue or a newer house with a steel flue built in. This chimney type is identifiable by a 5” (130 mm) diameter flue and a steel flue terminal.
Fires suitable for Class 2 chimney are: Chewton Range, Asaba Range, Grosvenor Range, Whatley Range, Walther Range
Pre-cast flue
Modern homes genarally later than 1960 often have a pre-cast concrete chimney system identifiable by a rectangular box section flue and a terminal, as illustrated in the picture.
Fires suitable for Pre-cast chimney are: Chewton Range, Asaba Range, Grosvenor Range, Whatley Range
No chimney or flue
Modern houses often have no chimney. You can still use a modern flueless gas fire, powerflue gas fire, or electric gas fire.
Fires suitable for No chimney or Flue are: Flueless Range, Powerflue Range, Electric Fire Range
Fireplace Opening Dimensions: How will I know my fire will fit?
To check whether your chosen fire will fit measure the width (w), height (h) and depth (d) of the fireplace opening. To install a fire your backpanel must be flat and made from a non-combustible material.
If your fireplace opening dimensions are larger or smaller than the intended fire you may wish to contact a qualified engineer/builder who may be able to increase or decrease the opening dimensions to suit.
How do I decide which fire will heat my room sufficiently?
As a rough guide only, measure the room and multiply the height x width x depth (in metres), and divide this by 14. The result is the average heating requirements for the room in kW's.
Please note that the construction, insulation, furnishings and type and number of windows in the room must be taken into consideration.
What are the running costs of these appliances?
The running costs of each appliance can be calculated quite simply using the following calculation: Running Cost = Energy Input (gross) x Your Gas Bill Tariff.
Example: Energy Input (gross) 6.2kW x Gas Bill Tariff (gross) 4.27p/kWh = Running Cost 26.5p per hour.
Your Gas Bill Tariff figure can be taken from a recent gas bill. Alternatively, contact your gas provider for this information.
What safety features are incorporated into the appliances?
All gas fires are fitted with an oxygen depletion sensor (ODS), and all fires have a flame failure device (FFD), for complete safety and peace of mind. Certain appliances within the range have individual safety features detailed within our brochures.
What is an oxygen depletion sensor and a flame supervision device?
An Oxygen Depletion Sensor (ODS) detects when oxygen levels in the room fall below a specified safe level and cause the pilot flame to lift away from the sensing probe in response. This activates the flame failure device (FFD). The FFD cuts off the gas supply to the fire and renders your appliance safe.
Are the fires easy to light and operate?
As standard, all of our gas fires come with traditional rotary control; which incorporates a piezo spark ignition and is fully variable between the preset high and low settings.
Selected appliances in the range are available with a slide control or remote control option. The remote control option enables control of the appliance from the comfort of your armchair, a feature especially beneficial to the elderly, disabled or infirm.
Do our fires require a mains electrical supply?
No, our rotary control fires feature a piezo spark ignition and therefore do not require a battery or mains power supply to operate. Our slide control requires a battery ignition (supplied). Our remote control fires do not require a mains supply as the unit is designed incorporating ultrasonic technology which is battery powered (supplied). Powaflue appliances require a mains power supply to operate the fan extraction unit.
What ventilation is required?
No additional ventilation is required when installing our conventional open fronted gas fires. Your Gas Safe registered installer will draw your attention to any requirements which may lead to installation of additional ventilation e.g. gas fires with an input greater than 7kW require 8cm² of purpose provided.
These fires must be installed by a Gas Safe registered engineer in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.