Old world stoves bring to mind traditional country kitchens and cosy corners of thatched cottages. But you don’t even need to live out in the countryside to have a gas stove fire and all the vintage decor that goes with it. No need to store, carry and load solid fuel, to have a gas stove that has all the atmosphere and ambience of the real thing.
But the gas stoves popular in the UK at the moment aren’t all traditional designs, by any means. Contemporary styles and innovative technological advances mean that you are free to have a stove in your city apartment, your seaside home or your terraced townhouse. And it can look like an old stove or a really modern state of the art version.
If you don’t have a chimney, there’s the option for a balanced flue gas stove fire, which will exclude the draughts from the operation of the appliance and so keep your gas super-efficient. In this type of stove, there are two pipes that allow the air to circulate so that the fumes are drawn safely away from the living area. It's really safe and efficient.
This kind of gas stove needs to be fitted to an external wall, so that’s something you’ll have to account for when you’re deciding what model to choose. You’ll also want to ensure that the size of the room is adequate for the safe fitting of this kind of fire. If you have a chimney, then you can go for a regular conventional gas stove, which will either vent through the top or through a rear outlet pipe. A balanced flue gas stove has minimum requirements for the living space it’s fitted into, as ample air needs to circulate. You'll have to do the calculation to be certain.
When you’re weighing up which gas fire is going to suit you budget-wise, bear in mind the cost of installation as well as the purchase of the stove itself. It’s a legal requirement that a licensed and registered professional heating engineer fits any gas stove to ensure all safety regulations are met. This also applies to ongoing annual maintenance. These costs shouldn’t be overlooked when you’re budgeting. Add to that any potential building costs and alterations that might come into play to ensure the hearth and fireplace fit snugly and beautifully into your home.
That can sound like gas is an expensive option. However, remember that the actual running costs of gas are generally a big improvement on, say, electricity. In fact, it’s recommended that if you’re heating a whole home, you have gas central heating as the main source, with the fireplace as an additional feature, whether gas, electric or solid fuel.
The contemporary designs of gas stoves are a dream to modern interior decoration. The beauty of the flame is hard to beat. There are slim models as well as wide statement gas stoves, which means that whatever space in your home is looking to be adorned with a new gas stove, you’re likely to find a perfect model from our product pages.
You’ll be able to choose not only the look and feel of the stove exterior, but also the flame’s height and intensity, the colour and style of the coal or log behind the glass, and so on. Stoves come in white as well as black, so there’s really no limit to the options you have.
Have fun choosing the gas stove of your dreams. It’ll give you many warm years of family snugness.