Gas fires

[gaijingirl]

what does urban think about gas fires... this sort of thing - naff or ok?

We really wanted a (real) woodburning stove but that looks like an impossibility.

It's in a newly built extension. We could just have another radiator but I do like sitting in front of a fire. Would prefer a real fire but money/planning considerations are not in our favour.

or this kind of 3 sided glass thing:

or this:

You can buy gas fires that look like woodburners but that just feels like cheating.

Otherwise it'll be just another radiator.

 

[innit]

I like the top one, I grew up with the naff kind and it really makes sense to heat the room you're in not the whole house, we only have central heating and I spend winter shivering in the sitting room so the bedrooms don't get too hot.

 

[Vintage Paw]

I like the top one best too.

I've still got an old style gas fire (well, I guess semi-old style.

A bit like this:

I don't use it now, I only use the central heating. I've not had any problems heating up the wrong room. Each radiator has its own thermostat, so the ones in the living room are on quite high, the one in the kitchen is on very low, and the ones in the bedrooms are on sort of mid-way. The main thermostat is in the living room. It doesn't take much to balance them all appropriately. But that's neither here nor there wrt this thread.

I miss my childhood gas 'fire':

 

[Cid]

Woodburners are becoming far too common. Even clean burning ones er... don't. From an environmental POV; insulate well, use small amounts of gas or electric heating (or solar, but obviously that can be complex and expensive). Underfloor heating is nice to have and not that expensive to do.

That said gas fires from an aesthetic POV are pretty dull (as, obviously, are other above options)... You can't really gaze into them as you would a proper fire. They look nicer than a radiator, but there's no spit and crackle, no randomness to them. If it were me I'd do underfloor and put something interesting on the wall instead (kakemono maybe)... Unless in the middle of nowhere where I suppose a proper fire is fine.

e2a: though having said that I was looking at doing underfloor heating in my bathroom, which is probably relatively small. And gas is more of a pain in the arse. And if you've already put the floor in, obviously even more so.

 

[Siouxsie]

Have you thought about the Opti-myst range of electric fires.
My sister has one and they are a real mind f**k, they look like real flames with smoke provided by a tank you fill with water. It's ever so strange, you can put your hand in and there's nothing there, no heat, no flames...just smoke/steam. I'm not doing this justice.
For the eye and mind it's a real fire...In reality it's a total illusion, but a very convincing illusion...for all intense and purposes you are sitting in front of a real fire...but you're not
The heat is provided by an electric fan that can be adjusted with a remote control, there's 3 heat settings but she has it set on just light/flames...no heat but for some reason because you are 'seeing' a live fire your brain fools you into feeling warmer, it's so odd.
So if you want under floor heating but with the beauty of a real fire I highly recommend them....And all you need is a plug socket to use it.





And a 'log burner' one

Sorry got carried away with youtube...but they are mesmerising

 

[Vintage Paw]

That's witchcraft!

 

[bemused]

I've got one of those cassette type gas fires that slots in the wall with a glass front. I have a remote control to turn it on and off, with the glass front the sales stuff said it made is 70% more efficient open fire.

I love it, in the winter its very cosy, because it's a closed box I don't need to clean it.

My only gripe is that I can't use Alexa to turn it on - I'm that sad.

Looks a bit like this

 

[Sirena]

I've got a coal-effect gas fire. It was in the house when I moved in.

When it is going, it looks like a real coal fire and I think that is important (having been brought up in a real coal fire house). Too many of the modern 'coal effect' look really bogus as they sacrifice realness for chrome minimalism. Keep it real.....

 

[Chilli.s]

Opti mist?... sorcery I tell ye.

 

[pogofish]

I like the top one best too.



I miss my childhood gas 'fire':

I still have exactly that one in my living room. Didn't use it at all much for a few years as it had become prone to cutting out but last year, I found a new thermopilot online and replaced it, cleaned the burner and gas jet, now it lights/runs like new again!

 

[Chilli.s]

I read somewhere that burning a pair of shoes could produce enough heat to cook a hot meal and heat a room to sleep in on a cold winter night (think it was Russia) So when the zombie apocalypse happens my shoe cupboard and wood burner are going to be priceless.

 

[Vintage Paw]

I'd like to get rid of my old gas fire but it's part and parcel with a back boiler, and it'd mean some pretty serious and very expensive work to relocate a new boiler somewhere else in the house. I would like to get a new boiler - if it wasn't such a pain - since this one is very inefficient and they don't make the parts for it anymore, but as the gas man says each year when he comes to service it, it's basically made of one piece of metal and there are very few moving parts and they're actually very reliable. I've lived here 18 years and have only had to call them out twice in that time, and once was for the pilot light going out and I was too green to understand what that meant lol.

 

[Boudicca]

I have a gas fire, but most of the heat seems to go up the chimney, not much gets into the room.

 

[Siouxsie]

That's witchcraft!

Opti mist?... sorcery I tell ye.

Isn't it!...I couldn't stop putting my hand inside....you really can't believe your own eyes

 

[Vintage Paw]

Isn't it!...I couldn't stop putting my hand inside....you really can't believe your own eyes

Could this be weirdly dangerous for kids? In that, it could teach young'uns that it's safe to put your hands in fire?

There's got to be some kid and parent out there stupid enough.

I can see it now: Bob and Brenda invite the neighbours round to take a look at their new fire. "Watch this!" says Bob, as he takes off the glass front and sticks his hand in the flames. "You have a go, Trevor."

All the while, little Tilly and Gerald are watching from the banister, and next time they're at granny's house they see the fire is on. "Go on, Tilly," says Gerald. "Stick your hand in the fire like daddy did."

 

[starfish]

We've got a living flame gas fire & i love it.

 

[Siouxsie]

Could this be weirdly dangerous for kids? In that, it could teach young'uns that it's safe to put your hands in fire?

There's got to be some kid and parent out there stupid enough.

I can see it now: Bob and Brenda invite the neighbours round to take a look at their new fire. "Watch this!" says Bob, as he takes off the glass front and sticks his hand in the flames. "You have a go, Trevor."

All the while, little Tilly and Gerald are watching from the banister, and next time they're at granny's house they see the fire is on. "Go on, Tilly," says Gerald. "Stick your hand in the fire like daddy did."

That is the worry...you'd like to think people would have enough common sense, but that seems sadly lacking these days.

 

[gaijingirl]

I really wanted a woodburner and now it looks like gas - I don't think I can make the leap to electric. Next it'll be a live stream of someone else's fire. Those optimist ones are crazy though!

We do already have a coal-effect gas fire in a Victorian fireplace in another room - but this fire is going into a newly built room with no chimney breast so it will need to be a balanced flue fire (or flueless - but I don't fancy that). The other thing I was looking at is bioethanol fires - but I'd be a bit worried about those with small kids. They're pretty cool though.

Or I could just not bother.

 

[Vintage Paw]

Or I could just not bother.

This is usually the conclusion I arrive at after having meticulously researched something for several weeks. In the end the stress of not being able to come across the obvious Actual Correct Answer is too much and I fold entirely.

 

[gaijingirl]

This is usually the conclusion I arrive at after having meticulously researched something for several weeks. In the end the stress of not being able to come across the obvious Actual Correct Answer is too much and I fold entirely.

Yeah - path of least resistance.

 

[Leafster]

This is usually the conclusion I arrive at after having meticulously researched something for several weeks. In the end the stress of not being able to come across the obvious Actual Correct Answer is too much and I fold entirely.

The other factor, for me, which results in doing nothing, is my inability to find something I actually like which won't blow my budget. This happened with my attempt to buy a wood burner. I made the decision to get one three years ago, but, as yet, I still haven't got one.

 

[Lambert Simnel]

Why are people still installing gas fire in 2017?

 

[campanula]

I miss my childhood gas 'fire':

Mmm, still have that. I have a woodburning stove in my horsebox...but only because the wood is free. I recently went to buy some red cedar from a sawmill...which did a trade in firewood and just about wet myself on discovering the costs - £90 for what looked like half a tonne (it was a 'bucket' in a JCB...and fuck knows what sort of wood it was) - could have been sycamore. Had to conclude that woodburning stoves were some sort of lifestyle choice as it would cost a fortune to keep going. Even in the woods, I resort to anthracite if I want to keep it in for hours without fiddling with the firebox every hour or so.

I had a coal fire until 1992 when I abandoned the offspring and sweetheart to do a degree - felt bad they would all be coming home to a cold house so got CH from the council. Miss my coal fire immensely - I was still chucking rubbish at the gasfire for over a year before getting to grips with it...but I also love just turning a knob on without all that coalhumping and ashcan stuff.
I had calor for years but cannot recommend it. Shunting a heater around the freezy bedrooms (although that was better than nipping upstairs with a shovel full of hot coals(which I also did for years).

 

[Shirl]

what does urban think about gas fires... this sort of thing - naff or ok?

We really wanted a (real) woodburning stove but that looks like an impossibility...


You can buy gas fires that look like woodburners but that just feels like cheating.

Otherwise it'll be just another radiator.

Cheating or not I think it's nicer to sit around a (gas) wood burning stove. There are some really good ones around now made by the companies that make the wood burning versions. It's hard to tell the difference.

 

[ViolentPanda]

I read somewhere that burning a pair of shoes could produce enough heat to cook a hot meal and heat a room to sleep in on a cold winter night (think it was Russia) So when the zombie apocalypse happens my shoe cupboard and wood burner are going to be priceless.

When the zombie apocalypse happens, you need to schlepp round to killer b 's place and do away with him. His shoe collection will keep you in hot means for years!!! Truly he is a British Imelda Marcos!

 

[killer b]

Mate, you don't know the half of it.

 

[ViolentPanda]

I'd like to get rid of my old gas fire but it's part and parcel with a back boiler, and it'd mean some pretty serious and very expensive work to relocate a new boiler somewhere else in the house. I would like to get a new boiler - if it wasn't such a pain - since this one is very inefficient and they don't make the parts for it anymore, but as the gas man says each year when he comes to service it, it's basically made of one piece of metal and there are very few moving parts and they're actually very reliable. I've lived here 18 years and have only had to call them out twice in that time, and once was for the pilot light going out and I was too green to understand what that meant lol.

My parents have recently had their back boiler and accompanying gas fire removed because of inefficiency - basically they were using about 3 times as much gas as a combi-boiler would, and - as with yours - repairs were becoming difficult - so they bit the bullet. When the back boiler tank was removed, it was literally honeycombed inside with scale (my dad is "careful" with money, and wanted to clear the scale out so he could sell the copper to a scrappy).
All in all they spent about £2000, i think, on having a combi-boiler put in and commissioned/linked up to the existing radiator network, but they noticed a big reduction in their gas bill straight away - so much so that their supplier sent an engineer out to check they weren't fucking with their meter!

 

[ViolentPanda]

Mate, you don't know the half of it.

What, about the secret warehouse full of clothes? We've had you under surveillance for some time.

 

[killer b]

I actually think it might constitute a 'problem'. Does anyone really need 5 pairs of functionally identical black brogues?

 

[moonsi til]

I actually think it might constitute a 'problem'. Does anyone really need 5 pairs of functionally identical black brogues?

Gas or electric?