User Guide Installation and Use Information
1. Installation
Fireplaces, gas and electric fires are complex products and consumer safety demands that they be installed and operated correctly. Our Goods are supplied solely on the basis that they will be installed on your behalf by an experienced and, where necessary, fully qualified installer. We can provide a list of local installers upon request, but it is your responsibility to choose to a suitable installer either from that list or from a suitable alternative source such as the National Fireplace Association, HETAS or the Gas Safe Register. Your contract for installation is between you and your installer and we shall have no liability to you in respect of such installation.
You should note that your installer will not decorate, plaster, fit carpet or undertake carpentry unless you agree this with them.
Installation will be made by your installer on the understanding that a suitable chimney or flue is available and in good condition unless the Goods include a chimney, suitable flue component and/or a chimney fan or is a power flue or a flueless appliance.
In the case of a solid fuel or gas flue/chimney it is your responsibility to have such flue or chimney swept and certified as being sound prior to installation. We do not accept any liability in respect of your flue or chimney unless it is supplied by us. If a chimney is found to be unsound, it may require lining at your expense. This may be undertaken by your installer. You should ensure that your installer conducts a final chimney test prior to leaving your property to ensure suitable clearance of products of combustion. We cannot be liable for any change in the updraught or for any spillage which occurs during or after installation. Following installation, the Goods should not be used until any new plaster surfaces have completely dried out. You should ask your plasterer how long the plaster will need to fully dry out but this is usually a minimum of four weeks. We cannot be held responsible for the effects of any drying out or shrinkage of plaster which is an unsuitable material for the purpose or does not comply with the appropriate building regulations or with good practice.
We are happy discuss installation and technical requirements with you prior to purchase of the Goods. Any technical advice given however is based on our understanding of the information you supply and cannot be relied on without a site survey undertaken by a competent person.
2. Use of Goods
It is your responsibility to have the chimney swept regularly after installation. In the event that the Goods are damaged by rain, water or debris ingress this will not be due to a defect in the Goods and we shall not have any liability in respect of such damage. In the event that rain, water or debris is getting into the chimney we recommend that a suitable chimney cowl is fitted. The quality of your chimney or flue is your responsibility and we recommend that you check its quality regularly.
The manufacturer's User and Installation Instructions supplied with each gas or electric fire or fireplace have primacy over any advice or instructions given by us or our agents whether verbally or in writing.
Flueless gas appliances supplied by us have been successfully tested and approved to European Standards and may therefore be installed against most wall coverings and materials and other suitable surfaces. See Installation Instructions for full details. If unsure, you should always refer to the manufacturer of such wall coverings or materials to confirm that they are suitable for use with a heating appliance.
Painted and finished surfaces may discolour during use due to heat. This is normal. Metal surfaces require regular protection against moisture. It is important to follow the cleaning and use instructions provided to keep the Goods in good condition.
Some gas and electric fires utilise remote control components which are powered by batteries. It is the user's responsibility to replaced exhausted batteries when necessary at the users' cost.
Where appropriate, a fire guard should be used, especially when the young, elderly or infirm are present.
3. Efficiency
It should not be assumed that a new gas or electric fire will provide more heat or efficiency than the appliance that it may replace.
Electric fires are said to be 100% efficient, but this does not take into account transmission losses between the power station and the home, which can be as high as 70%. Our flueless fires, on the other hand, are 100% efficient. Even allowing for the room air vent that is required by law, the most effective SAP2005 (energy efficiency) ratings for new-build houses are achieved when a flueless fire is specified, when compared to any other gas fire.
Nearly all conventional fires lose some of their heat through a chimney. Just 20% of the heat generated by a traditional open solid-fuel fire reaches the room, while an open decorative gas fire is typically 30 to 50% efficient.
When an open solid-fuel or gas fire is not in use it can take existing room heat from sources such as radiators and storage heaters. It should not be automatically assumed that a new gas fire will provide more heat than an existing appliance as technical specifications vary from genre to genre.
Flueless fires, while extremely efficient, should not be regarded as a primary source of heat. We recommend they be installed in conjunction with an additional form of heating, such as central or under-floor heating. Decorative fires are also a secondary source of heat.
All our open and flueless gas fires are fitted with an oxygen depletion sensor and are CE marked for use in the UK and the Republic or Ireland.
