With winter sharply approaching, keeping rooms warm will become more top of mind for architects and building designers. Stephanie McDonald reports on the ins and outs of gas fireplaces.
Although home heating can largely focus on passive design elements, heating products like fireplaces still remain popular as both an efficient means of heating and also a decorative feature.
Gas fireplaces are a more environmentally friendly fireplace than wood-burning fireplaces and can be installed through a flue or unflued - a flued fireplace releases any air pollutants or water vapour from the fireplace through a chimney or flue. On the other hand, an unflued fireplace releases any pollutants into the room. Due to the possible health hazard associated with unflued fireplaces, most gas fireplaces on the market come in flued options only.
An eternal flame
Real Flame specialises in gas fireplaces for both heating and aesthetic purposes. Its decorative fireplaces include the open-fronted fireplace the Heatseeker, which has the traditional feel of fireplaces. Meanwhile its glass-fronted fireplaces — the Pyrotech and Captiva — are for heating purposes.
“Our fireplace range allows us to offer units that can be retro-installed into an existing fireplace location using the existing flue. We also have units that are fully insulated and can be installed into a new home construction or new locations using traditional timber frames,” says Wesley White, NSW business manager at Real Flame.
All Real Flame’s gas fireplaces are flued externally. “This is a big benefit, ensuring your room remains comfortable and fresh, rather than being deoxygenated, making those enjoying the heater tired or drowsy, a drawback of the plug-and-go gas heaters that can be purchased from your local retailer,” White says.
“Our Captiva series goes one step further and actually works completely independently of the room atmosphere, making it ideal for home owners who either suffer allergies or are sensitive to changes in the environment.”
Depending on the model, Real Flame’s fireplaces can be flued vertically or horizontally. This gives the builder flexibility in where the fireplace can be positioned. The company’s fireplaces range from 600 mm to 1,000 mm wide units, with each fireplace fully customisable to suit different house styles, from traditional to federation or modern.
When specifying a gas fireplace, White says designers need to first decide if the product is going to be used as a decorative feature in a room or for heating purposes. Next, the room size needs to be determined, as the size of the fireplace depends on the size of the room. The fireplace model is then chosen and finally, the colour and finish detail is decided.
“Recently a terrace in Surry Hills was renovated and the owner wanted the fireplace to be the main feature of the lounge room as they both enjoyed music more than the TV,” White says. “Our Heatseeker unit was fitted within a two pac polyurethane cabinet and our Powerflue option allowed the unit to flue out the front wall of the home rather than impacting on the upstairs bedroom. The TV was recessed above the fire for movie time.”
Daniel Belnick, marketing manager at Jetmaster, says designers also need to look at how heat from the fireplace will circulate around a home. This can affect how to flue or vent the fireplace. “Flueing terminations are vital and mistakes are made here. Also, checking gas pressure in the unit is vital for optimal performance,” he says.
Beyond the horizon
Most of Jetmaster’s fireplaces are installed into standard plasterboard and timber framing with vertical or horizontal flues. Its Universal series burns wood or gas, so these units require basic Hebel blockwork inside the plasterboard and framing.
Jetmaster manufactures the Horizon range with an optional power flue for horizontal terminations. The range also offers horizontal flue runs up to 10m, with three 90 degree elbows.
Forty double-sided open Jetmaster fireplaces were recently installed in the Wolgan Valley Resort & Spa chalets, which was the first hotel in the world to achieve carbon neutral certification.
“Another project which is currently ongoing is the Vintage Resort Spa at Pokolbin in the Hunter Valley. Around 40 of the Horizon double-sided range [is going in], which is a low profile, double-sided unit with gas pebbles,” Belnick says.
Moving ahead, trends for gas fireplaces will see the product continue to evolve into a more energy efficient one. White says he sees demand for sustainable products from both consumers, who are becoming more aware of sustainability and the increasing cost of living, and also from designers, whose projects have to meet BASIX requirements. To meet this demand, Real Flame has several fireplaces which carry a 4.5 star energy rating.
White says gas fireplaces are also becoming more popular as a decorative feature. He says, “formal lounges or seating areas in particular lend themselves to featuring a nice fireplace that everyone can sit around, relax and feel warm and welcomed.”
