Putting the Finishing Touches to your Electric Fire

Electric fires are incredibly popular in today’s drive towards efficiency and passive houses. Heat will always be an important factor when buying or building. However with the advent of passive houses the cold is kept out. This in turn limits the need for excessive heat sources such as wood and multi fuel stoves. Ventilation, insulation and renewable energy systems such as solar and air to water systems are fast becoming the mainstream method of heating your home.

Electric fires have filled this market well with incredibly realistic fires. We carried out a quick visual survey on our Facebook page to see who could tell the difference between a real wood fire and an electric wood fire. The results were surprising with a lot of people getting it wrong when asked to distinguish between the two. You will always have your more traditional customers who love a real fire but the reaction to the quick survey demonstrated the leaps and bounds these fires have come in recent years.

I am going to discuss the materials and designs available to finish off your electric fire. Options to make your insert or cassette style fire look like a bespoke made to measure stunning focal point in your room. Firstly the format of the fire is important this is your starting point for the design. The glass options range from single sided, double sided, three sided and four sided. Another aspect to this is the style or size of the fire.

• Inset, these are the more traditional electric fires that would be built to fit a 16” or 18” fire opening.

• Cassette electric fires are usually bigger and come in panoramic formats. You can also get more traditional cassettes that are made to fit fireplaces these are generally bigger in size than an inset.

• Wall Hung or Suites: These are the simplest to install they are very similar to television in that they are hung on the wall, connected to a power source and essentially good to go. “Suites” come with surrounds built in and give you a stylish look right out of the box.

Once you have decided upon the fire its time to get into the design phase. The beauty of electric fires is the versatility of the materials. With heat producing stoves your choices are limited to avoid combustible materials and materials that can split or warp. An electric fire opens up the option of using a wide range of materials and incorporating TVs or electric devices close to the fire.

The False Brace

This option is a great way to create a bespoke look in your home. A false brace is created floor to ceiling to house the fire itself eliminating the need for a chimney or any major building work. A lot of designs now come in panoramic options of a meter plus. This is usually a lot wider than a standard fire opening. The false brace is made by ourselves out of MDF finished to a high standard with mitre joints to leave perfectly finished corners and scribed to your wall left ready to paint. The brace can house not only your electric fire but also your television, sky and sound equipment. We would measure your room and take a measurement of your TV and build it made to measure for your home. You would then be left with an MDF brace that is a blank canvas to either paint and leave flush into the wall or go for another look (see image below). If you have left space in your wall for a cassette fire, please ensure you do not plaster around the fire until it is fitted.

Cladding

Stone and wood cladding can add a further layer of character to your design. Cladding is a versatile way of decorating around the fire. Giving the room character by using woods, such as pine, cedar, driftwood etc. Our most popular option has to be stone cladding that can be used to create a traditional country cottage feel in your home. Here at Spratts we can get a wide range of cladding that can be used to create a wide range of beautiful looks for your home. Our fitters will measure and fit the cladding and leave your electric fire looking perfect.  

Granite and Marble

A floating hearth is a great way to turn an electric fire into a centerpiece within a room. The floating hearth frames the fire beautifully. It can be extended into a bench, window seat and allows for cupboards underneath your fire for more practical and stylish storage. One of the benefits of electric is it’s cleanliness. No coal, ash or smoke and this really opens the doors to the type of hearth you can use. With stones that are more porous or even bright white being perfect to finish off the fire.

Room Dividers

When it comes to double sided fires, there is only really one contender on the market at the moment. That is the Dimplex Optimyst Pro 1000. This is a great option if looking to create a focal point in an open plan space using a room divider. The Optimyst requires a water line to be brought in first this allows for the steam effect. The fire itself will be held in place by a custom made steel footing and frame to support the unit and hold the glass. You can then match your look within your new home or contrast the room as a spectacular feature.

This gives you a taste of what we can offer here at Spratt Fireplaces, everything you see here we can fit from start to finish. All the stone work, carpentry and metal work can be carried out in house, all under the one roof giving you peace of mind and making the road to building your new home our home improvements a little less stressful. Contact us today on (074)91-24144