Replace Gas Fire with Electric

The parts of a gas to electric swap, in plain English

• Gas fire: disconnected from the gas, unbolted from the fireplace and removed.
• Gas point: the pipe the fire was connected to. It's capped with a permanent fitting, not just turned off, and the pipework is tightness tested afterwards.
• Chimney or flue: no longer needed. A chimney is usually left open with a vent, or closed up by a builder later. A balanced flue hole in the wall is capped and made good.
• Electric fire: inset fires sit in the same opening as the old gas fire, wall fires hang on the wall, stove style fires stand on the hearth. Most are 1 to 2kW heaters with a flame effect.
• Power: many electric fires plug into a normal socket. Inset and media wall fires usually need a fused spur, a dedicated switched supply on the wall behind the fire.
• Fused spur: a small switched outlet wired back to the consumer unit or off an existing ring, with its own fuse. This is the NICEIC part of the job.
• Flame effect: LED lights and a mist or a screen that mimic flames. No heat needed to run it, so the flame can be on in summer.
• Heater: a fan heater inside the fire. Runs at 1kW or 2kW, roughly 30p to 60p an hour on current tariffs.
• Certificates: a cap off record for the gas and an electrical certificate for the spur.
• Old fire disposal: taken away and recycled.

What's involved on the day

• Gas off and out: gas isolated, the fire disconnected and removed, the pipe capped and the whole system tightness tested. About an hour.
• Opening prepared: the fireplace opening cleaned and checked against the new fire's size. Some electric fires need a trim or a small infill panel.
• Power sorted: a socket used if one is close enough, or a fused spur wired in and tested. A new spur adds an hour or two depending on the route.
• Electric fire fitted: secured in the opening or on the wall, connected, switched on and tested, flame effect and heater both checked.
• Handover: controls and remote explained, cap off record and electrical certificate left with you, old fire taken away. Half a day for most swaps.

Honest advice: what's overkill

• Closing up the chimney straight away: a capped chimney with no vent gets damp. Leave it vented, or have it capped at the top and vented at the bottom. Not our trade, but worth knowing before a builder quotes you.
• A 2kW fire in a small room: the flame effect is the reason most people go electric. The heater is a bonus. A 1kW fire heats a small living room fine and the flame looks the same.
• A fused spur where a socket will do: if there's a socket within reach of the fire's lead and it's a plug in fire, use it. A spur is for fires without a plug or where the cable can't be seen.
• Paying a fireplace shop to arrange the gas removal: the gas cap off is a Gas Safe job. Shops subcontract it and add their margin. Book it direct.
• Worth paying for: the fused spur, if the fire is going in a media wall or a tight opening. A trailing lead behind a media wall is ugly and, worse, hot.

When to ask for a price

Once you've chosen the electric fire, or if you just want the gas fire gone, send a photo of the fireplace and we'll price the swap. Message me for a fixed price