Gas, A Clean Fuel

There is a great deal of debate about fuels, ranging from Carbon pollution, cost of extraction and the effect on the environment. Gas is and always will be a very clean fuel. For example, when burning wood or similar solid fuel, small particles will be released (smoke). These are unburnt parts of fuel which are then wasted, you will also be left with waste by-products (ash).But when burning gas there are no particles released and your flue system stays, more or less, clean at all times.

Gas systems also allow you to easliy regulate the temperature in the house. With DRU gas fires this is all done via a Thermostatic remote control. All their systems are calibrated in the factory to ensure your fire runs as efficiently as possible. Wasting as little energy as possible and ensuring the maximum amount of heat is coming into the property rather than heating the outside world.

Gas is also, per kWh one of the cheapest sources of energy. It's no wonder really, why more and mroe consumers, both across the UK & Europe are choosing efficient, clean and attractive gas fires designed by Drugasar.

Adding to the appeal of DRU gas fires is that Europe is rich with gas, ourselves in the UK, as well as Norway, Holland and Russia all benefit from large reserves of gas, with expectations that further large reserves will be discovered in the future. Products such as gas fireplaces are becoming more and more efficienct, with up to 87% efficiency on the Metro 130. And with increasing advances in insulation, less and less heat is required to heat our homes. It is expected that for at least the next 100 years we will have sufficient gas reserves. However that does not mean we can take it for granted. This is also why Drugasar are always researching more and more techniques to extract more heat from the gas energy. One such addition is the MaxVent system popular with the Global range of gas fires. The complete Drugasar Range Of Gas Fires are available from Fireplace Megastore

Advise On Installing A Gas Fires

Acquisitions X-Fire 1200

All Gas Fires must be installed and serviced by a GAS SAFE Registered Engineer. The Engineer will survey your property and ensure that all requirements of the Installation Manual are met to ensure your fire is installed correctly and safely. All GAS SAFE Engineers are regularly audited by GAS SAFE to ensure they are working in line with current regulations.

We recommend that all gas fires are serviced every 12 months. This should be done regardless of how often the fire is used. There are number of issues which can effect a fire functioning correctly and safety - blockages in the gas pipes, gas leaks, chimney blockages etc.

It is easy to blame the gas fire when it fails to function however a very large amount of claims are not related to the gas fire. When a gas fire does not operate, the problem can be nothing to do with a fault within the gas fire. Below are some very common causes which will stop a gas fire functioning. Before making any claims please check these site related issues are not causing the problems. This will eliminate costly call out charges.

Drugasar Eclipse Suite

1. Gas Pressure - a common cause of a gas fire shutting down while it is operating is that the gas pressure is not correct. This problem can be more noticeable when switching on other gas appliances within the property like boilers etc. A drop in pressure will mean that the safety device on fire will shut the fire down to protect you. Contact Transco or your gas supplier regarding upgrading your gas pipe work.
2. Chimney Draw Is Too Strong - the draw on the chimney is causing the pilot flame to lift away from the thermocouple making the safety device to shut the fire down - Contact a flue specialist
3. Chimney Draw Is Too Weak - the draw is not strong enough, this could be because the chimney has become blocked, causing the fire to spill hazardous fumes into the room. This is very dangerous. The safety device senses the amount of oxygen in the air and will shut the fire down. - Contact a flue specialist.
4. No Power - A remote control fire needs a power source. If it is powered by a mains supply has the fuse blown or the power switched off? - Contact an electrician. If it is battery powered - check and change the batteries.
5. Incorrect Installation - All gas fires are supplied with an installation manual. This shows how to fit the fire in line with the manufacturer's instructions and the CE approval to ensure it is safe. Ensure you have a copy of the Installation Manual before starting to install a fire. The warranty will be invalid if the fire has been wrongly installed. When a fire is installed by a GAS SAFE Registered Engineer he will issue you a certificate showing the work that has been done and confirming that it is safe.
6. Flueless Fires - Flueless Fires have an excellent safety record. If a Flueless Fire shuts down after running for a number of minutes check all ventilation requirements have been met before operating the fire again. A vast majority of fires have a ODS unit fitted which will shut the fire down if the oxygen levels in the room reach a dangerous level.

REMEMBER - ALWAYS USE A REGISTERED GAS SAFE ENGINEER FOR ALL GAS FIRE INSTALLATION AND SERVICING WORK ASK TO SEE THE ENGINEERS REGISTRATION CARD AND IF IN DOUBT PHONE GAS SAFE.

Find a fantastic selection of Fires, Fireplaces, Stoves and much more from the likes of Fireplace Megastore, Fireworld, Fireplace Supermarket with House2Home Megastore also boasting a growing range of fires.

High-Efficiency Fires Help Gas Bills Fall By 2 Percent

According to British Gas, average gas bills fell 2% in the first three months of 2010, despite the coldest winter for a generation. The average gas bill – between January and March of this year – for the 8m homes supplied by the company fell to £373, compared to £381 in the same period of 2009.

A large part of the reason for this is that consumers are increasingly seeing the benefits of installing more efficient central heating boilers and gas fires. For example, if you have an open fronted gas fire that is over 5 years old, it could be as little as 25% efficient, using as much as 9.45kW of energy to generate only 2.4kW of heat, with the rest of the heat going straight up your chimney.Fireplace Supermarket's latest gas fires, such as the innovative Apex Capacious and Verine Orbis models are contributing towards this gas efficiency trend. They are incredibly energy efficient of up to 89% so under 5kW of gas being used to put 4kW of heat into your living room. This means that by upgrading your old open fronted gas fire to a high efficiency glass fronted fire, you can save 57% on your gas fuel costs and have 46% more heat.

Saving money through energy efficiency

With the UK's major energy suppliers bumping up their prices by up to 18% this winter, the belated arrival of the cold winds represents a great opportunity to look at ways of cutting your fuel bills.

The imminent announcement of a consultation on the government's Green Deal, which aims to help you make your home more energy-efficient, should provide an added incentive.
And there are lots of ways you can save money - in some cases a great deal - just by making a few simple upgrades to your home.
Some improvements cost virtually nothing and can take a matter of minutes to install; others require a bit of capital and expert help. Others still require small changes in habits that should more than reward the effort.
All are well worth considering. According to the Energy Saving Trust (EST), the average household could save about £280 a year on its fuel bills by being more energy efficient. Bearing in mind the average bill is about £1,300, that's quite some saving.
This equates to more than a tonne of carbon emissions every year, thus helping to combat rising global temperatures.
There are plenty of schemes around to help you get a better idea of what upgrading your home to make it more efficient actually involves.
Old Homes Superhomes is one such project, which is supported by the National Energy Foundation. Sarah Harrison, head of Eco-refurbishment, says the scheme can help people understand not just the financial benefits of so-called retro-fitting, but also how upgrading homes can improve your quality of life.
Insulation When it comes to energy efficiency, the smallest measures are often the most effective, so insulation is a good place to start.

Top tip

The most cost-effective energy efficiency measure you can use is to place kitchen foil behind your radiators to reflect heat, according to the National Energy Foundation.

Doors and windows can then be sealed quickly and easily using self-adhesive foam and rubber strips, and draught excluders. Seal up any gaps between your floors and skirting boards and, together, these measure could save you more than £50 a year, according to the EST.

Next look at insulating your loft and walls properly - about a third of an uninsulated home's heat is lost through the walls, and about a quarter through the roof.
Walls will require varying degrees of works depending on their construction, but proper insulation can save hundreds of pounds a year. Just topping up your loft insulation can also shave a substantial amount off your annual bills.
Also look at secondary and double glazing - almost 20% of heat loss from the average home comes from windows.

Heating Upgrading old electric storage heaters to modern alternatives can save you more than £100 a year, and in some cases considerably more.
Replacing an old, inefficient boiler with an A-rated condensing model could save as much £300 a year, although you will have to decide whether this is worth the £1,000 to £2,000 cost of buying and installing one.
Even fitting a room thermostat could save you more than £50 a year.
Energy-efficient behaviour You may scoff at the point of turning off appliances when you're not using them, but add up all the savings and they can be worthwhile.
For example, switching plugs off at the wall and avoiding standby mode on TVs, computers, stereos and the like, together with switching off lights when you don't need them, could save you almost £50 a year.
Wash your clothes at 30 degrees instead of 40 and don't use a tumble dryer in the summer, and you could save another £30.
Upgrading appliances/electronics If you need to replace any domestic appliance, then it may be worth spending a little extra to get the most energy-efficient model you can afford. Some fridge/freezers with an A+ energy rating can be incredibly affordable.
They are all rated by law, from A to G, so you can tell how efficient they are. However, there is a great deal of variation within these bands, so also make sure you look at the specific figures on energy consumption. Some appliances, such as dishwashers and washing machines, also have grades A+++, A++ and A+.
Very roughly, a new efficient appliance could save you between £20 and £40 a year on energy bills, according to the EST.
More modern consumer electronics are also more energy-efficient. And if you're looking for a new television, bear in mind that LED TVs are more efficient than LCDs, which in turn are a good deal more efficient than Plasmas, according to Which?
Not strictly an appliance, granted, but replacing old incandescent light bulbs with energy efficient versions can save you £3 a pop.

Energy generation and renewables These measures aren't about upgrading what you already have, but investing in technologies that allow you to generate your own energy.
As a result, they can be quite expensive, which is one of main reasons why the government is launching its Green Deal.

Feed-in tariffs are available for domestic energy generation

One way is to use wood to heat your home. According to the EST, replacing electric heaters with a wood pellet heating system could save as much as £580 a year.
Carbon emissions would also be reduced, as the carbon dioxide given off when burning is offset by the carbon absorbed by the tree from which the wood was cut.
Solar panels are another popular way to generate power, and can typically provide about three-quarters of an average home's electricity needs.
Wind turbines are an alternative that, if situated in the right part of the country, can provide more than enough electricity to power a typical home.
Government feed-in tariffs mean you get paid to generate electricity, and for selling any excess to the main grid. In fact, one turbine could generate savings and income of more than £3,000 a year including tariffs, the EST says.
Another option is heat pumps, which take heat from the air or the ground but which need electricity to run. In some cases, these are better at saving on carbon emissions than money.
You will need to calculate the payback time carefully when deciding whether to invest in any of these technologies. But remember that if you sell your home, the buyer can also benefit from the cost savings, which can add to the value of your property in their eyes.

New Legend Open-Fronted HE Fires

Legend Fires have released the new Virage range, a range of open fronted, high-efficiency gas fires, taking all the best bits of the already popular Vantage range and combining it with the high-effiency of the Evora range to create the new Virage fires.

These new open fronted gas fires offer a maximum heat output of 4.6kWand efficiency of up to 68%, these open fronted gas fires give a similar efficiency rating to that of a glass fronted fire, but without a glass front, which can be viewed as a major advantage over the glass fronted fires.
You don't have to worry about cleaning glass that has condensation marks and no reflections from the glass possible detracting from the look of the overall fire.

The Virage range are available in three different styles, the Virage HE, Virage Contemporary HE and the Virage HE 4 Sided gas fires. These fires are all avaiable in Brass, Polished Chrome and Black with the choice of five different fuel effects, choose from the standard coals, pebbles with the options of a new ripped coal fuel effect as well as the choice of modular coals or pebbles.

The Virage HE 4 Sided gas fire looks stunning with the polished chrome trim with coal fuel effect and black outer trim, the beautiful contrast between the polished chrome, the black interior and exterior trim, especially when placed on a white or pale coloured wall really makes the fire stand out. The picture right shows the fire on a feature chimney breast in a plain white finish, contrasting the feature wallpaper either side, really drawing attention to the fire.

Comes with Manual rotary control as standard with additional extra Slide or Remote control, Suitable for Class 1 chimney's & class 2 prefabricated flues running Natural gas only available and with Depth of 195mm fully inset, the Legend Virage Range of High Efficiency Convector fires are a must for those looking to save energy but not interested in having a glass front on their fire.

Now available from all good fireplace retailers such as Fireplace Megastore, Fireplace Supermarket & Fireworld

New Range of High Efficiency Cast Iron Inserts

Anyone browsing through the current gallery brochure will come across a range of H/E (High Effiency) gas fires availble with the Pembroke, Jubilee and Lytton casts. These are a nice change from the traditional cast iron arch gas fire which is normally advertised as "decorative use only", basically meaning that a majority of the heat (and money to run the fire) is being wasted straight up the chimney and outside, not normally the aim of a gas fire indoors.

The High Efficiency range combine the traditional and amazing focal point of a traditional cast iron arch with the modern glass fronted technology to offer something that not only is rustic and built from such a tangible material as iron but also offers a heat output comparable to a standard inset gas fire.

There is nothing better than sitting in front of a lovely warm fire, I find that you even feel that extra bit warmer knowing that most of the heat is coming into your room and not just being wasted up the chimney.

Gallery have decided to make these non internet sold items and therfore must not be sold by distance selling, this is part of a plan to allow shops to have a range of fireplaces exclusive to them and it also means that purely internet based companies cannot undercut the market.
These items are now available from the Fireplace Megastore showroom in Deeside, North Wales

NPower joins the rise

npower has become the latest gas and electricity provider to increase its domestic prices with fixed rates for the next two years, blaming the decision on "world events [which] have pushed up prices".

From 1 October, the average dual fuel customer will see an increase of 37p per day. Single fuel customers will see a 15.7% rise in fees for gas and 7.2% for electricity.

Kevin Miles, chief commercial officer at RWE npower – which is part of the RWE group that owns npower – said: "I know it hurts everyone when we put up prices and I wish we didn’t have to.

“With reduced quantities of North Sea gas, we are now forced to buy energy on the volatile global wholesale market. World events have pushed up prices and we believe this trend will continue.

"In the UK we have also seen rising distribution and network charges, and further environmental costs but we have still managed to keep our increases lower than those announced by any other major supplier," referring to companies including British Gas, Eon and SSE.

Is our long love affair with the fireplace bad news for the planet?

Chris Bowlby examines Britain's attachment to the fireplace and its impact on the climate.

In the debate over how to reduce our carbon emissions, much is made of areas like transport and power generation. But energy use in the home – which also has a substantial impact on emissions – has received less attention in policy-making and public debate. And there may be good historical reasons for this.

Previous attempts to reduce our energy use at home reveal a fascinating mix of factors – from Victorian scare stories to the public’s deep-seated fear of the unknown – that make pushing through environmental changes such an arduous task.

Dr Stephen Mosley of Leeds Metropolitan University has researched widely in the history of air pollution in Britain, and one of his central themes is the intense British relationship with the domestic coal fire.

The noxious environment of Britain’s urban centres wasn’t just caused by industry, but also by domestic heating. Yet while factory chimneys became symbols of pollution, coal fires were little blamed. The ‘homely hearth’, notes Dr Mosley, was the centrepiece of most homes, “the hub around which family life revolved”. Or as a German diplomat put it in 1904: “The fireplace is the domestic altar before which, daily and hourly, he sacrifices to the household gods. This is why the English have never thought, and will never think, of relinquishing the fireplace.”

So just as today’s governments are reluctant to declare war on the car for environmental reasons, so Victorianand Edwardian governments, says Dr Mosley, “similarly feared the repercussions of passing legislation that interfered with the citizen’s freedom to enjoy the hugely popular institution of the open coal fire”.

Popular Victorian scientific theories simply reinforced our attachment to the fireplace. ‘Re-breathed air’ in occupied rooms was assumed by many to contain putrefying ‘animal refuse matter’, a kind of organic poison. The fireplace, with its brisk ventilation, was seen as an often include provision for a “woodburning stove”.

So we are left today with much housing stock that is highly energy inefficient, as small numbers of solar panels are stuck on draughty Victorian and Edwardian buildings. And many of their occupants remain reluctant to accept official advice on saving energy and using renewable sources – and question the science on which such advice is based.

Climate change campaigners now face similar challenges to those who led the crusade against coal fire pollution. A lesson from history, suggests Stephen Mosley, is that “persuasion doesn’t always work”. In the battle for what we might call hearths and minds, it is carbon more than cleaner energy that has truly fired the domestic imagination.

But it's not all bad news, while an open chimney can be drafty and help carry incredible amounts of heat out of the room and into the atmosphere, this doesnt meant we should block it off and just rely on central heating and replace it with a television (something that has become all too common), with High Efficiency gas fires (or even balanced flue is it's an outside wall) the amount of heat escaping is dramatically reduced while also reducing the cost of heating the home.

Beautiful fires, designed to allure

Choose a Verine fire and all your expectations will be fulfilled. Elegant, sophisticated and designed to perfection. Verine fires are all this and more. Crafted to not only captivate and beguile, they are built to the highest standards, are energy efficient and perform brilliantly.

Verine fires are built to last in our state-of-the-art UK manufacturing facility where our quality standards meet the most stringent demands.
That’s why Verine are able to offer an impressive 5 Year Guarantee on all gas fires. Every fire in the range features a Flame Supervision Device (FSD) which detects the presence of a flame, and in the absence of thatflame, prevents uncontrolled release of gas to the burner. For maximum safety each conventional flue model also includes an Oxygen Depletion Sensor (ODS) which shuts off the gas supply to the main burner in the unlikely event of a fault.

For over 45 years Verine have sold quality products and given quality service, elegance and innovation to the fireplace industry. Specially appointed retailers have been established nationally to display our products, install them and give expert advice to help you choose the correct appliance to suit your needs. We want you to get the maximum benefit from this expertise and therefore recommend you avoid purchasing any Verine product over the internet, especially from companies not located in your area who are unable to offer the highest levels of aftersales service.

From design stage to manufacture every effort is taken to produce an appliance that will
provide exceptional and continued standards of safety and performance. Every fire is assessed
and approved by leading independent organisations and rigorously checked by our Quality
Control department before leaving our state-of-the-art facility.

Fires such as the Da Vinci and Distinction offer a complete fireplace suite in stunning stone, while still offering an amazing 83% efficiency rating, while fires such as the Alpena, Midas and Quasar offer a stunning Verine fire for a standard size opening.
The range is topped off by the stunning Carmelo HE If you’re looking for extravagance combined with exceptional heatoutput then the Carmelo HE is the ideal gas fire for you. With a viewing area measuring 1145mm along with an enchanting flame picture this hole-in-the-wall fire is cer tainly a show-stopper, and with a heat output of 6.5kW and 75% net efficiency it provides exceptional performance too. What's more this fire can be installed almost anywhere in the home since it uses a balanced flue system with a choice of horizontal flue, ver tical flue or chimney conversion flue kits available to choose from. Both log and white stone fuel beds are supplied with every fire

Give Your Home A Free Check-Up

If you are looking for ways to stop wasting energy and money you'll find lots of ideas here. The Energy Saving Trust is a non-profit organisation that provides free and impartial advice on how to save energy.

The Energy Savings Trust are currently offering a free online evaluation of your property to allow you to see just how much energy you can save by making some improvements to your home, and unlike many other similar reports, it doesnt just give you how much Carbon Dioxide emissions you could reduce, it also gives you it in quids, mulah, money and that really does hit home. Especially with the rising British Gas prices that for dual fuel households already stands to add some £200 + to your annual heating bill.

The check just requires a few details such as the terrain your house is situated in, how many rooms etc, but once this has been completed you can choose to either have the report emailed to you or posted out, below you will see part of the report I recieved:As you can see I could save up to £346 per year and reduce my carbon footprint by over 2 tonnes by doing simple things such as upgrading a boiler (something I'm saving up for) making sure my loft is insulated as well as suggesting slightly more expensive options such as solar water heating or Solar Photovoltaic panels on the roof heat heat my water or generate electricity.

This report only takes ten minutes but the savings could be unfathomable and just think where you could spend that money you've saved.

Fuel Costs Per kWh

As fuel prices rise, rise and rise some more more and more people may be facing fuel poverty, I frequently get asked what is the cheapest fuel to run? Gas or Electric? If i'm going for solid fuel should I buy a pellet stove?

With the help of BioMass Energy Centre who have provided the following graph and related research and documentation show that wood chips are the cheapest per kWh at just 2.6p followed by wood pellets at 3.9p per kWh, this is followed closely by natural gas at 4.1p per kWh. Surprisingly its heating oil next at 5.6pence per kilowatt hour.

After heating oil there is quite a large jump to the next priced fuel. LPG when bought in bulk comes in at 8.2p, a massive 4pence increase over natural gas, which actually comes as quite a shock. I'd have thought it would be quite similar, with LPG being possible 1-2 pence more expensive due to how its delivered.

Last but not least comes electricity, at a shocking (pardon the pun) 13p pence per kWh, more than treble that of natural gas and woodchips or pellets.


Fuel Price per unit kWh per unit pence per kWh
Wood chips (30% MC) £90 per tonne 3,500 kWh/t 2.6p/kWh
Wood pellets £185 per tonne 4,800 kWh/t 3.9p/kWh
Natural gas 4.1p/kWh 1 4.1p/kWh
Heating oil 56p per litre 10 kWh/ltr 5.6p/kWh
LPG (bulk) 54p per litre 6.6 kWh/ltr 8.2p/kWh
Electricity 13.0p/kWh 1 13.0p/kWh

So if you're looking for an energy efficient heater or fire we'd recommend that you'd look for a pellet stove such as the Aga Fusion(left) that can be programmed to come on up to 3 times a day or for a gas fire such as the Apex Capacious HE which boasts up to 89% efficiency when running on natural gas to make the most out of the fuel you're using.


Note: All prices are prone to significant variation with geographical region, order quantities, overall contract size and duration, time of year, delivery distance and time, etc. Woodfuels in particular are available at prices both significantly above and below those quoted, and bulk prices will be subject to a minimum delivery size of perhaps 3-5 tonnes. Wood pellets bought in bags may be significantly more expensive than those bought in bulk.

Manufacturer Insight: Charlton & Jenrick

Back in 1986 two friends (Bill Jenrick & Barry Charlton) going through a mid life career crisis decided to start their own business in the fireplace industry. Both experienced in running multinational companies and extensive experience in the gas industry they set about the daunting task of starting a new business.

With the help of Telford & Wrekin council (then the Telford Development Corporation) they got their first premises, a 150sqft room in the Telford Business Development center on Stafford Park and Charlton & Jenrick Ltd was born.

Twenty four years later the Charlton & Jenrick Group returns to Stafford Park, once again with the assistance of Telford & Wrekin council. The new premises, although just a stones throw from the original premises, are very substantially larger at 42,000sqft. It will be home to the group's gas fire manufacturing and product development operations, which employs 43 people.

The group is now a major player in the fireplace market employing over 120 staff across 3 sites in the UK and sales in excess of £12m. With it's 4 main brands, Katell, Paragon, Fireline & Matchless they are involved in almost all product groups including gas and electric fires, timber, marble & stone fireplaces and suites plus wood burning stoves.

Their customer base includes around 500 independent retail shops, local authorities, major national house builders and contractors.

The new premises on Stafford Park 2 offer increased efficiencies and the room for planned growth.

The full range or Paragon, Matchless and Katell are available to order from the Showroom at Fireplace Megastore with a number of items on display, combined with a number of brochures available giving access to see the full ranges.

What Is A Combi Boiler?

A combi boiler provides heating and hot water directly from the boiler.

Here’s an example of a central heating and hot water system layout using a combi boiler:

A combi (or combination) boiler is an ingenious space-saving idea, and an increasingly popular choice in UK homes. In fact, combis now account for well over half of all the new domestic boilers installed in Britain every year.

A combi boiler is both a high-efficiency water heater and a central heating boiler, combined (hence the name) within one compact unit. Therefore, no separate hot water cylinder is required, offering space saving within the property.

Further benefits of a combi boiler are significant savings on hot water costs and the fact that hot water is delivered through your taps or shower at mains pressure. So you can enjoy powerful showering without the need for a pump.

Another combi boiler benefit is that it can generally save you money on installation time and costs, since no tank in the roof space means less pipe work and a shorter installation time.

Combi Boilers such as the Worcester Greenstar 24i Junior 100280 Combi Boiler offer up to 90.1% efficiency and boast a grade A efficiency rating and gives a maximum heat output of 24kW to the central heating system and offers instant hot water as well as a keep hot feature.

Ideal for smaller homes and apartments the 24i Junior offers 9.8 litres per minute of hot water at 35 degrees. It also boasts highly flexible flue options and a wall-mounting frame to hide the unsightly pipework.

It also boasts a variety of control options ranging from the basic mechanical to the all-singing, all dancing digistal that features automatic daylight savings time adjustment, 24 hour functionality as well as a programmable room thermostat to accurately control the temperature of the house.

And a recent survey revealed that 9 out of 10 professional installers would choose Worcester for their own homes*. All of which gives you the reassurance of knowing that when you invest in a
Worcester product, its quality is endorsed by the professionals.

As domestic boilers currently account for 21%* of the UK’s total CO2 emissions, the fact that a Worcester condensing boiler also delivers dramatically reduced emissions of both CO2 and NOx (Nitrogen Oxide) helps in the battle against climate change. All Worcester Greenstar boilers are within class 5 – the lowest of the 5 categories – for NOx emissions.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Chris Huhne has recently announced plans to introduce regulations ensuring that landlords would face minimum energy efficiency standards under the Green Deal.

Under the proposals, from April 2016 landlords will not be able to refuse reasonable requests from tenants to improve their property.

From April 2018 the government will make it unlawful to rent out a house or business premise with less than an E energy efficiency rating.

At least 682,000 properties will have to be improved as a result of the new proposals.

The Green Deal is the coalition’s national plan of home improvements to make houses and businesses cheaper to run through better energy efficiency.

From 2012, people will be able to access finance to pay for the upfront cost of work which will be paid back through savings on lower fuel bills.

The government believes the proposals will help the most vulnerable as more than a quarter of a million of the worst insulated rented homes are classed as fuel poor.

Huhne said: “Our proposals provide a voice for tenants living in poorly insulated, draughty homes. The Green Deal is a win-win opportunity for landlords by removing the upfront cost of work to upgrade the property, making it cheaper to run, more environmentally friendly and ultimately more attractive to rent.

“For those landlords who don’t take up the Green Deal, then we will get tough so that by 2018 the poorest performing rented housing stock is brought up to a decent standard.”

This is great news for the increasing number of people renting because they simply cannot afford to get onto the property ladder yet. I certainly have experienced the disappointment of signing a contract to rent a property in summer and then having to pay over the odds to heat it during the winter due to inefficient heating.

Verine Midas HE Gas Fire

The Verine Midas HE is an incredibly efficient and versatile slimline inset fire. It is suitable for virtually any chimney or flue allowing people to experience the glow and aura of sitting in front of a living flame gas fire.

The Verine Midas HE is a glass-fronted, inset gas fire that boasts an incredible 89% efficiency rating and includes safety features such as an oxygen depletion sensor and a flame supervision device, both of which increase the safety of the fire considerably.

This Verine fire boasts a 3.2kW maximum heat output, this is both convected and radiated heat. The radiated heat comes directly from the fire, much like a radiator. While the convected heat is provided via an air channel around the back of the fire, this allows air to travel behind the fire and heated before exiting at the top, this natural air circulation helps move the warm air around the room.

This trim on this fire is available in five different styles, Profile, Slimline, Designer, Curved and Essence and these are available in brass, silver and black with the designer trim available in a variety of combinations. The trim is not the only part of this fire that comes with a choice of finishes, the front fret detail is also available in five different styles, Blenheim, Bauhaus, Edwardian, Media and Elegance. Again, much like the trim these can be ordered in Black, Polished Steel or Brass with the Blenheim trim available in an additional antique finish.

This wide range of finishes and trims provides the ultimate flexibility to allow the fire to order the fire to coordinate with the existing decor of the house, meaning this fire would work well in either a traditionally furnished or the most avante-garde and up-to-date of living rooms.

The fire illustrated above would look great in a more modern living room with lighter coloured walls and a marble or limestone surround, The Midas HE is fitted with the Designer Stainless Steel Black trim and the Polished Elegance Fret. The darkness of the black painted areas contrasts and highlights the polished stainless steel sections areas, this creates a very modernist finish, draw attention to the dancing flames and the realistic coal fuel effect. This helps the fire become the focal point of the living room and when lit allows the heat and warmth project out into the room and fill the living room with the warm glow so eagerly sought after during the cold winter months.

Replacing An Old Back Boiler With A Baxi Bermuda

Replacing an old Back Boiler Unit (BBU) with a new Baxi Bermuda BBU High Efficiency couldn't be easier and a straight forward process. One of it's main advantages is that existing pipe work can be used. This means that the entire system can be replaced in a single day, this means minimal distruption, little need for expensive redecoration and unlike wall mounted hung boilers the back boiler system takes up very little room.


In addition, according to the Energy Saving Trust, the householder can expect to save around £235 per year on their gas bill by replacing an old boiler with a new A-rated model. The Baxi Bermuda is currently the only high efficiency back boiler unit to achieve a grade A efficiency rating


The package includes a state-of-the-art Valor Dimension Dream electric fire featuring the very latest patented hologram technology to create an extremely lifelike coal effect fire.

Esse Firewall Flueless Gas Fire

The Esse Firewall is a designer range of flueless gas wall hung fires that are available in 41 and 48 inch widescreen versions. These fires feature catalytic converter technology that allows the fire to achieve 100% efficiency, only giving out Carbon Dioxide and Water vapour. These cutting edge fires feature a 10 year catalytic converter guarentee and are not susceptible to flue blockages or downdraughts which are problems for conventional flued appliances. These problems can cause the build up of dangerous Carbon Monoxide if not checked on a regular basis.

The Esse Firewall range are available in an ultra stylish black glass finish with a realisitic dancing flame effect. The 41 inch widescreen version provides 2600w of heat and the 48 inch widescreen version has a heat output of of 3.5kW, both bring warmth and style to any wall and can be located anywhere there is a gas supply.

A must for any contemporary living space with the stylish black glass finish and optional remote control allowing for easy operation of the fire from anywhere in the room. The Firewall Widescreen is easily mounted on most internal walls allowing for use as a unique and eye-catching focal point in kitchen, study or games room.

Apex Capacious High Efficiency Gas Fire

The Apex Capacious High Efficiency Gas Fire is a more efficient version of the traditional inset gas fire featuring a glass front and an efficiency rating of 89%, a vast increase over the normal 30-40% efficiency range of an open-fronted fire. This, united with the 4.4kW heat output rating mean this fire is more than suitable to warm the typical living room.

It is commonly assumed that placing a piece of ceramic glass in front of a fire would decrease its efficiency it is the draw that causes heat to be sucked out of the room. High efficient gas fires not only have a glass front, but also a convector box. This is a channel which goes from the front base of the fire to the front top of the fire, wrapping the engine of the fire, this channel will allow cold air to enter underneath the fire and heat-up as it rises around the burner. This then leaves the fire as convected warm air through the convector grill. You also have the glass front which means that the glass holds the heat within the fire box for longer allowing it to escape into the room through the convector channel, finally the Glass although ceramic heat proof does allow the radiant heat from the fire to heat the room.

The Apex Capacious HE combines modern technology allowing for a more efficient heating of the room with a versatile range of finishes and frets to create either a traditional or contemporary finish to the fire. For a traditional finish (as displayed in the picture) a brass trim is the best choice, combined with the Indiana Antique Brass fret to create a very traditional feel. This effect would be emphasised if the fire was placed in a traditional looking fire surround such as the Bemodern Hampshire Fireplace Surround. The light or medium oak colours of the wooden surround work well with the Manila back and hearth set to harmonise with the brass finsh to highlight the deep colours of the coal fuel effect and fireback and really draw attention to the living flames.

For a more modern and contemporary finish the silver trim and the Apex Washington or Apex Alabama chrome trim can be combined to give a very modern finish with strong lines and eye-catching silver finish. This striking modern fire when combined with the Allwood Milano 4 Step Fireplace Surround with the contrasting black granite hearth and back set and natural oak finish combine to make a very modern and contemporary focal point of most living rooms.

Benefits Gas and Electric Heating through Fires and Radiators

Gas and Electric heating in homes is always presumed to be less efficiency than the Central Combi Boiler heating systems, this is incorrect, dependant on your own home lifestyle. Take for example a standard 3 bedroom house with the usual Husband, Wife and 2.4 Children, the homes upstairs is used for only 34% of the day as most are in work/school or other activities outside of the upstairs of the house. Now narrowing this down, over 60% of home usage is the Kitchen and Living room, because of this it is not very efficient to burn gas to heat every room on the home if the Living room and Kitchen are the most used during those periods.

The most efficient way of heating your home it to use the Combi central heating to produce a back ground heating source to provide a minimal temperature in the home (Usually around 16 degrees Celsius). As you go into each of these rooms, you should rely on another heating source to boost the heat to the required temperature as needed. This system has been promoted massively recently by British Gas and the UK Energy Saving Trust in Advertising lowering your combi by just 1 degree. Reducing your room temperature by 1°C could cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent and typically saves around £55 per year. If you have a programmer, set your heating and hot water to come on only when required rather than all the time.

This is also much better in providing quicker heating to the room in need of it, if you up the temperature of the boiler it will take upto an hour for the overall temperature in the whole house to rise to the requested degree. While instead of heating and wasting the heat in the whole home, you just turned on the fire in the living room, this would heat up within around 15mins in the average sized home and not waste heat in other rooms which weren’t being used.

What is the efficiency of an Electric Fire?

Electric Fires and Heaters are all 100% Heat Efficient, while the ligting will depend upon the bulbs being used, if you go for a standard bulb it will be around 60% while LED fires like the Drugasar Metro 120e, will be around 90%. Over all LED electric Fires are around 95% efficient while standard Electric fires will be 80% efficient on average, but there is one major factor which no one but the most successful hippies are aware of, most of northern Europe are not able to use Electric as a source of heat, because regardless of how efficient the product is the efficiency of creating the electricity in the first instance is around 40%. This means that although from getting the electric in your home, to the product there has been no wastage, the initial wastage to produce the electricity is 60% so the overall productivity is reduced by a large volume. In most of Europe coal is still a large source of energy but the heat produced from this is very rarely used to it full capacity, because of this the governments have decided that burning the fuel itself in your own home means that you will take full advantage of the potential energy supply from the fuel. This all make sense to most people in the UK however the UK government do not advertise this nor take it into consideration with any of their efficiency calculations.

Led versions again have an advantage. A single kilowatt-hour of electricity will generate 1.34 pounds (610 g) of CO2 emissions. Assuming the average light bulb is on for 10 hours a day, a single 40-watt incandescent bulb will generate 196 pounds (89 kg) of CO2 every year. The 13-watt LED equivalent will only be responsible for 63 pounds (29 kg) of CO2 over the same time span For those who have a very loud jiminy cricket on their shoulder then Electric models should be avoided. Unless Purchasing the New Apex Eternal High Efficienct Electric fire which uses only 4 watts to create its flame effect!