Media Wall Gas Fires

The parts of a media wall gas fire, in plain English

• Balanced flue fire: the fire most media walls use. Sealed from the room, it takes its air from outside and sends its fumes outside through one concentric pipe straight through the wall behind it.
• The flue: a short pipe, usually horizontal, cored through the outside wall directly behind the fire. It has to come out in a permitted spot, clear of windows, doors and the neighbour's boundary.
• Gas run: pipework from the nearest gas supply to the fire position. Run inside the stud wall before it's boarded.
• The opening: the hole in the media wall the fire sits in. The size comes from the fire's instructions, and the joiner builds to it.
• Clearances: every fire needs a set gap to combustible materials above and beside it. A TV above needs a specific clearance too, and some fires need a heat deflector.
• Non combustible board: fire rated board around the opening rather than standard plasterboard, and no timber inside the clearance zone.
• Ventilation: balanced flue fires usually need no room vent, which is one reason they suit media walls.
• Controls: most media wall fires are remote controlled. Some need a small mains connection for the ignition.
• Spillage and tightness tests: done at the end, like any gas fire.
• Certificate: the written record of the installation, tests and the fire fitted.

What's involved, and who does what

• Before the wall: we look at the plan, confirm the fire will go where you want it, and mark the flue exit and the gas route. Ten minutes that saves a rebuilt wall.
• First fix: the gas run goes in and the flue hole is cored while the studwork is open. The joiner then boards up around it.
• Joinery: the media wall builder builds the frame, the opening, the TV recess and the finish. They don't touch the gas or the flue.
• Second fix: the fire goes into the finished opening, the flue is connected through the wall, the gas is connected.
• Tests and handover: gas tightness test, fire lit, flame checked, spillage tested, clearances confirmed, controls demonstrated, record written. One visit for first fix, one for second, unless the gas point already exists.

Honest advice: what's overkill

• A fire so wide the TV has to sit too high: the fashionable one metre wide fires push the TV up the wall. A 750mm fire looks the same in a media wall and keeps the TV at eye level.
• A very high output fire: a media wall fire is there for the look and a bit of warmth. Three or four kilowatts is plenty; anything more cooks the TV.
• Fitting the fire after the wall is finished: it can be done, but it means cutting into a finished wall for the gas and flue. Plan it in first and it's cheaper and tidier.
• Electric because "gas can't go in a media wall": it can, on any outside wall and most internal ones with a bit of planning. If you want a real flame, have a real flame.
• Worth paying for: the first fix visit before the joiner boards up. It's the difference between a fire that's exactly where you wanted it and one that's where the flue could reach.

When to get in touch

Before the joiner starts. Send the plan or a photo of the wall and tell us whether it's an outside wall, and we'll say which fires will go in and give you a fixed price. Message me for a fixed price