Gem, Elise 540, Studio 3 gas, Cottage renovation

Gem, UK
February 25, 2019

Tell us about your project

Our home is a very old terraced cottage that was built in 1864. When we bought the cottage, it was rather run down and in need of some love. We had plans drawn up to extend the house on both the ground floor and the first floor and to also to convert the attic into useable space. The renovation took us 6 months in total and we finally completed the work in the summer of 2018.

Were there existing fireplaces in place before your renovation? Talk us through the installation process.

There were two existing fireplaces in the house but we only ended up keeping one of them.

The one that we kept is in our snug. When we purchased the house, the fireplace in there was rather small, so we had the builders open it all up to make enough room to fit in a wood burner. Then we got in touch with a fire installer, who came and lined the chimney for us and installed the hearth, mantle and the wood burner. It was really easy and only took him 1 day.

Due to the new internal layout that we had created for house, we unfortunately had to remove the second chimney, however we did still want a second fire in our open plan space. So in this room, we built a fake chimney breast and decided to go with a gas fire inset into the new chimney. As this was being built from scratch, we could design the whole thing, so we worked with our builders and fire installer to come up with a drawing of how we wanted it. The fire installer then built it all for us and installed the fire. The new chimney is sat on an outside wall, which allowed us to pop the flue for the gas fire straight outside with a balanced flue, which was very handy indeed!

Which products did you choose and why?

We knew we wanted a wood burning stove in our front snug and we absolutely fell in love with the Elise. We wanted something that had a modern feel and the Elise literally couldn’t not have been more perfect. We also loved that she came in a black finish, as we didn’t want a traditional cast iron stove look.

For our open plan, we went with the Studio Edge gas fire, as again it has a really modern feel and we loved how long it is and also the fact that it is frameless. It just worked perfectly for the size that we had for the chimney breast and the look that we wanted to achieve. We also loved how many options it comes with; there are lots of choices for how it can look internally.

What do you like most about having a gas fire?

The gas fire is amazing, we love how it makes a big open plan space feel very cosy and inviting. It really kicks out some heat too, so we know we will never ever be cold sat in that space. I think aesthetically it also creates a real statement in the room, but without being overpowering and taking over the room completely.

What do you like most about your wood burning stove?

We absolutely love the look of the Elise, but aside from that we just love the cosiness that having a wood burner creates in the room. Again, she is also a great size, so really kicks out a great punch of heat, which is perfect for those cold evenings.

What is it like owning a low emissions Ecodesign Ready stove?

We really try to be a ‘green’ and ‘eco-friendly’ household, so it’s amazing that we managed to find such a beautiful contemporary looking wood burner that is also friendly on the environment. The stove also burns really efficiently and we only need to use a couple of logs to keep us toasty all night!

What advice would you give to anyone else renovating their home?

Plan ahead. You literally cannot do enough planning in advance of starting the project. I really think that the more that you have decided on ahead of the build, the easier (and less stressful) the whole experience will be. This is down to the smallest of details too… the things that I try to think about are where things are going (furniture etc), how we are going to use and live in the space and finally about what specific items we want to put in.

Fires are actually a great example of this… we needed to know upfront before we started the work which fires we were going to be putting in our house. The reason for this is because the gas fire in the open plan needed a gas feed running to it and that needed to be put in very early on in the project at the first fix plumbing stage. For the wood burner, we also needed to plan, because we were opening up the fireplace to fit the wood burner in, so we needed to know the dimensions of the Elise to know that she would fit!

Which is your favourite room in the house?

Our snug! I just love how cosy it is and how peaceful it feels in there. We can go in shut the door, light the fire and really relax. It is our little piece of tranquillity within our home.

Follow Gem on Instagram, and be sure to keep up to date with her home improvements on her blog.

*Always ensure that there is the required distance between your stove and any combustibles. It’s important to refer to your instruction manual for the minimum clearance distances for your own model of stove.*

Social Media: @athomewithgem

Please note that Stovax & Gazco accept no liability for their installation suitability, safety or building regulations conformance. The images shown on these pages are from real independent homes, many taken before installation is complete, and these form no basis of an installation recommendation by Stovax or Gazco. Please consult the complete installation instructions for your chosen product and consult with an appropriately qualified person for your own installation.