Professional Fireplace Fitters Verses Registered Plumbers Is There A Difference?
Perhaps one of the most challenging tasks involved with purchasing a new fireplace is trying to locate a suitable installer. Almost all customers we speak to clearly know that gas fireplaces must be fitted by registered gas safe installers by law. This is simply a legal requirement that was introduced to prevent mass fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. For this reason it is a legal requirement to have a competent tradesmen install all gas appliances (including cookers, heaters and fireplaces). At Creative Fireplaces we work with competent fitters and are often asked if it is possible to install the fireplace yourself or if a registered plumber/builder would be suitable:
1. If you are fitting an electric fireplace, then all you need to do is simply plug the fire into a standard 13amp socket, and there is hence no legal restrictions stopping you from fitting the fireplace yourself. If you do not feel confident installing the fireplace, then a simple handyman or tradesman of any reasonable skill level will be able to assist you in doing this job. Marble fire surrounds (especially our products) tend to be very heavy and need a minimum of two people when installing at a minimum.
2. For all gas fireplaces, it is possible to fit the fireplace yourself and have a competent tradesmen install the fire for you. However there is a big difference between a regular fireplace fitter and a plumber.
Fireplace fitters are more like decorators and are used to neatly fitting fire surrounds. This means they are clean and they have attention to detail. Registered plumbers (even Gas Safe engineers) may be more used to fitting central heating systems, which are far less decorative than a fireplace. It is hence in our opinion always useful to recommend competent tradesmen experienced with the job at hand for your task.