Fireplace Fitter Ponders End Greater London (EN1): A wonderful way to add a bit of character and a welcoming feel to any house in Ponders End, is to reopen an old fireplace to install a multi-fuel, open or wood burning fireplace. Provided that there's a good source of timber, adding an open fire or multi-fuel stove for those freezing winter evenings could even prove more cost effective than conventional central heating systems. Combine your fireplace with a back boiler and you will benefit from supplies of endless hot water for even more savings.
Before you go chipping away at a bricked-up chimney there are some things you'll need to think about to ensure you can install your new fireplace in a safe and efficient way. To start with, Part J of the Building Regulations will have to be adhered to in relation to the installation and construction of any fireplaces, chimney breasts, flue linings and hearths which are part of a combustible appliance in your property in Ponders End. If your home in Ponders End is a listed building or stands in a conservation area, planning permission could also be necessary before work can begin. You will have to check with the local authorities about this.
PROFESSIONAL FIREPLACE INSTALLATION OR DIY?
If you're a keen do-it-yourselfer it might be quite possible to refurbish a bricked-up or closed-off fireplace, but the chance of encountering structural problems in many cases is high. When you reveal the old fireplace, you could be lucky and find that to get a fire roaring once again, it needs nothing more than a thorough clean out of the hearth and a sweep of the chimney. However, what you'll likely find is a patch of old bricks that conceals issues such as a blocked chimney or a lintel that requires replacement.
If fireplaces are installed incorrectly there is not just a fire risk to your home, but there can also be health hazards, which is why it is best to employ a certified Ponders End installation team for a fireplace. A key part of the Building Regulations for fireplaces is that sufficient oxygen is available in a room for the fire to burn efficiently and safely. Insufficient oxygen means that the fire won't burn properly, and a build up of carbon monoxide could occur, which can cause death.
It could be necessary to install airflow vents in walls and floors to enable the fire to get sufficient oxygen to burn safely and effectively all the time. To improve airflow within blocked or unused chimney flues, the fireplace installation team might need to install flue vents to stop moist, condensed air becoming trapped and causing stains and damp areas.
BEFORE WORK COMMENCES
A huge amount of soot and grime can be discharged from an old chimney upon reopening it for renovation. A decent Ponders End fireplace installer will bring covers for your home furnishings and provide a bit of protection, but it is advisable where feasible to remove woven floor coverings and furniture from the area before work starts. If you are performing a complete renovation of a room or property, the fireplace should be opened up and worked on before any decoration or plastering works are tackled. This should help to prevent any impairment by soot and other chimney dirt to any completed work.
STRUCTURAL AND CONSTRUCTION WORK
Now that you are able to see the opening of your fireplace it's time to clean and sweep the hearth and chimney and figure out what is fit for refurbishment. The first job on your to-do list will be to bring in a decent Ponders End chimney sweep. They'll not only make sure your chimney and flue are completely clean, but they can additionally take a look at the state of the flue liner and existing chimney and provide guidance about whether you need to replace any section of the flue and chimney.
Construction might be required to reinforce the original chimney and breast, and it might be necessary to fit a new flue liner. All this work will need to adhere to the latest UK Building Regulations which are of course there for your own safety. This is not likely to be the type of work that you can do yourself, so you'll need to employ a competent builder with experience in good construction techniques and is acquainted with the Building Regs.
It's possible that a steel or concrete lintel will have to be installed, if the dimensions of the exposed fireplace is wider than your needs. When this has been completed the next step for your fireplace installation in Ponders End should be to upgrade the hearth. The situation with fireplace hearths has changed quite a bit down the years, and whilst in the past hearths were quite often set into floor voids, they now need to be laid slightly above the normal floor level if you are to abide by the current building regs. You could think about asking your Ponders End fireplace builder about a tailor-made, bespoke hearth that will match the design and style of your dwelling, or if your fireplace is of a standard size, there is a wide array of ready-made options in granite, marble and concrete.
FIREPLACE STYLES
A quick browse online or a visit to a fireplace showroom will demonstrate the alternatives available for the different fireplace designs and styles. It's recommended to follow the expert advice of the fireplace installation team, since all fireplaces will not be suited to your particular flue, chimney and airflow conditions.
A multi-fuel stove or a wood burner might be suitable for some rooms and dwellings in Ponders End, while an open fireplace will be more appropriate for others. For example, a wood burner looks marvelous set back in an inglenook fireplace, highlighting the character of the stove and deflecting any heat that is generated into the room effectively.
For dwellings in Ponders End that don't have an existing chimney, a wood burner stove is a great option. As a stainless steel flue can be taken through an external wall and doesn't need a chimney structure, it is still possible to put in this form of fireplace.
OPEN, MULTI-FUEL, ELECTRIC, WOOD OR GAS FIREPLACE?
A flickering fire on a dark evening delivers a charm and ambience that simply cannot be beaten, however what are the other available options to fit in your lovely new fireplace in Ponders End?
Electric Fireplaces - Simple installation and a varied choice of styles make electric fires an extremely popular choice for Ponders End houses that don't have a chimney breast. Modern electric fires can deliver convincing looking flames and and sometimes even the sound of crackling wood to replicate an open fire when set into into an old fashioned fireplace.
Wood Burning Stoves - These devices can be freestanding where needed, and there is a broad selection to suit any period of house in Ponders End. They can provide steaming hot water to heat radiators or for use in your home, if used in tandem with a back boiler.
Multi-Fuel Stoves - To establish an eye-catching centerpiece in your living space, these can be used with a selection of fuels, such as wood, coal, gas or oil. Some types, such as the multi-fuel stoves from AGA, can also be used for cooking, providing hot water and heating your entire house.
Gas Fireplaces - Gas fireplaces are superior to wood burning stoves when it comes to their thermal efficiency, and there are a wide array of sizes and designs to suit any home in Ponders End. Gas fireplaces must only be installed and maintained by a suitably qualified Gas Safe registered technician, (previously CORGI registered).
Open Fireplaces - This is the traditional fireplace, creating a great focal point for your room, and can be used to burn different solid fuels, such as briquettes, coal, anthracite nuts nuts and wood. An open fire is a delight to the eye and contemporary fireplaces are no longer the draughty, inefficient and smoky items that they once were.
Fireplace installation work can be undertaken in Ponders End and also nearby in: Brimsdown, Sewardstone, High Beech, Clay Hill, Chase Side, Friday Hill, Freezy Water, Forty Hill, Bullsmoor, Sewardstonebury, Gilwell Hill, as well as in these postcodes EN3 7EL, EN3 4NJ, EN3 4SG, EN3 4TJ, EN3 4EF, EN3 7AT, EN3 4AJ, EN3 4ZD, EN3 7JG, and EN3 7SL. Fireplace installers from Ponders End will usually have the postcode EN1 and the telephone dialling code 020. You should verify this if you prefer to use a local fireplace builder. If you would like to obtain any aspect of fireplace installation info for your region, simply click on the "QUOTE" banner or form.
Chimney Cowls Ponders End
A hood-shaped cap for your chimney pot, a chimney cowl adds draft and helps to stop backflow in your chimney system. It fits over the chimney pot to keep the wind from blowing smoke back down, and is normally made out of galvanised iron. A chimney cowl can be found in a builder's merchants or online. Whether you choose to invest in a new one or make a pre-existing one work better, a cowl will keep your stove or fireplace working efficiently.
A chimney cowl can also help protect your home and keep you secure. There are numerous types of chimney cowl on the market, each has been developed to address different problems. Before you buy one, think about a few factors to make certain you get one that will help protect your home. When you know what you need, you can then pick a chimney cowl to suit your needs and budget.
Chimney cowls are also available that are made from commonplace products, such as a steel bucket or stainless steel colander. Ordinary chicken mesh can also be used to make a fairly effective cowl. Clay flower pots also make good chimney cowls. These products can easily be purchased on the internet or at your local hardware store.
Chimney cowls are an easy way to prevent birds from nesting in your chimney and blocking the whole thing up. They are inexpensive and simple to install. You should ensure that you have easy access to the space above the chimney stack in order to install one. It can also stop debris from accumulating inside your chimney.
Flue Liners
A chimney liner or flu liner is a vital addition to the chimney structure on your house, enabling it to function a lot more efficiently and improving the safety of your chimney. Running the whole length of a chimney, flue liners are conduits made from a variety of materials including ceramics, clay or metal. They transport smoke and fumes outside your home. Some chimneys in older homes in Ponders End might not even be fitted with a flue liner, or if the current lining is damaged, might have to be relined.
Burning fires create harmful gases which can damage and eat away at the flue inside your chimney. You can either ask the sweep to inspect it for damages whilst your chimney is being swept and cleaned, or alternatively you could ask the fireplace builder to assess it. Rather than expelling those harmful gases outdoors, a damaged flue lining can enable them to leak into your home. When a flue liner is defective it can also expose the chimney structure to extreme heat, which can increase the potential risk of a house fire.
Friends & Family
When you have a project or undertaking that necessitates hiring a contractor or service in Ponders End, asking friends and relatives for recommendations is always a good idea. When it comes to identifying someone who's ideal for your requirements, person to person referrals are often the best method, and are equally effective for weeding out companies with a lousy service records, and third-rate contractors.
Asking an acquaintance or member of your family for advice also means that you can discover if anything went wrong, how speedily faults were put right, and what the contractor's attitude was like. Moreover you can get an insight into the time keeping and reliability of the fireplace fitter. They should also also be in a position to provide you with information about how the final price measured up when compared to the original estimate that was given, details which are often difficult to extract from the contractors directly.
Seeing as your family and friends are individuals you know and can depend on in regards to their advice, they ought to be your first point of reference. If they have had an unsatisfactory experience in dealing with a particular contractor or fireplace installer, they might be reluctant to discuss them in any detail. And a lot of people, instead of 'maligning' a poor company who they have had dealings with in the past, may even offer an alternative contractor, because they're happier recommending a decent business than an inferior one.
Ponders End Fireplace Related Tasks
The range of tasks and services that can be conducted by your local fireplace installer are wide and varied, and will include stuff like oak beam fireplaces, chimney lining, brick fireplace installations, traditional fireplaces Ponders End, period fireplaces, fireplace inserts Ponders End, wood burning fireplaces Ponders End, classic fireplaces in Ponders End, fireplaces, fake fireplace installation in Ponders End, cast fireplace installations, hearth fireplaces in Ponders End, open fireplaces, made-to-measure fireplaces, elm fireplaces Ponders End, inglenook fireplaces, chimney repairs, brick fireplaces, the installation of chimney cowls in Ponders End, the installation of outside fireplaces in Ponders End, gas fireplaces in Ponders End, Victorian fireplaces Ponders End, wood burning fireplace installations, designer fireplaces Ponders End, chimney sweeping, fireplace replacement, fireplace services, electric fireplace installation, fireplace removal in Ponders End, inset stoves, chimney strengthening, fireplace cleaning Ponders End, stone fireplace installations, fireplace packages in Ponders End, fire grate conversions in Ponders End, freestanding stoves, and others unlisted.
Leaving a Review for a Job Well Done
Customer reviews are the driving force for any Ponders End business, and an exceptional online review can mean the difference between a prospective customer appointing a fireplace company, or moving on to a competitor. It's helpful for them if you could leave a positive review when they've done a decent job or offered a great service, and it is useful for others too. This has benefits for both the company itself and for possible future customers who are considering employing them. You might cast your mind back to how reviews helped you to decide when you were first searching for somebody to do your work. Even if you considered a company with an outstanding website, you might well have looked at other providers if this early promise was not corroborated by some decent customer reviews.
However how can you really be certain of customer reviews on a business's website? Are they provided by "real" customers or by a member of the company aiming to promote their services?
The best way to find sincere and authentic reviews is to go through the Google My Business reviews. For discovering the reputation of any company, this is THE review website that is trusted all over the world, and the search engine rankings of a company website can also be affected by the results. You could also try Bing Places for Business when trying to leave a review for a local company in Ponders End, and this is by far the most significant competitor of Google My Business reviews. You will be able to help to boost the profile of a company that worked successfully on your fireplace installation project by writing and posting a good review here, and in the process generate a rundown of the trustworthiness and working standards that they exhibited.
Company reviews can also be posted on Twitter and Facebook, which are excellent spots leaving feedback. These social media platforms can be incredibly influential and will form a key part of the marketing and promotional advertising of most small companies in Ponders End. Your supportive reviews will help strengthen their promotional message.
Whilst a hand-written letter of thanks is considered a little bit 'old school', this is still entirely acceptable. Letters like this are still handy, even in an online world, and can be photographed in for use on websites. No matter how your review is created, you will feel great knowing that you have done your bit to help out a local small business who gave you good service.
Searching On the Web For Fireplace Installation in Ponders End
There's little doubt that your first instinct when trying to find a service or tradesman in Ponders End is to use the web and "Google it". With well known search engines such as Yahoo, Ask, Bing or Google, you'll be able to get a number of on the spot results. What you'll soon realise is that such favoured search engines churn out listings that are relatively varied. When trying to find fireplace installers in Ponders End, you'll most likely type "fireplace installation Ponders End", "fireplace installation near me", "Ponders End fireplace installation" or "fireplace installation in Ponders End" into the search engine and see what results this displays.
It is best to be aware that the four top results are quite often "paid for" advertisements and many of the remaining results on page one are going to be business directories like Foursquare, Yelp, Three Best Rated or Yell, or entries for major lead creation sites such as My Hammer, Bidvine, Checkatrade, Quotatis, Rated People or TrustaTrader. Without big budgets for search engine optimization so as to advance their websites further up the ratings, the majority of fireplace installers will be out of sight on the 2nd or 3rd pages of the listing results. Obtaining free estimates, reviews and client appraisals on a tradesman vetting site like Rated People or My Hammer can make things clearer, since there will be tradespeople working with these platforms who don't yet have their own business websites or associated social media profiles.
Fireplace Installers Near Ponders End
Also find: Chase Side fireplace installers, Clay Hill fireplace installers, Sewardstone fireplace installers, Brimsdown fireplace installers, Gilwell Hill fireplace installers, Freezy Water fireplace installers, Bullsmoor fireplace installers, Sewardstonebury fireplace installers, Forty Hill fireplace installers, High Beech fireplace installers, Friday Hill fireplace installers and more. There are people who install fireplaces in most of these towns and localities. In your home, these versatile tradesmen can put their know-how and expertise to use for successfully installing fireplaces. With these dedicated experts at their service, residents can bask in the comforting and warm atmosphere a fireplace brings to their living spaces. By clicking here, fireplace installation quotes are available to local property owners. Therefore, there's no reason not to get started on your fireplace installation straight away!
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