Electric flame effect fires

One of my daughters has one of these in the dining part of her large kitchen/diner. She first had the chimney swept and a cowl fitted. She painted the inside the of that fire place black and when this fire is alight it looks like the real thing.

Water vapour gives the effect of smoke rising from it. She can have it on for this sort of effect without actually having the heat in it on.

Visitors can be so much taken in in thinking it the real thing, she has to tell them NOT to try to throw anything into it.
She uses it sometimes first thing in very cold winter mornings to give an immediate good heat whilst waiting for the normal central heating to take effect.

I love them, we have had one for years and many people think it is a log 🔥 fire. Pretty realistic. We do have a genuine log fire in another room which we light when it is really cold and dark outside. Great when you get power cuts !

I have an electric suite, which I tend to use in the winter only as a back up to GCH. We use the lights more than anything, to make the room cosy.
I would get your chimney swept, then fit a cowl or block the chimney off all together. Some people stuff an old duvet up chimney.

Thank you for the messages. I'll look into the cowl for the chimney.

I don’t know where the ‘dear’ came from 😂

Yes Allira - I don’t have a contract with BG or anyone for that matter. My son’s friend (gas engineer) does it every year along with the gas boiler. He did put a sticker saying ‘next service due on …’. Tomorrow I will have to check it and give him a call. rubysong’s post was a timely reminder dear for me - thanksx

rubysong

We are abandoning our open fire (coal is too heavy for us to manage), and looking to have a flame effect electric fire which looks like a woodburner. Has anyone done this and has it been a success? Would we need to do anything to stop birds dropping things down the chimney? The one we have in mind has an Optimyst system.

We have one of those. Having the flames on without the heating makes the room seem warmer somehow.

The downside is having to keep the water 'tank' topped up regularly but less onerous than a coal fire. We had a cowl fitted.

We love ours.

I also have a coal effect gas fire. I use it in the winter rather than putting the central heating on for very long… I live in a Terrace house and it’s surprising how quickly it warms the room up…

crazyH

Ours is also a coal effect gas fire - I hardly use it because I hardly use the Living Room - that reminds me, I must get it serviced …..

The gas engineer did ours when he serviced the boiler.

Ours is also a coal effect gas fire - I hardly use it because I hardly use the Living Room - that reminds me, I must get it serviced …..

You could have a cowl put on the chimney.

We fitted one when a starling kept dropping down and appearing n the sitting room!

I can't comment on the fire, ours is a coal effect gas fire, ut rarely used.