making a fireplace floor okay

[raecarter82]

Hi everyone this is my first post hopefully someone can help. Last week a gas engineer removed a old gas fire and capped it off. When we removed the fire we discovered a metal sheet covering up a hole in the brick work. We decided to remove the makeshift wall that has seemingly been put up then had a hole put it it for the gas vent. Sorry I digress. When I removed the wall I discovered the chimney wall to be in good condition but there is no constructional hearth at all and also the floorboards go right upto the pre existing wall. I have read the British standards that states a multi fuel burner can be placed on a 12mm thick hearth which can be placed on floorboards providing the burner feet don't get hotter than 100degrees. This is what I plan to do. My question is if I box off the chimney upto the floorboards then create a concrete baseinside the fireplace level in height to the floorboards to create a level base to tile correctly is this okay? Obviously I will have a hetas qualified person sweep the chimney and install the burner after the chimney has been lined but I'd like to do the other work myself. Sorry for the long text. Thanks for tour time

 

[Richard C]

Have you been looking at British Standards or Building Regulations? I’ve not seen any BS specs on stove installs so can't comment but BR’s have additional requirements other than the hearth; these include flue type & installation, ventilation, CO2 detector, notice plates etc as well as fire regulations which in some instances which you must also comply with. Installation of the flue liner is notifyable work, not just the stove & if you intend a DIY install, you must notify LABC. I’d be very surprised if the hearth temperature would not exceed 100 degrees C with a multi-fuel burner unless it; sover 150mm above the hearth! Which stove are you fitting? Additionally, the stove manufacturer’s installation instructions will usually take precedence & may exceed the BR requirements.

Before doing any work, I would strongly advise you consult your HETAS installer, take his advice & work with him. Most local independents (you can find one on the HETAS website) will be quiet happy for you to do the building works but they will want to be sure it complies with regulations as they will be issuing the all important compliance certificate for your stove. If you don’t get him on board, he may be unwilling to certify the installation. Have a read below;

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As this comes up so often, I’ve put together this generic post; read the links but not all may apply to you.

You can DIY a stove install but you need to understand the Building Regs (which changed in October 2010), submit a Building Notice & pay a fee. Your LABC will inspect &, assuming everything is OK, issue a compliance certificate; the BI may want to witness smoke & spillage tests. No compliance certificate may lead to difficulties when you come to sell your property; if cannot produce a compliance certificate in the event of a problem, your insurance company may invalidate your policy & reject any claim.

Lots of archive threads on this, & other things you have to watch out for, here a few links for you to read:
http://www.stovesonline.co.uk/stove_building_regulations.html
http://www.planningportal.gov.uk/uploads/br/BR_PDF_ADJ_2010.pdf
http://www.hetas.co.uk/public/certificates.html
http://www.solidfuel.co.uk/pdfs/buidling_regs_consumer leaflet.pdf
//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=183614
//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=211524
//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=242738
//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=224751

& some more sobering just in case you think it’s all a load of old tosh:
http://www.solidfuel.co.uk/main_pages/news.htm
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...wood-burning-stove-leaks-carbon-monoxide.html
http://www.eveningnews24.co.uk/news/warning_over_heaters_after_norfolk_couple_s_death_1_811099

Also get at least 3 quotes from local independent HETAS installers:
http://www.hetas.co.uk/nearest_member

You might be pleasantly surprised & you should ask yourself if you really want all the hassle & risk getting it wrong; climbing onto the roof with an 8M stainless steel snake on your back is not for the feint hearted!

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