What Gas Stove Installation Requirements Are There?

If you’re looking for a stove for your home, but don’t want the hassle of cleaning and maintaining a wood burning stove, then a gas stove offers an ideal solution. Gas stoves can be installed anywhere there is a gas supply, but what gas stove installation requirements are there?

At Direct Stoves we’ve got decades of combined experience providing advice on all things stove-related. So carry on reading to find out more about gas stove installation requirements.

Consider the type of gas stove

The type of gas stove that you buy can influence where you install it in your home as well as the installation requirements.

There are three main types of gas stove:

Gas stoves for conventional flues

If you are going to buy a gas stove for conventional flues, then you will need a functioning chimney which is fitted with a flue. This is because this type of gas stove expels exhaust gases using a flue.

If you’ve bought one of these gas stoves but don’t have a chimney, you will need to fit a twin wall system. A twin wall system is essentially a quick and easy way of making a new chimney for your stove. These systems feature insulation which will protect your home from the heat in the chimney, as well as improving the performance of the chimney.

Flueless gas stoves

To borrow an old advertising phrase, flueless gas stoves do exactly what they say on the tin! They’re gas stoves, that don’t need to use a flue. All they require is a gas connection and ventilation. They also boast 100% efficiency (as no heat is being lost up a chimney).

Balanced flue gas stoves

A balanced flue gas stove requires you to have two pipes fitted to the outside of your home. One pipe draws in fresh air, whilst the other expels waste fumes. Like flueless gas stoves, balanced flue gas stoves are highly efficient.

Once you’ve selected which type of flue to buy, you then need to think about some installation factors.

Use a qualified professional

This may seem like an obvious point, but installing gas stoves requires a considerable level of knowledge and experience of working with domestic gas supplies. So, we’d recommend that you find a Gas Safe registered engineer to undertake the installation of your new stove.

If you’re unsure if an engineer is Gas Safe registered you can find out on the Gas Safe Register, which is the official list of approved gas engineers. Registered Gas Safe engineers are also required to carry a Gas Safe ID card. If you look at the back of this card you’ll see details of the engineer’s qualifications.

It can be a good idea to get quotes from two or three different gas engineers. When you do this, you should provide the gas engineer with the make and model of your stove, the work to be done (installation) and the location inside your property.

Check your building regulations

When installing a gas stove in your home, you should check your local building regulations.

Since the publication of the UK Government’s official guidance Combustion appliances and fuel storage systems in 2010, any work carried out to an existing chimney (or the creation of a new chimney) is subject to building control regulation.

Once the work to install your gas stove has been completed the gas engineer will need to arrange for the work to be inspected and signed off. This is important because if the appliance is the cause of a fault, and the local authority hasn’t been informed, you will be held responsible.

If you are unsure about the building regulations that apply to your home you should contact the building control department of your local council.

You’ll need a CO detector

Modern gas stoves are extremely safe and reliable, however you are still required to install a CO detector alongside your stove. Carbon monoxide is created from the inefficient burning of gas and solid fuel.

CO detector for gas stoves (Pictured: the FireAngel CO-9X carbon monoxide detector).

The danger of carbon monoxide lies in the fact that it is colourless and odourless, making it very hard to detect. It’s also more dangerous in confined spaces such as a living room, so it’s worth investing in a good, long-lasting CO detector.

Arrange a chimney inspection

Under building regulations you may be required to have your chimney (or flue) visually inspected to ensure it is free from obstructions and in good order. A chimney inspector may also sweep the chimney and perform a smoke test to ensure the chimney is not leaking.

Is your hearth the correct size?

A hearth is the platform your gas stove will sit on, and helps to protect any combustibles nearby from becoming dangerously hot.

A safe hearth will extend at least 300mm from the front of the stove and at least 150mm on either side of your stove. If you are intending to purchase a free standing appliance then your hearth should be at least 840mm wide and 840mm long.

Building regulations also require that the hearth is set at a different floor level than the surrounding space. This is so that a safe area is clearly marked.

The hearth itself should have a minimum thickness of 12mm. There are some exceptions though. If your gas stove is untested or raises the surface area temperature of the hearth to more than 100C, then you will have to install your gas stove on a hearth that has a thickness of at least 250mm.

In addition to these points, we also recommend that you check that the floor where your stove will be situated will support the weight of the stove (and if appropriate chimney).

Take all of the factors listed above into consideration and the installation of your gas stove should be straight forward.