5 things to know about suspended fires

Installing a suspended fire is the easiest way to add high-level sophistication to your living or outdoor space. They look incredibly elegant, yet they’re deceptively simple to incorporate into your home.

Here, Hayden Ryan at Heatrite, a company that specialises in custom made suspended fires, shares the key things you need to know when considering a suspended fireplace for your home.

New Zealand has a number of different zones called “air sheds” which dictate what kinds of wood-burning activities can be done in each area. Each zone has its own rules around what fireplaces can be installed, with the aim of reducing carbon emissions in areas that tend to have high levels of them.

In addition to this, local councils have their own bylaws around carbon emissions, so it’s important to know exactly what you’re allowed to do in your area before committing to a specific type of woodburner, says Hayden.

“Because they're open-fronted burners, they're not like a traditional combustion wood fire and they don't actually fall under the Clean Air Act. So as long as the local council doesn't have a bylaw saying that open fires can't be installed, they can generally be installed in most places.”

Another work around is that they can also be used as a cooking appliance, which is generally accepted in most locations.

“Because they double as a pizza oven, they can be used like a cooking element or simply a decorative part of the building, especially if you've got a ducted heat pump system that you’re using as your main source of heating.”

If you have any questions about whether you’re able to install a suspended fireplace in your area, the team at Heatrite is on hand to help.

Do suspended fires come in a bio ethanol option?

In Heatrite’s range of suspended fireplaces, there’s a number of different options for both bio ethanol and wood-burning fires.

“The Aurora range includes the Aether, and the Hearth, which are wood-burning and then there’s also the Marino, which is made fully from stainless steel. We also have a bioethanol range, which includes designs like the Elemental and the Evolve.”

Can I install a suspended fire outdoors?

Absolutely you can! You’re only limited by how you want to fix the flue, as naturally, the suspended fires must hang from above.

Options include building custom fixings, or integrating the fixing into outdoor pergolas, or covered areas. Most of Heatrite’s suspended fires can be hung indoors or out, and the wood-burning models are commonly used as a stylish outdoor pizza oven.

“All you have to do is light the fire like you normally would and once the embers burn down you create a semicircle, and you just put a pizza stone in there to preheat it and pull it out to put the pizza on.”

Why are suspended fires such a popular design feature?

Apart from being sculpturally elegant, and a fantastic “talking piece” for guests, suspended fires have some key design features that really elevate a space.

First, they allow the eye to travel in a room, which means they aren’t taking up too much visual space, acting almost like a sculptural piece of furniture.

Additionally, they can rotate.

“Because the fire can spin 360 degrees it can be quite good as a divider between two living spaces, so you can actually spin the fire to suit whichever living space that you're in.”

It’s also a great centrepiece for a space whether indoors or out.

“Because it's like a piece of artwork, it’s very nice to have as a feature, making a centre point in the space. Equally, externally on patios, it’s always stunning looking out over a view with the fireplace hanging next to it.”

The one safety precaution to remember, says Hayden, is if you have little ones moving around it: “It’s important to protect the fire with a guard, just as you would for a floor-mounted fireplace.”

Heatrite supplies stylish fireguards in keeping with their fireplaces for this purpose.

Can I buy a suspended fireplace off the shelf?

Heatrite’s suspended fireplaces are all custom made in Byron Bay, Australia from top quality materials. Each flue must be made bespoke for the home it’s going into, as stud height is different for each job.

The team at Heatrite work alongside clients to discern exactly which design is right for their home, and measure up and order the model to suit. They can also take care of installation in some areas of the North Island.

“The key thing to remember is that they’re individually handcrafted and made to order, so we like to give a lead time of around three months to be safe.”

But Hayden says customers think they’re worth the wait:

“Because of the way the fire burns it really is more like a piece of artwork to enjoy, with the beautiful sensory experience of the heat and the crackling of the fire.”

Explore Heatrite’s range of suspended fireplaces