Gas fire in living room

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Fingers crossed we will be moving into a house with a 90s style fireplace and real coal looking gas fire in. Do people use gas fires in houses with full central heating? Has anyone removed the fire and made the fireplace ornamental only?

I use mine all the time in winter. I have central heating too.
Nice to have a cosy warm room.

Yes, people use them. People who like to heat specific areas of their house rather than the whole thing at once, and people who like to have a focal point in the room that isn't a giant TV.

I don't use mine very often - a handful of times a year - but it looks great as a focal point. I'm not keen on ornamental fireplaces, so if I were to get rid of it I'd block up the fireplace and either have an extra radiator or perhaps have a media wall as a focal point.

We're moving to a house with a gas fire with real flame and I'm really looking forward to shutting the door and enjoying the warmth and cosiness of a fire to provide extra heat, without all the faff and clean up of our current log burners and open fire.

Make sure they are regularly serviced and you have a co alarm in the room.

Thanks for all of your replies.

There are no doors, it’s all open plan (including through to the conservatory) so although it would be nice to sit by it, the heat would go out to the whole house.

The current gas fire is condemned, so it would mean at having a new one fitted and having to test the chimney is still in working order.

I was thinking of possibly removing the gas fire and swapping it out with an electric one instead, to be able to sit with a cosy feeling light in the winter.

Does anyone think an electric fire could be a good idea?

I personally think electric "real flame" fires look really naff but it's your home so the only opinion that matters is yours.

We added a gas log burner to our sitting room. We don't turn on the radiators on this room and just have this fire on when we use the room (which is infrequent).

I love our gas fire - it really warms the place up quickly. With both DCs at uni last winter we often turned the heating off and just had the fire on.

OP, I will be getting an electric fire with a modern marble surround for my new place (the gas fire referred to in my last post is in my current house). There are some really nice ones available now. I've removed the chimney breast, so gas wasn't really an option, but I like the idea of electric anyway. Getting the gas fire to light can be a bit of a faff at times, plus if gas gets stupidly expensive vs electric, it could prove more economical.

My mother in law has a gas 'living flame' fire and it's so toasty in the winter! We have log burners which are lovely too, but obviously more of a faff

I use mine every day in the winter! I used to have wood stove in my old house, but this is more convenient. It came with the house but I had it serviced and the chimney swept every year. It adds a lovely focal point. I don't think an electric fire comes close.