GAS FIREPLACE WITH A PIVOTABLE FRONT WALL AND METHOD FOR RENDERING ACCESSIBLE A COMBUSTION CHAMBER OF A GAS FIREPLACE

Abstract

 The present invention relates to a gas fireplace, comprising a combustion chamber, a gas supply which ends in the combustion chamber and is at least partly hidden by non-flammable decorative material, such as artificial logs, and provided with outlet openings. The combustion chamber comprises at least a glass front wall, through which the combustion chamber is visible to a user, and is pivotable about a pivot axis with respect to the combustion chamber between a closed position and an open position. The pivot axis is a vertical pivot axis, and the gas fireplace has a displacement mechanism which is configured to displace the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis in a vertical direction between a first position and a second position, in which the front wall is pivotable, in the second position, between the closed position and the at least one open position. The invention furthermore relates to a method for rendering accessible a combustion chamber of a gas fireplace.

Description

[0001] According to a first aspect, the present invention relates to a gas fireplace, comprising a combustion chamber defined by vertical walls, a top wall and a bottom wall,

• at least one gas supply which ends in the combustion chamber and is at least partly hidden by non-flammable decorative material, such as artificial logs, and provided with outlet openings,
• the vertical walls of the combustion chamber comprising at least a glass front wall, through which the combustion chamber is visible to a user,
• which glass front wall is pivotable about a pivot axis with respect to the combustion chamber between a closed position, in which the combustion chamber is closed, and an open position, in which the combustion chamber is accessible to a user.

[0002] Unless expressly stated otherwise, the term fireplace is understood in this document to mean a decorative fireplace. That is to say a fireplace which is usually provided in a living space of a dwelling. In this case, the visibility of the fire is an important aspect. Heating the room may also be a significant aspect, but not without the aspect of visibility of the fire. Gas fireplaces and electric fireplaces of the type according to the present invention are used to simulate a wood fire in an open fireplace or a closed decorative wood fireplace. With electric fireplaces, an image of flames is projected. With gas fireplaces, actual combustion takes place, but only of gas which is transported into the combustion chamber via a gas supply from outside the fireplace and not combustion of a solid fuel, as takes place with wood fireplaces (although this also uses oxygen). The gas which flows through the outlet openings of the at least one gas supply combusts in the combustion chamber. Gas fireplaces are designed to generate an image of flames which is as realistic as possible.

[0003] A known gas fireplace of the above-described type has a front wall which is pivotable about a horizontal axis at the location of a bottom edge thereof between a vertical operative position in which the combustion chamber is closed and a forwardly pivoted position in which the combustion chamber is accessible, for example for cleaning the glass front wall and side walls.

[0004] With another type of gas fireplace, the front wall is incorporated in a channel, and a space is provided above the front wall so that the front wall can be lifted out of the channel vertically and subsequently be removed, if desired in a tilted orientation.

[0005] US patent application US 2012/031392 A1 describes a heating apparatus with a closed combustion chamber and various air ducts for supplying air to the closed combustion chamber. Optionally, the fireplace has a door which is attached to the fireplace by means of at least one hinge. The door may comprise a window which may provide a view of the flames. The door may close the combustion chamber in a locking manner and may comprise a handle by means of which a closure, or locking mechanism, can be operated. A drawback of known gas fireplaces with a glass front wall which is pivotable about an axis is the fact that a frame, often one or more metal strips by means of which the glass front wall is pivotably suspended, partly obscures the view of the burning fire during use of the fireplace. With a closed front wall, the frame is then, for example, situated on the bottom side of the combustion chamber as an upright edge.

[0006] Another drawback of the known gas fireplaces is the fact that there is a relatively large risk of the front wall or other parts of the fireplace being damaged or even breaking, or that a user perceives this risk as being present. The frequency with which the combustion chamber is being opened is relatively low. The combustion chamber will only be opened a few times each year in order to clean at least the glass front wall and any side walls or for any maintenance and repair work. With a removable front wall, it is possible that the glass pane becomes damaged during removal or when the glass pane subsequently has to be laid or set down somewhere. With a front wall which can be pivoted from a vertical to a more horizontal position, a user has to bend over the pivoted front wall and apply downward pressure on the partly pivoted front wall for the purpose of cleaning the same. However strong the construction may be, a user will try in a very laborious and careful way to clean the front wall in order to prevent the front wall or the pivoting mechanism from being forced or damaged. As the front wall usually extends beyond the bottom wall of the combustion chamber, and thus also beyond a housing which is present in the fitted position of the gas fireplace, the front wall cannot be pivoted open to a fully horizontal position.

[0007] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a gas fireplace of the type described in the introduction, whose combustion chamber can be cleaned using relatively simple features and with less risk of damage and/or in a more user-friendly way than existing gas fireplaces. According to the present invention, this is achieved by the fact that the pivot axis is a vertical pivot axis, and the gas fireplace has a displacement mechanism which is configured to displace the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis in a vertical direction between a first position and a second position, in which second position the front wall is pivotable between the open position and a closed position. Due to the fact that the pivot axis extends vertically, the front wall can be pivoted open like a door for the purpose of cleaning the same. At the top or bottom edge, preferably at both the top edge and at the bottom edge, the glass front wall may be provided with strips by means of which the front wall is pivotably suspended or supported in the gas fireplace. A metal strip at the bottom edge of the glass front wall may thus, in the (closed) operative position of the fireplace, be recessed and thus be out of a user's sight. It should be expressly stated here that a pivot element, which determines the - virtual - pivot axis, does not physically have to extend along the entire height of the front wall. Preferably, the pivot element comprises a pivot part on a bottom side of the front wall and a further pivot part, in line with the pivot part, on a top side of the front wall. Preferably, the pivot element is not visible to a user, at least not in the operative position of the gas fireplace.

[0008] In the operative position, the front wall extends downwards beyond the bottom wall of the combustion chamber. Here, the bottom wall of the combustion chamber can be seen as the part on which the artificial logs (seem to) rest and, underneath it, another bottom may be provided in the combustion chamber which is situated at a lower level. In the fitted position, the bottom wall is usually at the location of a horizontal plateau of a housing into which the gas fireplace is fitted. This means that, without further measures, the pivoting movement of the front wall would be blocked by the housing. According to the present invention, the displacement mechanism is thus furthermore provided which is configured in order to vertically pivot the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis, between a locked position and an unlocked, pivotable position. Thus, starting from the operative position, the front wall may be lifted to above the bottom wall, or at least as far as above a vertical plateau of the housing, in order then to pivot open the front wall. In the pivoted-open position, the front wall hangs as an open door in the gas fireplace and can thus easily be cleaned. In this way, the intended object of the present invention has been achieved.

[0009] German patent DE 63458 describes an oven door which is rotatable about a pin and simultaneously vertically displaceable. A prism-like elevation is provided on the bottom side of the window for the door and, during the pivoting closing operation, this initially guides the door upwards at an angle and then, after the top of the elevation has been reached, guides the door downwards at an angle. Due to its own weight, the oven door is held in a closed position. Thus, the elevation is a threshold which makes opening the fireplace more difficult, as a gravitational component has to be overcome when pivoting open the door from the closed position. However, the elevation in no way acts as a displacement mechanism which is configured to displace the front wall along or with the pivot axis in a vertical direction between a first position and a second position, in which second position the front wall is pivotable between the closed position and the at least one open position. The oven is not intended to be a decorative fireplace and therefore a glass door or wall is not disclosed.

[0010] However, wood fireplaces are known which are separated from a living space in which the fireplace is placed by means of a glass wall, or which the fireplace adjoins and the glass wall of which is displaceable in order to provide access to the combustion chamber in order to provide the combustion chamber with new solid fuel, generally wood. To this end, the combustion chamber has to be opened several times during each burning operation. Thus, a wood fireplace is known which has an L-shaped glass cover which forms an integrated corner and side wall for a wood fireplace with two closed vertical walls and the respective cover adjoining said walls. The cover is accommodated in a guide and is vertically displaceable like a lift by means of cables, pulleys and counterweights. In an upward and/or downward direction, the guide has to extend beyond the combustion chamber for a distance which is at least as great as the desired vertical displacement of the fireplace. Such a construction is therefore complicated and requires a large amount of fitting space for the displaceable glass wall.

[0011] The difference between gas fireplaces and wood fireplaces becomes clear in an objective manner through the different standards which are imposed on both types of fireplace. The tightness requirement for a gas fireplace is much more stringent than it is for a wood fireplace. According to standard EN613 (standard for local gas heating device), testing is performed at an underpressure of 50 pascals and, in the case of a fitted wood fireplace, according to EN 13229 (standard for fitted wood fireplaces) at an underpressure of 10 pascals. Both standards allow a certain percentage of leakage. Thus, to someone skilled in the art, it is clear that the demands which mechanisms for pivotable front walls for gas fireplaces have to satisfy are much higher than those for wood fireplaces. For this reason, a person skilled in the art will not consider converting a wood fireplace to a gas fireplace by simply installing a gas supply in the original wood fireplace.

[0012] German utility model DE 9109957 U1 describes a flue oven which is provided with a door for filling the oven with combustion material. Thus, this document describes an oven for a solid fuel.

[0013] If, as is the case with a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first position is a lower position and the second position is a higher position, the front wall can pivot freely in the higher position and the front wall can be taken from the second position to the first position in order then to allow the front wall to sink into a space intended for the purpose.

[0014] It is preferred if the gas fireplace comprises at least one pivot element which connects the front wall to a remaining part of the gas fireplace so as to be pivotable about the vertical pivot axis, preferably to a frame part of the gas fireplace which cooperates with the bottom wall and/or the top wall. The at least one pivot element may be a pivot axis which extends along a side wall of the front wall. Alternatively and preferably, two separate pivot elements which are aligned with respect to each other are provided on the top side and on the bottom side of the front wall. In the latter case, the pivot elements may, at least in the first position of the front wall, be fitted so as to be out of sight for a viewer.

[0015] Preferably, a gas fireplace according to the present invention comprises a locking and unlocking mechanism, by means of which the front wall, in the closed position, can be locked against pivoting about the pivot axis, and can be unlocked in order to be able to pivot the front wall from the closed to the at least one open position. In an operative position in which the combustion chamber is closed, the front wall is locked. From the operative position, the front wall can be unlocked in order to be able to bring the front wall into the open position. The locking and unlocking mechanism thus contributes to a reliable protection of the gas fireplace. Possibly, provision may be made such that the gas fireplace can only be lit in the locked operative position.

[0016] In this case, it is advantageous if the locking and unlocking mechanism is coupled to the displacement mechanism, so that the displacement mechanism displaces the front wall from the first to the second position during unlocking of the front wall, and the displacement mechanism displaces the front wall from the second to the first position during locking of the front wall. Such a coupling reduces the number of operations which a user has to perform. This increases the user-friendliness.

[0017] With a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, the displacement mechanism comprises a pre-tensioning device, which is pre-tensioned in order to move the front wall upwards. Thus, it is conceivable for a spring, for example a coil spring, to be situated underneath the front wall in a (partly) compressed position, with the locking and unlocking mechanism moving a stop for the coil spring upwards or downwards, respectively, to displace the front wall in the hingable or locked position, respectively.

[0018] Preferably, a blocking device is provided which blocks displacement of the front wall higher than the second position. Such a blocking device may comprise a simple limitation of the upward movement of the front wall. The blocking device is preferably a permanent blocking device. Thus, the blocking device blocks the front wall from going higher than the second position, with the front wall being pivotable about the pivot axis.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, the at least one pivot axis at least substantially coincides with a side edge of the front wall. In this way, a pivoting movement requires the least possible space. The pivot axis does not have to coincide exactly with a side edge of the front wall; according to the present invention, a distance of at most 1 mm, at most 2 mm and preferably at most 5 mm, may be interpreted as coinciding substantially with the side edge. If the gas fireplace comprises two pivot axes situated on either side of the front wall, so that the front wall can be pivoted open to the left and to the right, this provides more freedom of installation of the gas fireplace.

[0020] If an adjustment device is provided in this case, by means of which the direction in which the front wall is pivoted open can be adjusted, the pivoting direction can be determined in a semi-permanent manner during the installation of the gas fireplace. In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, the front wall is provided with at least one carrying strip which is provided on the top or bottom edge of the front wall and which supports the front wall so as to be pivotable. Two carrying strips ensure a better suspension of the front wall than a single carrying strip. However, a carrying strip will often limit the view through the front wall, since it is obvious that the carrying strip is made from a non-transparent material, preferably metal.

[0021] If a carrying strip which is arranged on the bottom edge of the front wall is situated lower than the bottom wall of the combustion chamber in the first position of the front wall, this carrying strip is often recessed in the operative position and thus concealed from the naked eye.

[0022] In addition to a glass front wall, the gas fireplace may also comprise one or two glass side walls. In the first case, the gas fireplace will be arranged in a corner. In the case of two glass side walls, the combustion chamber of the gas fireplace will protrude forwards in a living space. Even a combustion chamber which is made completely of glass is conceivable for a central arrangement of a gas fireplace in a space. The front wall may be integrated with and displaceable together with one or two side walls. However, it is preferred if only the front wall is pivotable and displaceable between the first and the second position, independently of a side wall. This provides sufficient freedom for the occasional cleaning of the glass wall(s). In addition, a relatively lightweight construction is then sufficient, as the glass wall(s) are heavy and a composite front and side wall has a greater moment for carrying the wall on the pivot point.

[0023] When one or more glass side walls are present, it is preferable if the side edges of the front wall and the one or both side walls, as well as the transition between the side edge of the front wall and a side edge of a side wall are free from reinforcing strips. Reinforcing strips are generally non-transparent and thus impede the user's view of the combustion chamber and, if used, of a fire which is generated therein.

[0024] When a side wall is used, it is possible for the pivot axis to be situated at a distance from the front wall, preferably on a side edge of a side wall which is not situated next to a side edge of the front wall. However, in that case a more robust construction is required, as, due to a greater moment, the forces on the pivot axis may significantly increase in a pivoted-open position of the front and side wall(s).

[0025] It is preferred if the fireplace comprises a strip in front and on the top side of the front wall which, in the first position of the front wall, conceals a top carrying strip of the front wall from the user's eye, and, during unlocking of the front wall, at least between unlocking the front wall and pivoting open the front wall, can be brought into a position in which the strip does not impede the pivoting open of the front wall. If the gas fireplace is fitted in a housing structure, such a strip may optionally be attached to the housing. On the one hand, the strip may function as a blocking device against unintentional pivoting open of the front wall and may in this case also function to hide a top carrying strip from sight. The strip may form part of, or cooperate with, a locking and unlocking mechanism of the gas fireplace.

[0026] According to a second aspect, the present invention relates to a fitted gas fireplace, comprising a gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims and a housing with a plateau which extends horizontally in front of the gas fireplace at a level which is higher than the bottom edge of the front wall of the gas fireplace in a first position of the front wall and is lower than the bottom edge of the front wall of the gas fireplace in a second position of the front wall. Generally, gas fireplaces are built in, in which case a plateau is provided on the front side of the gas fireplace. In the case of a gas fireplace, the plateau may function as a decorative edge or contribute to the overall impression of a gas fireplace. It is good practice to install a gas fireplace in such a way that the bottom wall of the gas fireplace is situated substantially in the same plane as the plateau. Thus, the bottom part of the front wall, preferably including a carrying strip on the bottom side of the front wall, will be recessed in the plateau and will therefore not be visible. Further advantages of such a construction will become clear from the description of the gas fireplace and the preferred embodiments thereof which has been given above.

[0027] According to a third aspect, the present invention relates to a method for rendering accessible a combustion chamber of a gas fireplace with a combustion chamber defined by vertical walls, including a glass front wall, a top wall and a bottom wall, comprising the following steps:

• displacing the front wall using a displacement mechanism which is configured to vertically, preferably upwardly, displace the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis between a first position of the front wall and a second position of the front wall; and
• subsequently pivoting open the glass front wall about a vertical pivot axis.

[0028] From the above, and from the following description, it can easily be gathered that such a method gives a user access to the combustion chamber in a simple and user-friendly manner and in particular to the side of the glass front wall which, in the operative position, faces the combustion chamber and which can thus easily be cleaned.

[0029] The present invention will be explained below by means of the description of a preferred embodiment of a gas fireplace according to the present invention, with reference to the following figures, in which:

• Fig. 1 shows a three-dimensional representation of a housing comprising a preferred embodiment of a gas fireplace according to the present invention,
• Figs. 2a and 2b show details of components of the gas fireplace from Fig. 1,
• Fig. 3 shows a three-dimensional representation of the housing with the gas fireplace from Fig. 1, in a different operative position,
• Figs. 4a and 4b show details of components of the gas fireplace from Fig. 2, and
• Fig. 5 shows a three-dimensional representation of the housing with the gas fireplace from Fig. 1, in yet another operative position.

[0030] The gas fireplace 1 shown in the figures is built into a housing 2, which is common for gas fireplaces. The housing 2 may be constructed from panel material and/or building blocks, such as cellular concrete blocks. The gas fireplace 1 has a combustion chamber 4 which is defined by a top wall 6, a bottom wall 8, and vertical walls, more specifically a rear wall 10, a front wall 12 and side walls 14, 16 (see also Fig. 5). At least the front wall 12 is made of glass and, in the present exemplary embodiment, the side walls 14, 16 are also made of glass. Due to the front wall 12 and the (optional) glass side wall(s) 14, 16, the combustion chamber 4 is visible to a user. A gas supply provided with outlet openings 18 ends in the combustion chamber 4 and is at least partly concealed by non-flammable decorative material, such as artificial logs 20. When the gas fireplace is in use, the gas supply with outlet openings 18 is attached to an external gas source which is known and therefore not shown further in the figures, such as the gas pipe system in a dwelling. As is clear from the figures, the glass front wall 12 in this exemplary embodiment seamlessly adjoins the side walls 14, 16, that is to say without the use of intermediate strips or the like.

[0031] The glass front wall 12 is pivotable about a vertical - virtual - pivot axis, shown extended in the figures by a dashed line 22, with respect to the combustion chamber 4 between a closed position which is shown in Figs. 1 and 3, in which the combustion chamber 4 is closed, and an open position which is shown in Fig. 5, in which the combustion chamber 4 is accessible to a user. The pivot axis 22 is defined by a pivot element which, in the present exemplary embodiment, is formed by two pivot parts 24 configured as hinges. Figs. 2b and 4b show a bottom pivot part 24 at the location of a bottom side of the front wall 12. A top pivot part, in line with the bottom pivot part 24, at least with regard to determining the pivot axis, is not shown in the figures. The pivot element 24 forms the connection between the front wall 12 and a frame part 26, i.e. a remaining part, of the gas fireplace 1. On a bottom edge of the front wall 12 a carrying strip 32 is provided which pivotably supports the front wall 12, as the pivot element 24 is attached to the carrying strip 32. The frame part 26 furthermore forms a connection of the bottom wall 8, side walls 14, 16 with rear wall 10. On the top side of the gas fireplace 1, a similar frame part 28 is present which at the top side forms a connection of the top wall 6, side walls 14, 16 with rear wall 10 and to which a top pivot part 24 is attached which forms the connection between the front wall 12 and the frame part 28, or a remaining part of the gas fireplace 1. As is shown in Fig. 4b, the pivot axis 22 coincides at least substantially with a vertical side edge of the front wall 12 at the location of side wall 14.

[0032] The gas fireplace 1 furthermore has a displacement mechanism 30 which is configured to displace the glass front wall 12 vertically between a first, lower, locked position and a second, higher, unlocked, pivotable position. In the lower position, shown in Figs. 1 and 2b, the bottom edge of the front wall 12, and thus also at least a part of the carrying strip 32, is situated lower, in a vertical direction, than a horizontal plateau 2a of the housing 2. In other words, the bottom edge with carrying strip 32 is at least substantially hidden from view, at least for a user, which is very attractive from an aesthetic point of view. In this lower position, the front wall 12 is not able to pivot at least for this reason, since this is hampered by the plateau 2a of the housing 2. By contrast, in the higher position the bottom edge and carrying strip 32 of the front wall 12 are situated higher than the plateau 2a in their entirety, as is illustrated in Fig. 3 and in particular in Fig. 4b. As a result thereof, a pivoting movement about the pivot axis 22 of the front wall 12 is no longer hampered by the plateau 2a. The displacement means are formed by a pivoting pin 36 which is held vertically displaceably in a hole 34 in a bracket 38. On the top side of the front wall, an identical construction is provided with a vertically displaceable pivoting pin. The axes of both pivoting pins coincide and form the pivot axis 22. The displacement mechanism 30 furthermore has a coil spring 40 which is operational in a vertical direction between the bracket 38 and the pivoting pin 36 and forces the latter upwards on account of its spring force. This spring force is greater than the downwardly directed gravitational force of the front wall 12 (with carrying strip 32), as a result of which the front wall 12 is forced into the higher position on account of the spring force.

[0033] A covering strip 42 is provided on a top edge of the front wall 12. The pivot element, more specifically a pivoting pin similar to pivoting pin 36, is attached thereto in a similar way to carrying strip 32. The displacement mechanism 30 furthermore has a cam 43 which is held on an axle body 44 and which is in contact with the covering strip 42 during rotation of axle body 44 in order to determine a position in a vertical direction, or at least upwardly limit it. In this context, see Fig. 2a, in which the cam 43 has been rotated in such a way that it limits the front wall 12, counter to the upwardly directed spring force, in the lower position. By contrast, in Fig. 4a, the cam 43 has been rotated in such a way that it allows the displacement of the front wall 12 from the lower to the higher position due to the action of the spring force, and vertically limits the front wall 12 in the higher position. The axle body 44 is rotatably connected to frame part 28 of the gas fireplace 1.

[0034] On a free end of the axle body 44, an operating lever 50 is provided with a leg 52 which extends at right angles to the extending direction of the axle body 44. Manually rotating the leg 52 results in rotation of the axle body 44 and consequently also of the cam 43. In a first position, shown in Fig. 2a, the leg extends horizontally rearwards, just clear of side wall 16, and is held in this position because the leg engages with a click-fit bracket 54. In this first position, the front wall 12 is in the lower position. When leg 52 of operating lever 50 is manually pivoted downwards, thus in the figures clockwise, viewed from the right-hand side, axle body 44 and thus cam 43 rotate, as a result of which front wall 12 can move to the higher position thereof.

[0035] The cam 43 of the displacement mechanism has a catch 46 which, in the position according to Fig. 2a, in which the cam 43 keeps the front wall 12 in the lower position in the vertical direction, is situated on the front side of the covering strip 42 and thus in front of the front wall 12. The expression front side is understood to mean the outer side of the gas fireplace 1. In the position according to Fig. 4a, in which the cam 43 allows displacement of the front wall 12 in the vertical direction to the higher position, the catch 46 is situated higher than the front side of the covering strip 42 and thus beyond the pivoting range of the front wall 12. The catch 46 thus forms a locking and unlocking mechanism, by means of which the front wall 12 is locked and cannot pivot about the pivot axis 22 in the closed position, in which the front wall 12 is also in the lower position, and is unlocked if the front wall 12 is in the higher position, in order to be able to pivot the front wall 12 from the closed (Figs. 1 and 3) to the open (Fig. 5) position.

[0036] As will be clear from the above, catch 46, or the locking and unlocking mechanism, is coupled to the displacement mechanism 30, so that the displacement mechanism 30 moves the front wall 12 upwards during unlocking of the front wall 12, and the displacement mechanism 30 moves the front wall 12 downwards during locking of the front wall 12.

[0037] The axle body 44 extends along the entire top side of the gas fireplace 1 and is rotatably held on frame part 28 by two brackets 45 (one of which is shown in the figures). Stop blocks 48 are attached to axle body 44 near side wall 16 and also near side wall 14 and are in contact with the front wall 12 when the latter is in the higher position. The stop blocks 48 thus form a blocking device which blocks the displacement of the front wall 12 to a level above the higher, pivotable position of the front wall 12.

[0038] In an embodiment (not shown), the gas fireplace has been prepared so that the pivot axis 22 can be provided either at the location of side wall 14 or at the location of side wall 16 at the user's choice. This means that the front wall 12 can be fitted to pivot to the left, in accordance with the figures, or to pivot to the right (not shown).

[0039] The present invention is not limited to the illustrated and described exemplary embodiments. Many variations are conceivable which may or may not be obvious to those skilled in the art and which are covered by the scope of protection of the present invention, which is defined by the attached claims.

Claims

1. Gas fireplace, comprising a combustion chamber defined by vertical walls, a top wall and a bottom wall,

- at least one gas supply which ends in the combustion chamber and is at least partly hidden by non-flammable decorative material, such as artificial logs, and provided with outlet openings,

- the vertical walls of the combustion chamber comprising at least a glass front wall, through which the combustion chamber is visible to a user,

- which glass front wall is pivotable about a pivot axis with respect to the combustion chamber between a closed position, in which the combustion chamber is closed, and at least one open position, in which the combustion chamber is accessible to a user,

characterized in that
the pivot axis is a vertical pivot axis, and
in that the gas fireplace has a displacement mechanism which is configured to displace the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis in a vertical direction between a first position and a second position, in which the front wall is pivotable, in the second position, between the closed position and the at least one open position.

2. Gas fireplace according to Claim 1, in which the first position is a lower position and the second position is a higher position.

3. Gas fireplace according to Claim 1 or 2, comprising a pivot element which connects the front wall to a remaining part of the gas fireplace so as to be pivotable about the vertical pivot axis, preferably to a frame part of the gas fireplace which cooperates with the bottom wall and/or the top wall.

4. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the gas fireplace comprises a locking and unlocking mechanism, by means of which the front wall, in the closed position, can be locked against pivoting about the pivot axis, and can be unlocked in order to be able to pivot the front wall from the closed to the at least one open position, in which the locking and unlocking mechanism is preferably coupled to the displacement mechanism, so that the displacement mechanism displaces the front wall from the first to the second position during unlocking of the front wall, and/or the displacement mechanism displaces the front wall from the second to the first position during locking of the front wall.

5. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the displacement mechanism comprises a pre-tensioning device, which is pre-tensioned in order to move the front wall upwards.

6. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which a blocking device is provided which blocks displacement of the front wall higher than the second position.

7. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the at least one pivot axis at least substantially coincides with a side edge of the front wall.

8. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the gas fireplace comprises two pivot axiss situated on either side of the front wall, so that the front wall can be pivoted open to the left and to the right, in which case an adjustment device is preferably provided, by means of which the direction in which the front wall is pivoted open can be adjusted.

9. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the front wall is provided with at least one carrying strip which is provided on the top or bottom edge of the front wall and which supports the front wall so as to be pivotable, in which a carrying strip which is arranged on the bottom edge of the front wall is preferably situated lower than the bottom wall of the combustion chamber in the first position of the front wall.

10. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the vertical walls comprise one or two glass side walls.

11. Gas fireplace according to Claim 13, in which side edges of the front wall and the one or both side walls, as well as the transition between a side edge of the front wall and a side edge of a side wall are free from reinforcing strips.

12. Gas fireplace according to Claim 10 or 11, in which the pivot axis is situated at a distance from the front wall, and is preferably situated on a side edge of a side wall which is not situated next to a side edge of the front wall.

13. Gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims, in which the fireplace, or, if present, its housing, comprises a strip in front and on the top side of the front wall which, in the first position of the front wall, conceals a top carrying strip of the front wall from the user's eye, and, during unlocking of the front wall, at least between unlocking the front wall and pivoting open the front wall, can be brought into a position in which the strip does not impede the pivoting open of the front wall.

14. Fitted gas fireplace, comprising a gas fireplace according to one or more of the preceding claims and a housing with a plateau which extends horizontally in front of the gas fireplace at a level which is higher than the bottom edge of the front wall of the gas fireplace in the first position of the front wall and is lower than the bottom edge of the front wall of the gas fireplace in the second position of the front wall.

15. Method for rendering accessible a combustion chamber of a gas fireplace with a combustion chamber defined by vertical walls, including a glass front wall, a top wall and a bottom wall, comprising the following steps:

- - displacing the front wall using a displacement mechanism which is configured to vertically, preferably upwardly, displace the glass front wall along or with the pivot axis between a first position of the front wall and a second position of the front wall; and

- subsequently pivoting open the glass front wall about a vertical pivot axis.

Drawing