Advice on installing a wood burner please

I worked in this industry for several years and have a lot of experience. If you want specific advice please feel free to PM me.

I’ve had a wood burner for several years, but little used, so I can’t comment on the money saving side - we tended to use it with the central heating. It’s just awkward and dirty to clean out, but I should use it more often. Make sure you get one with a suitable output for your house and factor in the cost of installation. You’ll also need to buy and store logs, preferably hardwood for best results. I know some people say that leaving room doors open, wood burners can heat all the rooms, but we didn’t find that.

The only people I know with woodburners use them in addition to their usual heating, not instead of.

Like you, we still have a fireplace in the small living room of our 1930s house. When a modern heating system was eventually installed, we insisted on keeping it.
Our main reason was to have a back-up source of heat if the electricity was to be off for any length of time (no gas in our village).
It was invaluable for a couple of months last autumn, when our usual heating system was not working properly. I was gathering logs and fallen branches from the local fields to burn on it.
Normally, though, we use it in much the same way as friends and family use their woodburners - lovely for a homely burst of extra heat in the depths of winter, especially if we have visitors.

I suppose that what I am suggesting is that you might want to give some thought to keeping and using your fireplace, rather than having a woodburner installed. I doubt that they are cheap to run if you have to buy in wood for them.

I have had a multifuel (wood) burner, that is supposed to be able to provide hot water for domestic use and heating, for several years. We have an oil boiler too. The only reason that the woodburner saves us any money is that we get all our wood free, mostly from trees on our own land. I don't know how the price of kiln dried wood compares with gas, but woodburners do consume far, far, more wood in the course of a day than people can imagine!

If I were looking to install from new again I would be looking at a masonry stove, which, if what is written about them is correct, acts as a storage heater, needing less wood and staying hotter for longer than a conventional steel or cast iron wood burner. They can do hot water and central heating, too.

There are increasing numbers of reports about high levels of air pollution inside the house from wood burners, causing problems for anyone with asthma. They also cause pollution outside.
I would have loved one but our house is too small.

We have a wood burner in the lounge, the chimney on an outer wall, had to have a special lining. We found that the lounge gets really very (too) hot but the heat doesn't percolate through to the rest of the house, so it doesn't work as the only source of heat.

Our neighbour works hard and collect lots of free wood and chops it up and uses it. Their woodburner is on an inner wall, and so warms the whole house more effectively.

You can get a little fan that blows the heat around better. The glass doors can get very black and sooty, especially if you use wood that hasn't been seasoned properly.

Another thing to consider, I thought woodburners are being discouraged due to emissions, new rules are coming in.

Lots to consider, thank you. Perhaps I should learn how to build a fire and use my open fireplace instead. It would certainly be cheaper.

Logs are , as can be all wood, expensive and unless you have your own supply from your own trees (someone to cut down and log them) I would think twice before investing in a log burner.

We changed from an open fire to a multi wood burner about 5 years ago and are pleased we did. It’s only 5 kw in quite a large room but more than adequate, we open the living room door and heat permeates throughout the house.
We still have central heating too, so don’t use the wood burner often.
You can get the black off the door by dipping a paper towel into the ash add a quick spray of wd40 and it sparkles. .

WE have not needed to pay for wood so far, people know we need it and contact us.

Yes practice your fire lighting skills first!
I find having a multi fuel stove is abit like having another pet. You have to clean it out , feed it, adjust the airflow, keep kneeling down to riddle it, keep the glass clean , regular chimney sweep visits. Making space for huge deliveries of logs. Six barrow bags of birch oak beech and ash takes up a lot of space on our yard. Cost £150. If you collect your own wood then you will need log stores to leave it in till moisture content is correct for burning…. BUT
I would not be without mine.

It’s just a way of life I love.
Even love all the wood collecting which is combining with running the dogs.
Remember wood warms you three times - when you collect it, when you chop it up/split it, and when you burn it.

Am I wrong in thinking wood burners are going to be phased out soon(ish)?

I don't have central heating. I just have a woodburner in the kitchen/diner and am in there most of the day in the winter. I open the door and the heat circulates around other rooms [bungalow]. It's adequate and not hard to keep clean at all.

It's a modern 'clean burn' one, and I only burn kiln dried wood, delivered on a palette and put in my garage. It's not that expensive. I have used one delivery this year so far this year at a cost of roughly £220. I use the burner 6pm-10.30pm every night.

I love it. If you walked past my home in the evenings you wouldn't know I was using it. I don't burn rubbish, that's what stinks and pollutes far more than dry wood.

We have a wood burner as an addtion to gas central heating and, yes, it has been very useful during power cuts and when we had gas supply problems, but I wouldn't use it as an alternative to gas central heating.

I understand your desire not to be dependent on one fuel only, and our stove has been useful keeping the living room warm during power cuts, but that is all. They are also expensive to buy and have installed.

Kim19 Stoves are not being banned. Standards are being imposed that anyone selling wood has to meet and their use may be limited in urban areas where they may cause pollution problens.

Kim19

Am I wrong in thinking wood burners are going to be phased out soon(ish)?

I think it’s house coal and non dried wood.
Eco design stoves only from next year ( I think).

I have eco design and it burns efficiently, with plenty of through draught. No one would know I was burning wood if you walked by on the street.

Mine heats the house too, well enough for me by leaving all doors open . My stove can be kept ‘in’ for weeks at a time during very cold periods.

I have a combi boiler (gas). This is not used a lot, mainly hot water.

Our one cost about £2000. Chimney liner was almost same price as stove.
Fitted by Heatas (?) engineers with all documentation and plaque for stove.
It would have cost another £1000 if DH had not made ready the fireplace and hearth which must extend a minimum specification into your room.

I think there is talk of stopping their installation in London.

I heard that they're going to be phased out nationwide because they are causing pollution and ruining air quality.

We love ours and use it every evening in the winter. It is a big one which disperses the heat around the rest of the house to some extent but I would not say it could replace the central heating on cold nights. They are a lot of hard work, not only the cleaning of it but also when the logs are delivered and you have to move them to the log store, so unless you have a big strong OH who is happy to do the work, I wouldn't bother tbh, nice though they are.

Sparklefizz

I heard that they're going to be phased out nationwide because they are causing pollution and ruining air quality.

That's why you need an 'eco' version. They 'consume' their own smoke, so keeping pollution to the very minimum. They will still be permitted.

Open fires are very inefficient, just about all the heat they generate goes straight up the chimney and it's pollutionary (is that a word?).

I would still recommend looking at a masonry stove, far more efficient than a UK woodburner. Much used on the continent.

Im sorry, if you are in a mid terraced, your neighbours are going to love you. Personally these things are best out in the country. They are awful for people with asthma and COPD, purely because of the particles.

I had a new stovax multifuel burner put in when I bought my new build. 5kw and I keep the room door open so it heats the whole house. At the moment I am using smokeless ovals and they are proving to be very efficient. I did put a magnetic thermometer on the flue and I aim to keep the burn in the most optimal and efficient clean-burn range.

The stove is very modern and is defra approved. It does take a bit of trial and error, how to light it and keep it clean and in the correct temperature range. I don`t find it hard work at all, now I have learnt what to do. I am glad I have it. It is wonderful too as a back up source of heat and comfort. I do have some logs but prefer a longer more efficient burn

We still have an open fire in the living room but I would love a wood burner. When we had our canal boat it had a little one which was so comforting.

I’m wondering where all the wood is going to be stored in a 3 bed terrace. Do you have a back entry?
I don’t think you realise how large a pile of wood your going to need.
Even with a back entry the wood will have to be carted to your garden. I hope your still very fit, but if/ when your not, who’s going to cart it then?
Ithink it’s back to the drawing board.