Further to Notagran's post on hot water

*ExDancer, your best solution is a modern stove. It will burn more efficiently and produce more heat.

We can't get gas out here and the electricity supply is not very reliable (although when we have no electricity the pump won't work so there's no (oil!) central heating anyway) which is why I rely on the open fire so much.

Gas central heating, combi boilers, we have two small ones because of the configuration of the house.

We have a wood-burning stove in the living room, which we use if the weather is so cold the heating needs to be on all day, about 6 days this winter, instead of just morning and evening and on Sunday afternoons, Christmas etc. The stove was installed 15 years ago, after some wood on an open fire 'exploded' and set an uphostered chair on fire. So it doesn't meet modern standards.

Last year we had an extension built so we are currently burning dry wood rescued from the small extension that was replaced and waste wood from the new construction. Also a load of pallets that came with building materials loaded on them. All wood is stored in a large dry, well ventilated wood shed, completely protected from the weather.

We have a holiday home in France, using electricity heating and again a stove, due to be replaced this summer, as the previous one fell apart this winter, which means the new one will meet all French standards. The wood there is also stored under cover and protected from the weather.

As a matter of interest, how do you heat your home M0nica?

Actually ExDancer, that is indeed what happens. Probably because of the impossibility of locating everyone still using an open fire and stopping them using it.

In the same way, anyone using an old stove that doesn't meet new standards can continue use it. It is the sheer impossibility of locating everyone with one and getting it changed.

The same applies to wood. The government has laid down regulations about how dry wood must be before it is burnt. But there is nothing to stop people gathering their own wood, or using any other wood they have access to and burning it even though it probably isn't as dry as required by law.

So I continue to pollute the atmosphere with my inefficient open fire because I don't have £2000+ to install a stove.

*ExDancer, You will find not be able to buy fire doors in the UK because the resulting closed space will be expected to meet the same efficiency and emission controls that a stove is meant to meet.

It is probably illegal to buy one from another country and install it in a grate in the UK. You would probably find that no registered UK fire installer would be prepared to install it for you.

An existing open fire is not governed by the new regulations.

Thank you for your replies, they are very encouraging and I think I'll go ahead.
I'm sure my present open fire doesn't meet UK effeciency standards, and a fire door fitted to the present grate would be an economical way of making my set-up better than it is. The alternative is to do nothing which is my husband's take on things. He hates change of any kind, his philosophy being "If it ain't broke don't fix".
There don't seem to be any UK manufactures of open fire door fronts - but I'm still looking.

When we moved here we had an open fire. Shortly after my husband had the offer of a wood burning stove which he bought, and we had inset into the fireplace. It heats the room very well, it's a large room too.
It needs cleaned and re-laying, but here's a photo.

ExDancer, do go for it - just do some research and get advice first. Find a HETAS approved installer and take their advice on a stove.

There's simply nothing better for 'warming your bones' than sitting in front of radiant heat. Central heating only warms the space you're in.

Wood has to be seasoned (stored and dried for at least a year) before use, though. The chimney stack really does slowly release warmth into the room above, too.

Farmor I am not sure that these products would meet British standards for eco efficiency in stoves.

New regulations have been brought in very recently about efficiency and also controls on emisssions and I can ee no way these products could meet those standards.

An alternative to a stove is a kind of door fitted to open fireplace - turning it into a stove. We have one on fireplace with back boiler and works quite well.
www.borustoves.com/Doras
www.heavins.ie/p/de-vielle-fire-front-firefront-open-fire-door--def979903/5391520979903
These are Irish websites but can probably get similar in UK.

We have two stoves, one is inset, suited to the available space, the other free standing, both give out the same heat and we notice no difference.

We have a stovax multi fuel burner (log burner). It is 5kw and heats a 20 by 10 foot room more than adequately. We tend to leave the doors open and the heat takes the chill off upstairs too. The room above is warmer as has chimney breast.

ExDancer most modern stoves, inset or free standing are a lot more sophisticated than just iron boxes with fires in them. They are designed to project the heat into the room.

Any stove will heat the chimney breast because the flu goes through it and the smoke is hot. However this means that the whole brink chimney heats up and that helps to heat, not only the room you are in, but also the room above.

As a child, my baby sister had the bedroom the chimney stack from the kitchen stove went through, because the heat from the stack kept the room warm.

We have an ordinary stove in a very big internal brick chimney stack and when we had gas supply problem for several weeks and had the stove going every day, the chimney heated up and between the stove and the heat in the flu, we were able to heat the living room from the stove and the dining room and 2 bedrooms warm fom the heat radiating from the brick chimney acting like a great storage radiator.

I suggest you visit your local stove specialist. They will be able to advise and explain how the different stoves work and which one would be most suitable for you.