Warm your worries away

The cost of a wood burning stove varies according to the type and size you choose, as well as the individual features of your home for installation. A wood burner can offer significant savings in the face of rising fuel costs. The basic cost of a wood stove varies from £400 to £1,500. A typical cost of a wood burner including installation is around £2,000. There are obviously cheaper options available whilst an integrated stove that sit within a wall is more expensive.

Wood burners have a fixed grate and no ash pan, since wood burns best on a bed of ashes. Multi-fuel stoves or fires incorporate a raised grate system which allows combustion air under the fuel (primary air) for effective burning. This system also allows the easy removal of the ash from below using a removable ash pan.

The size of a wood stove can vary from 3 to 15 kilowatts (kW). Choosing the correct stove depends on the size of your room and how well insulated your home is. A simple rule of thumb is to multiply the height, width and length of the room in metres and divided this total number by fourteen (kW per m3).

If your house is very well insulated you can purchase a smaller stove which will cost less, use less wood and therefore be cheaper to operate. All stoves have an efficiency rating so the higher the efficiency, the better the stove will be at producing heat.

Consider how much storage space you have available for a log store. Ideally, you need sufficient space to store a few m3 of logs under cover as that is the cheapest way to buy them.

If you are planning a larger project for a biomass boiler to heat your entire home through underfloor heating or radiators then you could be eligible for Government support via the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI).

As with all sources of renewable energy, it is really important to check your property is suitable for the technology before you proceed. If you are considering a wood burning biomass system, there are two key considerations:

You can only burn seasoned, dry logs as fuel.
Check that you do not live in a smoke control area.
If you do live in a smoke control area, you can potentially use a Defra approved stove (Department for The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). However, it is important to research this thoroughly before making any decision as air quality is such an important subject. Your local council can advise you if your home is in a smoke control area.

Apart from clearing away ash and wiping clean the glass window, stoves are pretty easy to maintain. In terms of maintenance, you will need the services of a chimney sweep once or twice a year to prevent any build-up of flammable residue. And of course dry logs to burn.

There are a few things to consider before you decide which stove to buy, such as:

• Do you live in a Smoke Control Area?
• What type of fuel do you have access to?
• How much you will spend on running and maintaining your stove?

If you live in a Smoke Control Area, you can still have a multi fuel stove. However, you will not be able to burn coal in it and it must be a DEFRA approved multi fuel stove. For further efficiency, you can also buy EcoDesign multi fuel stoves. In one of these, you will still be able to burn all forms of wood, smokeless fuel and peat or turf briquettes. If you live outside a Smoke Control Area and burn coal, be aware that it is more expensive. You will also need to get the chimney swept more often, which will add to the running cost.

Nevertheless, coal or other smokeless fuel may be the most convenient fuel for you to use. Wood for your log burner needs to be dry and seasoned, so make sure it is available near you. If not, a multi fuel stove will be the option for you. However, if you know for certain that you will only be burning logs on your stove, you might be better off buying a wood burning stove. While it is good to have the versatility, wood burners are set up to burn logs as easily and efficiently as possible, so will serve you better.