Would installing a wood-burning stove lower our heating costs?

I’m hoping you can help me with some advice on our heating options. Looking ahead to colder days, we are concerned with potential gas prices and want to look at some other additional options. We’ve considered putting in a wood-burning stove for the last few years but never got around to it. While we previously wanted to have one more for enjoyment and aesthetic purposes, we now wonder if having one could make a difference with our heating this winter. Would you recommend having a wood-burning fireplace installed? Could the stove heat our hot-water supply and heat the air in our home? And if so, is there anything in particular we should look for or avoid?

We all need to be aware of energy costs when heating our home, however, we also need to be mindful of the future and the need for sustainable fuels. In this respect, it is important to ensure that when one is talking about a solid fuel stove only carbon neutral fuel, such as wood, is used. It is interesting to note that we are generally moving away from solid fuel and in fact most new houses now do not even have a chimney breast or fireplace. However, most of the houses constructed to date have fireplaces and wood burning is still a realistic option.

While lighting natural fires was the primary form of heat for our ancestors, it is now well recognised that notwithstanding the ambience of an open fire, it is a very inefficient form of heating. Up to 80 per cent of the heat discharges out through the chimney stack, giving only about 20 per cent efficiency within the house. However, by moving to a stove up to 80 per cent of the heat can be captured and thrown back in to the room and thus is much more efficient than an open fire.

So it is a very efficient way of heating a room and, given the range of stoves available on the market, can be a great way to add character and ambience to a room.

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While the stove is a “space heater” – heating the room in which it is located – it can also disperse additional heat throughout the house, leading to a general improvement in comfort levels. There are also options for additional features to be added such as having the stove heat the water or even a number of radiators elsewhere in the house. This is worth considering if the room in which the stove is located is big enough. In that scenario the stove will have to be of adequate capacity to heat the water and/or radiators.

If the room is too small and the stove is oversized, the room is likely to overheat and become uncomfortable for general use. However, if the stove is only going to be lit occasionally, the cost of the additional plant and equipment associated with heating the water and/or radiators is likely to be outweighed by any additional benefit gained in providing this function.

So the main issues to consider are the size of the room, your objectives in installing the stove and, of course, the capacity of the stove to be installed. If the stove is a wrong fit for the room or in meeting your wider requirements, you could end up with an unsatisfactory situation, so I would advise you seek professional advice on the most suitable stove.

There is also the issue of where the stove is to be located and if there is a fireplace within the room. If there is an obvious location it is to have the stove recessed in to the fireplace and to utilise the chimney flue. It is, however, important to ensure that there is an adequate hearth in front of the stove, and this should project out a minimum of 450mm so that in the event of any embers falling out of the stove when opening or closing the door, the hearth will minimise the risk of damage to floor finishes and possibly even the risk of a fire.

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If there is no fireplace, independent flues can also be provided with stoves and in fact this can be beneficial as the flue gives off a certain amount of heat, which will be of benefit to the room in which it is located. Care does, however, need to be taken to ensure that the flue is properly separated from any timbers where it penetrates through floor and roof structures, and this is normally done by having a fire collar fitted around the flue. It is also a requirement that provision be made for a low-level vent within a room in which a stove is being installed and we would also recommend that you have a smoke detector and a carbon monoxide detector fitted within the room in which the stove is being placed.

You will also need to consider the additional workload associated with lighting fires to including the chopping and storage of the wood and the cleaning out of ashes after use etc. Overall, I would recommend the installation of a wood-burning stove and while there are options of heating water and/or radiators, this is likely to be outweighed by the additional plant and equipment required and I would be inclined to limit this to a simple room or space heater. It is particularly important that these are installed by experts and that all safety measures are taken and that this is done in compliance with the building regulations.

Val O’Brien is a chartered building surveyor and member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland, scsi.ie

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