Jetmaster advice please

timehastoldme · 16 September 2014 at 6:42AM

Hi,

My mother lives in a house with no heating, we were going to put a log burner in this autumn but she's not sure about that now. I've offered to pay, but she doesn't like that idea at all.

There used to be an open fire, she's considering going back to that but is worried about the safety aspect of it.

I've been looking at this as a half way house: jetmaster 500 universal and have found a second hand one.

Her fireplace has an opening of 60cm x 68cm x 36cm and at the moment looks like this

So I think it should fit, is there anything I'm not considering before I buy this? Am I neglecting to factor in hearth or is the concrete subfloor sufficient with a hearth in front? Would a small hearth fit ok anyway? I'm a bit lost

Many thanks

Smiley_Dan · 16 September 2014 at 10:52AM

47% efficiency? You might as well burn £10 notes while you're at it

If I were you I'd engage a recommended (ask around) HETAS engineer to fit a modern stove.

But is solid fuel even the right choice? How old is your mother, can she operate a stove or add fuel to a fire, lug it in from outside etc?

Do you know if 6kW is going to be enough to heat what-you-want-it-to-heat?

timehastoldme · 16 September 2014 at 10:55AM

Hi, Thanks for your reply

She's in her 50's so not exactly doddering. She's planning on moving in the next couple of years so is reluctant to spend the money a stove and fitter would cost - even with help. It's not efficient, but it's better than the no heat she has now. Her house isn't huge, 6kw is sufficient.

Smiley_Dan · 16 September 2014 at 10:59AM

Ok well first bear in mind that 6kW is actually more like 3kW after efficiency of the fire.

If lower capital costs are the issue, would it not be better to just get some simple electric heaters from Argos? Sure, electricity is expensive, but you won't need a lot of it and how much will it cost to fit the fire?

If it really is 3kW to heat the house, that's about 45p an hour without accounting for the thermostat (so it will be lower) and assuming 15p unit rate.

The other thing to consider is that by having a chimney open you're adding a significant amount of heat loss to the house.

Jetmaster advice please

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