Wood burner advice

dooby

It's been very windy here the past few days and we've found that the house isn't getting as warm as usual. When it's windy has anyone found that it sucks the heat from the stove right up and out the chimney?

Lisa_Lou

We installed a Dovre 500 CBW just over a year ago and put a flue liner and cowl in at the same time - just entering the second winter with it! I can't sing it's praises enough, it's been a great investment. We are using it everyday and are hardly using the central heating at all - we have it in the back downstairs room and whilst it doesn't effectively heat the rest of the house, it certainly takes the chill off.

With regards to what other people have said about sourcing and burning wood, I would agree with others that you should never go near treated, painted or glued woods. Buying all your wood can prove a bit pricey but bulk loads obviously work out much better. The biggest piece of advice I can give is spend sometime researching potential sources of wood - if your lucky it will pay dividends. I strongly suggest phoning tree surgeons, local councils, timber merchants, nature reserves, joiners etc. and ask about getting free wood from them - I've spent a bit of spare time doing this throughout the summer and I now have a couple of sources for free wood, which means I have free heat throughout this winter and hopefully many more!

QTC

Lisa_Lou wrote: »

The biggest piece of advice I can give is spend sometime researching potential sources of wood - if your lucky it will pay dividends. I strongly suggest phoning tree surgeons, local councils, timber merchants, nature reserves, joiners etc. and ask about getting free wood from them - I've spent a bit of spare time doing this throughout the summer and I now have a couple of sources for free wood, which means I have free heat throughout this winter and hopefully many more!

I'm afraid to say that you aren't the only person who is thinking along these lines. It seems that more and more people are chasing ever decreasing sources of free fuel, and every time someone posts a suggestion on here, or writes a poorly researched article in the weekend papers, hundreds of people will set off to try those ideas out, as if they are the only person who has cottoned on to it. The facts are: most tree surgeons (I'm in a similar trade) convert wood for their own firewood rounds, and so won't part with it for nothing - although a lot more customers now ask for the wood to be left; firms taking trees down at roadside or in public places are continually pestered by motorists or others stopping to ask if they can take the wood - for free, of course. More companies are reporting timber theft from their yards, and on some of the nature reserves I work on, the managers believe it will only be a matter of time before scavengers start to become a real problem, breaking their way through gates etc. to get to wood that is not theirs to take.

As for wood vs. coal prices, Mr Badger, I haven't done any tests, but £75/cu.m seasoned wood works out at about £150/ton, and household coal around here is about £15 /cwt. or £300/ton. Coal has twice the energy in it by weight than wood, so at those prices it's even..although I know a lot of people sell wood for around £60 /cu.m, which would make it cheaper.

A._Badger

Yes, as I said, it has probably evened-out this year since the recent price rises for solid fuel. However it's not 'certainly cheaper' as was originally claimed.

What I haven't done is compared either to using some of the more expensive solid fuels, which do seem to burn longer than conventional bituminous housecoal. My impression is that they are the most expensive option of all, but do offer certain advantages, including less soot deposit n the stove and chimney and longer smouldering with easer reignition.

I like wood for all sorts of reasons but one does also have to factor in the hassles of storage and the constant effort needed to bring it into the house.

TBeckett100

i must admit there is far too admin involved with the wood burner. When I add my time up moving wood around, loading, unloading etc, the woodburner has a professional cost of £1,500p.a. in my time.

QTC

Yes, that's the downside of wood..a lot more handling per kWh..but you are entitled to feel smug in the knowledge that what you're burning is virtually carbon neutral, if that's the sort of thing that matters to anyone.