woodburner help

reeko79

hi guys quick question have a 5kw woodburner in a big inglenook fire place.i live in a 1 bedroom very old cottage with no insulation open plan house with open stair into the bedroom,the dimensions of the living room suggested i needed 5kw but i can get the burner going relly hot and cant really feel much het in the room,i have tried ecofans.the cottage is draughty and as i have said is open plan.i burn seasoned wood so thats not a problem.been offered a villager 12kw,does anybody knoww if this wood be to big or about right,the cottage is even cold in the summer which is good,winters freezing.any adice would be of gret help.thanks guys

smcqis

The bigger you can fit in the better IMO, the only thing stopping up going bigger than a 6kw was the size and you say you have a 5kw which I dont think would be sufficient unless your house is one small room!

shegar

Be best to get the cottage properly insulated first , the heat the stove gives out right now is going straight out of the roof/walls, i , if it dont feel warm after insulation then maybe a bigger stove , you will be surprised how more the heat will keep in once insulated.......

Williwoodburner

Something to think about, its better to run a small stove hot and efficient, than a big stove ticking over which will blacken up the stove and produce creosote to block up the flue.
Also the bigger the stove - the more wood it will consume !!! :eek:

Regards

Willie.

Lotus-eater

I would sort out the draughts first, then take it from there.

I wonder if you know how to manage a woodburner properly? As said above a small stove burning hot is much better than a large one ticking over.

A 12 kw in that space will cook you if it's working properly and (again as said above) use alot more wood.

Is it your cottage? Alot can be done for almost nothing to cut down draughts, but insulating costs alot more.
Has the stove been installed properly? Is it a decent stove? Can you get someone local in (a friend) who is used to woodburners and see how they get on with it?

You say it's seasoned wood, are you measuring the moisture content yourself, or relying on the supplier to tell you it's seasoned. the main reason I see (I'm not a professional) stoves running cool, is high moisture content wood.

reeko79

thanks very much for your reply lotus eater,i currently rent the cottage but are planning on staying for a couple of years,really is a beautiful cottage with loads of character.the stove was here when i moved in it is a villager chelsea duo 5kw,the stove draws extremely well,has closure plate fitted to block off chimney,but there is no liner in the chimney and the inglenook fire plce is really big and seems to just swallow up the heat and not the house.i know the wood is seasoned apple wood as i get it from work so no probs there.i think iam using the burner on full potential,aas i have a stove thermometer so i keep it running around 400,and the glass is always clean,ive tryed ecofans but no difference really.so ijust thought a bigger burner may be the answer.thankyou very much for your reply

Lotus-eater

Well it's a decent stove and you seem to know what you're talking about, I presume you have the stove thermo a good way above the stove on the pipe?

As long as it's draws properly I don't think the lack of a liner matters, although I'll leave that one to an expert.

reeko79

hi again yes i got the thermo 12 inch above the stove as recommended,but hey i think your right i should get the experts in and let them take a look,thnks very much for your time lotus eater

Igor_Biscan25

Hi Reeko79,
I couldnt help notice you were interested in Villager Stoves.
Recently I have bought myself a Stove after having great advice & service from a company called firesonline.co.uk.
A gentleman called David sorted a great price out for me on a Villager Stove, so if you are looking to buy, I would certainly recommend firesonline.co.uk.
Hope this helps you find the right stove for you.

smcqis

first post and a plug for business...not allowed!

A._Badger

I recall one of the 'professionals' here a year or so ago opining that inglenooks are not a problem. He was wrong: large ones like the OP has (and I have) take a long while to get warm and seem to trap heat. They also store it, of course, but it can make it slow to heat the room.

Like the OP, I haven't found fans a lot of use though, clearly, some commenters here do find them helpful.

I solved my problem by buying the biggest stove I could get and running it flat out. Again, I was told it was 'too big' but old, draughty houses need more input than, I suspect, the calculators used by installers allow for.

Obviously, insulation where you can is important (hard to do in old buildings - especially if listed) and draught exclusion is vital but, yes, I'd say go with the Villager.