Do woodburners save you money?

silverwhistle

I was just about to post when I thought I heard the sound of a chainsaw... It wasn't but next to the house with the building work they've taken down the quite large silver birch and there's a good amount of wood. I'll go back when somebody is in to try my luck..

My intention was to post of my experience. On the budget the line for gas (GCH and water) is £6 a month. For the woodburner (briquettes, equipment, annual sweep) I've put down £12. Having had the stove only two winters I've had the cost of bowsaw, wedges, grenades, cheap splitting wedge etc. I bought a cheap electric chainsaw ftrom one of the German discounters and last week splashed out £5 at Screwfix for a chainsaw file. These equipment costs will come down as a proportion of spend. Normally I co-burn the briquettes with scrounged wood: the building site 100 metres away good for a few pallets, last week a load of awkward beech stumps, which will be a pain to get down to size, picked up on my route to the supermarket just by politely asking.

If you're prepared to do a bit of work (and save on gym fees) then you can save money, but I bought my stove as a treat to myself and revel in the cosy lounge (and then the rest of the house when I open the doors).

Edit: I should also add that my low gas bill is also due to solar PV panels where the spare power helps heat the hot water.