Flue for a log burner

suki1964

The flue can cost as much as the burner and unfortunately log burners and their installation don't come cheap, nor does the wood needed to fuel them

There was a time when I had to use mine constantly as it did just about work out cheaper then oil, but now oil is back down to sensible levels, oil is cheaper to use

If you have mains gas, that's even cheaper

It's rare to be able to heat the whole house with a stove, unless you have a back boiler fitted that will heat the rads. A stove needs to belt out a lot of heat for long periods to heat a whole house, and if the stove is in a normal sized living room, you won't be able to sit there as well. When mine gets going the temp in my living room which is huge and open to the stairs easily gets to 28oC, but the bathrooms and kitchen will still be nippy and the bedrooms on the cool side ( which I don't mind, others do)

david1951

I doubt you will be able to get a quote without someone (builder/salesman/installer) coming to check out the property. There are quite a few factors that go into the installation. I needed someone to knock back the fireplace, put a lintel in, install a slate hearth, plaster the wall and fireplace, install the stove and flue (and certify it). Cost about £2200. It was a lot of work.

As above - look for local HETAS installers (it is a specialist thing) and get a few quotes. Choose the one you are happy with.

harleydave

Any small reputable builder should be able to do the job. Be aware that you may need to install additional ventilation. Google for installation instructions of your particular stove.

Davesnave

harleydave wrote: »

Any small reputable builder should be able to do the job.

Yes they should, but my observations suggest that, quite often, they don't.

We did ours ourselves under guidance from a stove shop/stove fitter, so not all of them are just after making a quick sale. They saved us hours of work and explained what common pitfalls to avoid.

The stove we bought was a revelation after feeding a monster thing for years that chewed through logs at a rate of knots for less heat output.

We know nothing of the OP's circumstances, and if they aren't going to fill in the background, this thread can't be of much help.

sparkychris

Thanks for everyone (except Aylesbury Duck, of course) for taking the time to write such detailed replies. I love this forum!

I am lucky enough to get free wood, which is why we want a log burner, and the place is a teeny cottage so I think it will make a huge difference and even if it doesn't, with free wood at least the front room will be cosy!

I spoke to a colleague at work today who fitted his own and he said it was easy enough and as I do all my own electrics, plumbing and building work, would love to give it a go, but I think I'd have trouble convincing the Mrs, sadly.

Have looked at the hetas website, above, and have put my details in. There are a couple of possibilities on there- one of which I'll be phoning as soon as we move in. I don't mind having a builder round- but not at all keen on a salesman from a shiny showroom!

I'll pop back and update this thread as it unfolds for anybody interested and in case a search throws it up.

Thanks again, folks.

Davesnave

Now we know the circmstsances it's easier to see that you'll save money and that you probably won't want a stove that puts out more than 5kW. This is because it's best to run the stove hot, and if the living room's small, as Suki says, you won't be comfortable sitting beside a high output beastie.

Paying a bit more for a good stove is worth it in the long term, as the best stoves will get more heat from the wood and make you less reliant on other fuel for top-ups. Our oil consumption has dropped noticeably since the new wood stove went in, especially in spring & autumn, when a fire in the evening is often all we need in our well-insulated bungalow.

You don't say what form the free wood takes. We get payment in logs every year, but the logs we receive are rarely as well seasoned and dry as we'd want, so there are three open sheds here devoted to giving them a further year's time to dry right out. That does need space and forward planning. So, anything we burn nowadays has been cut for at least 2 years, and usually 3, which again makes a huge difference. We had to buy in logs for a while to get to this stage.

Finally, if you do decide to self-fit, there's this web site:

http://www.stovefittersmanual.co.uk/

sparkychris

Our logs are always fresh so we have several log stores and keep a mental note as to when the fresh logs go in which store (we currently live in a rented place with an open fire.) It's a bit of a ballache keeping that many logs for so long but I never turn them down and will always make room. And the hardest thing about moving house is going to be moving the logs!!!

Our budget, realistically, will be about 1500 initially, so anything I can save on showroom salesmans commission will go towards the install.

I'm now going to get my dinner and read that website link with interest!

suki1964

If you have a competent builder, who knows his building regs inside out, and has experience of fitting a stove , then use him. There is no law saying you need to use a Hetas registered fitter and we have all read horrow stories on here.

My husband is one such builder, so he was the one , with advice from the stove company ( who was a qualified heating engineer) put our stove in

We did buy a cheep Chinese tiger+. It's done us proud over eight years, a bit of fire rope and a back brick replacement so far and either this or next year a new grate. And we burn ours hard and fast sept through to may.

The flue really was the biggest expense as we needed double walled. Our next expense is wood. Ours is a multifuel and we get much better heat from either smokeless or anthracite. I still wouldn't attempt to heat the house either. Mines a 5kw and when it's going hard, you can't sit in there

Don't ever be tempted to oversize your stove thinking the heat will move out. Some does,but you will be sitting in underpants with the windows open in the room with the stove if you are burning correctly. Slumbering will choke your flue and can lead to chimney fires

FreeBear

sparkychris wrote: »

TI spoke to a colleague at work today who fitted his own and he said it was easy enough and as I do all my own electrics, plumbing and building work, would love to give it a go, but I think I'd have trouble convincing the Mrs, sadly.

I did virtually all the work of installing a stove myself (an inset cassette). Did even consider doing the flue, but after pricing it up, reckoned it would be just as cost effective to pay a HETAS guy to do the job - Needed around 10 metres of flue liner, cowl plus other fittings. Adding in the cost of scaffolding or cherry picker, it was going to cost at least £700 to do the job. To get it signed off by building control would have been another £300 or so.... I figured £1K for a registered fitter was quite reasonable and it saved me the hassle of dealing with B.C.

If you have easy access to your chimney (and a little helper), it isn't that difficult a job. The hard part is getting up to the top of the chimney and feeding the liner through - I'm not keen on heights or working off a ladder, so that was another reason to pay someone else.

Andy_WSM

suki1964 wrote: »

but you will be sitting in underpants with the windows open in the room with the stove

Clearly over-dressed!

I paid a little extra to buy a Burley Debdale stove, also 5kW and have been delighted with it's efficiency and how little ash is left to be cleaned out. I can get away with emptying the ash bed once a week, sometimes less even after burning for 12 hours a day.