Wood burning stoves

waqasahmed

These are quite pricey to install but can be pretty cheap to run 

Do they still have the indoor air quality issues that they've been plagued with in the past? If so, that's a bit of a deal breaker 

maisie_cat

We inherited a stove installed in 2005 and we use an air quality monitor a couple of metres from the stove.
It never goes off the green indicator, but we use the correct wood, at the correct moisture level,  warm the chimney first and have it swept annually.
They are really only cheap to run if you have your own source of wood, which we sadly do thanks to ash dieback
 

BossBob

The problem is then the air quality for your neighbours who only get the downsides of your wood burning.

Reed_Richards

I have a wood burning stove which is only used occasionally (it's mainly there in case of a prolonged power outage).  Whenever I open it to add more wood the updraft is never powerful enough to stop some of the combustion product getting into the room so the air quality indoors becomes poor.  And outdoors it is poor.  I live in a village a fair way from other houses; I personally think wood burning stoves should be banned in an urban environment such as where you live.      

Qyburn

If you worry about your neighbours then you can pick a stove approved for use in Smoke Control Areas .. 

https://www.stovesonline.co.uk/defra-exempt-stoves.html
https://smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk/appliances.php?country=england

JimLad

They are an environmental disaster and new installations should be banned. They emit more particulate pollution than road traffic

BossBob

Like so many things, just because something is allowed by government it doesn’t mean that it is good for you or your neighbours!

dunstonh

Do they still have the indoor air quality issues that they've been plagued with in the past?

No.   We have three burners in the house (planning to go to 4 or 5) and a monitor that displays the particle count and get no issues of "leakage" into the house.   

However, we use dry wood of good quality and don't burn unsuitable trash.     You generally find that those you can smell and those smoking a lot are burning bad fuel or not using the air controls properly.   About half our fuel is from our own land.

The problem is then the air quality for your neighbours who only get the downsides of your wood burning.

Only if the burner is being used incorrectly (by wrong fuel or poor control)

They are an environmental disaster and new installations should be banned. They emit more particulate pollution than road traffic

They are not an environmental disaster.   For some people, it is a necessary choice.      However, there are some people that knowingly burn things that they shouldn't and create emissions that are unsuitable.   They should ban the bad users rather than those that use them correctly.   And the location is important.   Urban locations should have no need for a burner and are unlikely to be using it for the same reason that a rural property does.

Wood is a renewable source of energy and not a fossil fuel.  If we were not burning wood, which is mostly sourced from our land, we would be burning more oil.    Wood burning lets off less co2 than gas or electricity and as long as your wood source is renewable, you are neutral in that respect.

Particulates can be an issue but that is heavily overstated based on flawed research that has since been backtracked.  They do let out particulates but its all about the quality of the fuel used and how you control the burn.   The age and quality of the stove matters too.   Modern stoves can reduce particulates by 90% compared to a 10 year old stove.

So, blanket bans would be inappropriate and pointless.   

waqasahmed

Reed_Richards said:

I have a wood burning stove which is only used occasionally (it's mainly there in case of a prolonged power outage).  Whenever I open it to add more wood the updraft is never powerful enough to stop some of the combustion product getting into the room so the air quality indoors becomes poor.  And outdoors it is poor.  I live in a village a fair way from other houses; I personally think wood burning stoves should be banned in an urban environment such as where you live.      

Ah. I'm semi rural but even then outdoor air pollution affecting my neighbours isn't something I'd want either tbh. 

I live in a bit of a neat little pocket of the country that's got relatively affordable housing, a decent chunk of greenery and fantastic transport links to major (northern) cities

The other option is to simply block off my gas fire because I don't use it anyway and rely on central heating 

Meatballs

If you have articles that refute the particulate issue you should share them as a lot of research published is from the last couple of years...

dunstonh said:

Do they still have the indoor air quality issues that they've been plagued with in the past?

No.   We have three burners in the house (planning to go to 4 or 5) and a monitor that displays the particle count and get no issues of "leakage" into the house.   

However, we use dry wood of good quality and don't burn unsuitable trash.     You generally find that those you can smell and those smoking a lot are burning bad fuel or not using the air controls properly.   About half our fuel is from our own land.

The problem is then the air quality for your neighbours who only get the downsides of your wood burning.

Only if the burner is being used incorrectly (by wrong fuel or poor control)

They are an environmental disaster and new installations should be banned. They emit more particulate pollution than road traffic

They are not an environmental disaster.   For some people, it is a necessary choice.      However, there are some people that knowingly burn things that they shouldn't and create emissions that are unsuitable.   They should ban the bad users rather than those that use them correctly.   And the location is important.   Urban locations should have no need for a burner and are unlikely to be using it for the same reason that a rural property does.

Wood is a renewable source of energy and not a fossil fuel.  If we were not burning wood, which is mostly sourced from our land, we would be burning more oil.    Wood burning lets off less co2 than gas or electricity and as long as your wood source is renewable, you are neutral in that respect.

Particulates can be an issue but that is heavily overstated based on flawed research that has since been backtracked.  They do let out particulates but its all about the quality of the fuel used and how you control the burn.   The age and quality of the stove matters too.   Modern stoves can reduce particulates by 90% compared to a 10 year old stove.

So, blanket bans would be inappropriate and pointless.   

Sounds like a lot of self justification head in sand to me.

QrizB

I don't have a wood burning stove and have no plans to get one, but thought I'd have a go at supplying some data.

Meatballs said:

If you have articles that refute the particulate issue you should share them as a lot of research published is from the last couple of years...

The figure touted a couple of years ago was that woodburning stoves were responsible for 38% on PM2.5 pollution.

This was then cut to 17%, which was still more than the 13% that is due to road transport.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/feb/15/wood-burners-emit-more-particle-pollution-than-traffic-uk-data-shows

Looking at the source data, however, it's less clear. Here is the DEFRA page:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/emissions-of-air-pollutants/emissions-of-air-pollutants-in-the-uk-particulate-matter-pm10-and-pm25

which says:

Domestic combustion is a major source of particulate matter emissions in 2021, accounting for 16 per cent of PM10 emissions and 27 per cent of PM2.5 emissions. Most emissions from this source come from households burning wood in closed stoves and open fires. In the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, coal use in domestic combustion was the largest source of particulate matter emissions; coal now accounts for a very small proportion of emissions from this source (13 per cent in 2021), while the use of wood as a fuel accounted for 75 per cent of PM2.5 emissions from domestic combustion in 2021. Emissions of PM2.5 from domestic wood burning increased by 124 per cent between 2011 and 2021, to represent 21 per cent of total PM2.5. emissions in 2021.

What I can't see in the report is a value specifically for woodburning stoves, as opposed to eg. wood burned in open fires.