Open fires vs wood burners

IdleHans

Seeking advice and opinion from the knowledgeable community.
I live in a 200+ year old terraced cottage, single glazed, solid walls, no damp proof course etc, and love it but in the winter it's hard to keep it warm. I do have gas central heating which helps but I can't get the place cosy unless I light a fire in the hearth. I love an open fire for its aesthetic appeal and immediate heat, but it doesn't warm the room efficiently. I've been thinking of putting in a wood burning stove, and reckon i'd need about a 3kw output. Any lifers with experience of making this change, with wise words of advice?
Much appreciated.

i_b_b_o_r_g

We got a 12kw log burner - I think I'm right in saying that log burners are more efficient once they get going due to the cast iron giving off the heat. Ours is our only form of heating at the moment which I wouldn't recommend. If I don't break a tree up, we get cold, although we'll order a couple of square meter in the coming days.

eaststandmike

I used to have an 8kw wood burning stove in a very big lounge and boy did it get hot. As IB has said above it is not just the flames that do the work, once the burner has warmed up its like a megar radiator.

When we first had it fitted my daughter brought the grand kids round and I nipped out and bought a couple of bars of chocolate to melt and dip marshmallows in.

I put the chocolate in a bowl and placed it on top of the burner and sat chatting to the kids thinking it would take a while to melt however when I look in the bowl it was bubbling.

Once it reached temperature we used to open the lounge door and it pretty much heated all of the ground floor. We did have central heating throughout the house but the rads were always turned off in the lounge in the winter.

Advice: Don't be tempted to buy cheap as most of them are Chinese rubbish. Visit a few showrooms and talk to people.

FAVADDICK

Log burner all day long ours is a 8kw and it's like a burner off the titanic it heats up the whole house they do a magnetic fan that goes on top to push the hot air out you need one of them

bobmunro

We have a 8kw log burner in the main lounge (on at the moment) and as others have said it kicks out tremendous heat. Open fire - 90% of the heat goes straight up the chimney, log burner - 90% goes into the room.

SporadicAddick

open fire everyday - sod the efficiency, enjoy the experience!

Cordoban Addick

Check that your chimneys can take a wood burner, there are also complications if your house is listed.

SantaClaus

Just cheat and get an electric wood burner.

Holdkneebomb

SantaClaus said:

Just cheat and get an electric wood burner.

You of all people!

SoundAsa£

eaststandmike said:

I used to have an 8kw wood burning stove in a very big lounge and boy did it get hot. As IB has said above it is not just the flames that do the work, once the burner has warmed up its like a megar radiator.

When we first had it fitted my daughter brought the grand kids round and I nipped out and bought a couple of bars of chocolate to melt and dip marshmallows in.

I put the chocolate in a bowl and placed it on top of the burner and sat chatting to the kids thinking it would take a while to melt however when I look in the bowl it was bubbling.

Once it reached temperature we used to open the lounge door and it pretty much heated all of the ground floor. We did have central heating throughout the house but the rads were always turned off in the lounge in the winter.

Advice: Don't be tempted to buy cheap as most of them are Chinese rubbish. Visit a few showrooms and talk to people.

Chinese lubbish!

Elthamaddick

Love our log burner, heats the downstairs brilliantly

SantaClaus

Holdkneebomb said:

SantaClaus said:

Just cheat and get an electric wood burner.

You of all people!

I have no shame 😀

IdleHans

Cordoban Addick said:

Check that your chimneys can take a wood burner, there are also complications if your house is listed.

The house is in a conservation area but is thankfully not of sufficient architectural merit to be listed.

I'm swayed by the general positive feelings towards wood burners and I want to be warm! Will be getting some quotes at the weekend.

Many thanks all for your responses, much appreciated.

Wheresmeticket

If you get a log burner you can run the metal flue up the chimney but will lose a lot of the benefit as this radiates a lot of the heat.

Worth looking at getting one with a back boiler to heat radiators and provide hot water.

If you don't have access to a wood supply and aren't into skip diving for salvage wood it won't be a cheap way to heat your home.

PS get a carbon monoxide detector.

MountsfieldPark

And just so you have a more complete understanding about wood burners:



If you have near neighbours and give a damn for them, please make sure you get an adequate chimney.

Addickted

Perfect question for those on CL with a lot of experience in matters of a pyrotechnic nature.

@Goonerhater ?

Shrew

I have an open fire with back plate which takes over from the gas central heating , I would still go for the stove option though.

Dippenhall

Also have heat loss problems. Have an old Swedish pot belly log burner that will burn all night on a few large logs and radiates incredible heat. Have a modern dual burner in another room as radiator back up. Modern one made of lighter material is rubbish, False economy getting anything other than heavy duty genuine article, you will burn far less fuel the more iron you are heating.
Burning pine logs will tar up the flue so avoid.

Redrobo

Maybe worth looking at multi fuel as well. Gives you the option of coal as a fuel as well.

ShootersHillGuru

Or wear a jumper.

IdleHans

I take @MountsfieldPark's point about pollution. However, a wood burner would be way more efficient than my current open hearth arrangement. I live in a Berkshire village of fewer than 4000 where the air pollution score is 1 out of 6 (the cleanest) so at least not in a densely populated area.
My neighbour (our chimneys are part of the same structure) has a working fireplace and is also considering a wood burner. As others have said, so much heat goes up the chimney and cold air is drawn into the room, so the heating effect of the fire is only felt if you're sitting right in front of it.
I burn only kiln-dried hardwood logs - found everything else to be inferior, and softwood logs are almost useless. Birch is my favourite just because it smells great.

ShootersHillGuru said:

Or wear a jumper.

I would do, but I've singed them all sitting too close to the fire.

eaststandmike

IdleHans said:

I take @MountsfieldPark's point about pollution. However, a wood burner would be way more efficient than my current open hearth arrangement. I live in a Berkshire village of fewer than 4000 where the air pollution score is 1 out of 6 (the cleanest) so at least not in a densely populated area.
My neighbour (our chimneys are part of the same structure) has a working fireplace and is also considering a wood burner. As others have said, so much heat goes up the chimney and cold air is drawn into the room, so the heating effect of the fire is only felt if you're sitting right in front of it.
I burn only kiln-dried hardwood logs - found everything else to be inferior, and softwood logs are almost useless. Birch is my favourite just because it smells great.

ShootersHillGuru said:

Or wear a jumper.

I would do, but I've singed them all sitting too close to the fire.

If you buy a decent log burner the installer will explain to you not to burn scrap wood such as off cuts or pallets etc. These woods have been treated and when you burn them the treatment escapes and clings to the side of the flue. After a period of time the build up ignites causing a chimney/flue fire.

bobmunro

eaststandmike said:

IdleHans said:

I take @MountsfieldPark's point about pollution. However, a wood burner would be way more efficient than my current open hearth arrangement. I live in a Berkshire village of fewer than 4000 where the air pollution score is 1 out of 6 (the cleanest) so at least not in a densely populated area.
My neighbour (our chimneys are part of the same structure) has a working fireplace and is also considering a wood burner. As others have said, so much heat goes up the chimney and cold air is drawn into the room, so the heating effect of the fire is only felt if you're sitting right in front of it.
I burn only kiln-dried hardwood logs - found everything else to be inferior, and softwood logs are almost useless. Birch is my favourite just because it smells great.

ShootersHillGuru said:

Or wear a jumper.

I would do, but I've singed them all sitting too close to the fire.

If you buy a decent log burner the installer will explain to you not to burn scrap wood such as off cuts or pallets etc. These woods have been treated and when you burn them the treatment escapes and clings to the side of the flue. After a period of time the build up ignites causing a chimney/flue fire.

Absolutely, kiln dried hard wood is by far the best. My supplier delivers a mix of ash, beech and oak and it burns slowly with a good heat output and good flames.

As others have said, it's not cheap but worth it. I normally have two lots of 2 cubic metres delivered during the winter, one in October and one in January. £200 a time so £400 in total but it heats most of the ground floor with just radiators on for upstairs for an hour or so in the morning and then again in the evening.

My wife and I often agree that our log burner is the best thing we've ever bought for the house. So we at least agree on one thing!!