Log burner

[sintv]

We had back boiler removed so now with an empty fireplace, we thought about a log burner. Went to shop and looked at a fire costing about £600. By the time the dealer had worked out costings, it was over £4500. Surely for a start the fire can go in the fireplace alcove without having to get some kind of lining, after all there was a coal fire in it years ago and the brickwork didnt melt then. Put fire in place, remove some tiles, lower pipework from roof to fire and fit flue..or is that too simple.

[Tim Streater]

The coal fire would likely have been rubbish risking chimney fires or inefficient with the fuel. We had a coal fire replaced with a wood burner 10 years ago and did the whole job and we only need the chimney sweep every couple of years. We needed the fireplace opening out quite a bit to accomodate the wood burner and everyone suggests getting a proper lining, which, in our case, is also insulated from the chimney brickwork. Your quote is about right.

[Tim+]

Probably too simple. ;-)

Do shop around though. A lot of companies are asking for silly money for installation working on the basis that trendy middle class folk will happily pay up.

Tim

[Rod Speed]

Log burners aren't normally put in old fireplaces, they usually sit in front of the wall, so the hot air off the body goes into the room better.

[Bob Eager]

ISTR that the by products from wood burning are more likely to cause a chimney fire (tar etm.). Particularly so if the wood isn't seasoned.

[Jeff Layman]

As it was a self-install, did you have any issues getting Building Control approval or was it straightforward?

I wondered if the OP's quote was on the high side. These pages suggest it should be around £3 - 3.5K:

[Tim Streater]

Wasn't a self-install.

[Jeff Layman]

Ok. I'd assumed "...and did the whole job..." meant it was a self-install.

[Bev]

That looks extortionate to me. We bought a new multifuel last September to replace the old one (c1100ukp) and then had new stainless steel flue liner put into the existing chimney. To remove and dispose of old, buy new and full installation with certification and CO alarm came to just under 2200ukp. A few other quotes were not dissimilar and the 'labour costs were all very close in the 1000-1200ukp range.

This is in a very rural area though where multifuels/woodburners are common and not some lifestyle choice in an urban area.

[Martin Brown]

That seems a bit steep unless you are in the middle of London. My log burner is multifuel and has a back boiler which makes it quite handy when the mains fails - it can do hot water and keep two rooms warm.

It reduces the amount of oil the CH system burns when used.

They are fairly often in the UK since the fireplace, chimney and hearth is already there in older houses. The chimney needs to be lined and the fireplace broken out and supported again to make room.

You can get cute TEC self powered electric fans that sit on the top and move the warm air that would otherwise accumulate above it in the alcove into the main room. The disadvantage of this configuration is that you don't get so much heat off the exhaust pipe as you would if it was running up through the room.

[Brian Gaff]

I think the regulations have changed now. Its the classic case that if you use the old installation, you are fine, but if you change things it has to be compliant. There are a lot of dodgy fitted burners about where the chimney gets so hot that it nearly melts, and all sorts of other things. You are indeed right, though when I lived in an old townhouse in London in a flat, the old fire would burn almost anything, and nobody batted an eyelid. Brian

[Brian Gaff]

Its still a lot of money though. I also wonder what happens in a clean air zone? I have a nasty feeling that there are a lot of badly fitted wood burners out there, storing up trouble for the future. Brian

[Brian Gaff]

I wonder if there is any of these which can burn in such a way that the gasses and smoke coming from the chimney are kept to a minimum. Brian

[Tim Lamb]

In message <tpebet$3r9b9$ [e-mail], Brian Gaff [e-mail] writes

I fitted a 12kW Clearview 650 logburner to an existing 14" Victorian brick chimney in the farmhouse.

Incredibly expensive to buy now!

At the time, Clearview claimed a *hot air wash* function but this may have related to keeping the door glass clean rather than reduced smoke output.. The stove could be fitted with a back boiler and had provision for a piped air source.

Long while ago now but ISTR an issue with their flue outlet diameter not matching the stainless steel flexible flue liners available at the time. I fitted insulation sleeves which had to be adapted to suit the flue diameter.

[Martin Brown]

Yes. Some of them have thermostatic based air regulation and clever air flows that keep the front glass clean whilst burning the fuel hot. You can manually regulate the burn rate and it reconfigures the air flow.

Mine burns well enough that there is seldom any tar in the chimney the soot such as it is is a powdery grey. Half the battle is having decent quality dry wood for fuel. Wet wood burns with much more smoke and tar.

[Andrew]

But no hint of a windfall tax on log suppliers who are (not surprisingly) putting up their prices in parallel with the increase in gas (and coal) prices.

There is a lot more intermediate energy/labour consumption getting the tree felled, split, chopped and dried and transported to the end user compared to the transport of gas and oil. All these intermediate costs are increasing so people who fitted log burners to save money might want to re-do their calculations.

[alan_m]

4.4m3 kiln dried hardwood logs - price last August £450 - price if ordered today £450. Rural Shropshire.

Friends had a log burner replaced a few days ago. The difference between a 20/30 year old burner and a modern model has been like chalk and cheese.

[Rod Speed]

Makes a lot more sense to not have the new stove in the fireplace.

Lot cheaper to have a new very simple thing under it and an exhaust pipe that heats the room.

And it costs a lot more to do it that way, as the OP has discovered.

[Vir Campestris]

"after all there was a coal fire in it years ago and the brickwork didnt melt then"

If you put in another open fire it won't melt now. But an open fire pulls a lot of heated air up the chimney along with the smoke. That keeps the chimney cool, but also keeps your room cool.

A log burner is way more efficient. Which means the exhaust is hotter and there's a lot less of it.

Building control asked for all sorts of things to be able to install a log burner in our house. The thatched roof was a consideration :)

Andy

[Clive Arthur]

<snip>

Is that just wood that hasn't been properly dried, or dried wood which has been allowed to get wet as well? I ask as we have kiln dried logs, but a few at the bottom of the sacks are wet.