Wood burners

[eeyore]

Originally Posted by Susie

I thought you had to be registered to install a woodburner? I guess it doesn't matter if no one knows

only to install one for someone else - afaik you can do your own if you want

[Mike Jackson]

The main issue with installing your own is insurance. If there is a fire the insurers may refuse to pay out unless you have it inspected after installation by a registered installer.

[Susie]

And if you sell the house you won't have any paperwork so will have to get an indemnity policy, but they aren't very expensive.

[Cowgirl]

What about re-establishing a coal fire that was already there & an electric fire put over? Do you still need it inspected?

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by Cowgirl

What about re-establishing a coal fire that was already there & an electric fire put over? Do you still need it inspected?

Get the chimney swept. It should be clean from soot, as it should have been swept before the electric fire was installed. However, sweeping the chimney will check for other obstructions such as bricks that have fallen out and lodged half way down, birds nests if the chimney pot is open, and will reveal if the chimney pot has been blocked off to stop rain coming down the chimney onto your electric fire. Although the latter may be obvious by simply looking at the chimney pot from outside your house.

You should check that the chimney does not leak. If the house is very old the mortar between the bricks may have cracked and allows fumes into the room. You can test it by getting smoke bombs from your local heating supplier. Put one in the fire place and light it, then check for any smoke coming into the room from the chimney. You must check the chimney all the way up, i.e. in the room where the fire place is, the bedroom above, and in the attic. You may have to use 2 or 3 smoke bombs to complete the whole inspection. If there are any problems you may have to get the chimney lined.

You should also check that the throat is intact, i.e. the top of the fire place into the chimney. This is designed to aid the drawing of smoke up into the chimney and in installing the electric heater; the throat may have been damaged. If it appears to have had any of it chiselled away or there are excessive cracks, you can get a new fire back from your local builder’s merchant. Check the size as they do vary. If you are handy it is not difficult to fit.

If you are unsure about anything, HETAS is the registered authority for solid fuel and they are happy to give advice and are quite helpful.

[Cowgirl]

Thank you for that Andrew, we weren't going to do it ourselves but it's nice to know the process as people keep reassuring us that it wouldn't take much, hmmm.... famous last words I think.
My husband is desparate for a coal fire again, they're nice but oh the mess. I need to know how things are done as if we do it I'd like it done properly. The house isn't that old (50's I think) & the coal fire was in use as the main heating source before it was renovated (cheaply I feel!) ex council house bought then done up to sell on about 6 years ago, we've been here 2 years, so hopefully everything is still intact behind there.

Sorry to hijack the thread a bit but I do intend to burn wood on it as well

In previous fire's we've always found Ash the best Oak tended to smoulder, lasted well but didn't produce the heat & flame, 'course it just mightn't have seasoned properly! Husband bought himself a chainsaw & went off into the woods with a mate (we've always lived on farms) came back with a trailer full of deadfall & a pleased grin on his face! Sigh....

[jazzypixie]

As far as building regulation is concerned (doc J) a woodburner must be installed by a competent person. A competent person can be anyone. What a hetas installer has the ability to do is bypass the building control notification as they fill in a notification to HETAS that then notify the local council. We installed our Vesta V4 stove ourselves after looking into this. We did our own building control notification costing £45.00. A hetas installer told us he would have charged £395 for the basic installation so we save £350.00. The only paperwork a hetas engineer would give you is a HETAS cert which is only to say that its been installed by a competant person and they should give you a data plate. This is an important part of the installation but you cab buy them online for a few pound and fill in the details and mount it close to the unit.

[toolbox]

Originally Posted by Susie

We are going to get rid of our gas fire and get a wood burner instead. Is there any advice you great guys and gals can give us? Anything we should look out for?


Also, we are looking for quite a modern looking wood burner, can anyone recommend a supplier? PM me if you like as I am not sure if posting links contravenes the forum guidelines.

Many thanks,

Susie

Hi Susie, nice to meet ya...
I HAVE to give this piece of oh, so valuable advice to all potential future wood burners...Make sure that whoever fits it, changes lintels etc really knows what they are doing, for example, ask previous customers. There really are a lot of 'tradesmen (mostly men) who are claiming to know to get work because of the slowed building trade. Research, research, research!
on a lighter note..
Oh, and also, when it's fitted and you have control of your heating, of which I assume is your intention, along with the 'nice to have' factor , you will enjoy BIG savings... in the last 12 months we saved 240quid and had that refunded! some nice bedroom furniture is on its way...
regs tb

[Cowgirl]

Just out of curiosity has anyone tried these?

Top Rated Wood Briquettes and Heat Logs

My sister uses them & thinks their great but I'm not sure how long they would last, she can make hers last for ages but her house was freezing

She likes them mainly because they're clean, burn down to nothing & produce a lot of heat (she says)

Do people think they're worth the money?