Open fire/Stove

[Scotty38]

I realise there are loads of threads on best stove etc but I'm not really asking about a specific stove rather than the principle.

 

We live in a smallish 3 bed farmhouse with oil fired central heating/water. We also have open fires in the lounge and dining room but we only use the one in the lounge. I have no idea how much wood I get through but so far it's all been free from friends/families trees etc.

 

If I have the fire going then I can turn off the rad in the room but need the rest on to warm the rest of the house. We also get horrendous draughts when the fires in. We get the draughts anyway but obviously far worse when the fire's going.

 

So, the million dollar question is whether I should even consider a stove. Assuming I can maintain the free wood (and a few bags of coal here and there) would there be any benefit? I'm really wondering if I could turn off more rads if I had a stove but just don't want to fork out all the money only to find I'm no better off. If it'll only ever heat the room I may as well save the money for bags of coal and throw it up the chimney.

 

I also realise nobody can see my house and its layout so it's all guess work I suppose but would welcome opinions. However if it helps I have a front door (draughty) that opens into dining room with door into lounge (draughty). Back door opens into kitchen (draughty) and open(ish) plan into dining room. Door to stairs from dining room (blows a gale).

 

Thanks in advance....

[Woodworks]

Hi Scotty

 

Welcome

 

Demand for wood gets bigger by the day. You have done well to get free wood so far but this may well become more and more difficult. Open fires are renown for their inefficiency. I Read a study somewhere that said an open fire in a home with central heating could actually lower the heat in the home due the convection of heat up the chimney. Stoves are expensive but should give far more heat for the wood you use. Would probably be worth your while sealing up some of your drafts as well.

[Scotty38]

Thanks, I guess I should have introduced myself but I didn't feel new as I've been around a little while although never posted until now

 

To be fair we do seal up some of the draughts but some are difficult to do given the door's in use/the design of it and there's no obvious/easy/practical way I can get round it.

 

Agree the house probably is colder with the fire going as it certainly draws in the cold air, does look good though.....

[Stubby]

Was the same as you for years . My open fire was probably one of the better ones in that it ha a good draw and you could hardly detect any smoke when it was alight . However I have had a a stove now for the last 3 winters and can confirm it is way better . I leave all the internal doors open and the heat permeates all through the house and up the stairs . You can also have an Echo Fan that sits on top of the stove and pushes warm air around the house . It works of the heat of the stove . If your fire place is against an outside wall you can have the room seal kit which which will allow the stove to draw its air ( cold air ) directly from the out side . This is the best way to go I think .

[wrsni]

The difference between an open fire and a good quality stove is so great it would be hard to quantify.

 

Up until last year, and since the house was built, we had a Stanley solid fuel cooker and open fire with high output Grant back boiler, both linked in to a standard central heating system with radiators. It was well done with two circulating pumps and non-return valves so that whichever of the two was lit was like the only heat source on the system and consequently either of the two was capable of heating the entire house. The main problem was that with the inefficiency of the open fire, you burned about twice the amount of fuel to provide the same heat as with the cooker and it couldn't be done at all with wood alone. So with fuel prices rising over the last few years, we'd essentially abandoned the open fire (much to the wifes disappointment) and just went with the stove only. Oh, the other problem was that we couldn't burn both at the same time as the house was too air-tight and you'd have needed to open windows or something to allow both to draw so fairly pointless.

 

So last year open fire and back boiler came out, Burley 8kw stove with external direct air supply went in. Now the cooker stays in but completely shut down to provide hot water 24/7 and background heat in the kitchen. The rest of the house is heated with the stove which in turn uses approximately half the amount of wood used previously to heat the house via the cooker and central heating system. So the difference from the stove to the open fire is truly immense and probably a combination of much more efficient burning allied with the sheer waste of heat from an open fire. Although interestingly we have a central chimney breast and it is now much warmer with the stove than it was with the open fire!

 

Whatever the reason, it just works and while we still buy coke for the cooker through the winter (roughly a bag per week) we could burn wood in it as well if it ever became expedient to do so.

 

Get a good stove in, you won't regret it.

[ballibeg]

The common thread to all your replies is 'good stove'. They are not all created equal. A cheap duff stove won't seal well, will still eat wood and won't warm you.

 

Buy a good 'un!

[Mark Bolam]

It was a game-changer for my parents farmhouse in Northumberland.

We used to huddle round the open fire like it was a campfire!

Now everyone spreads out all over the room.

 

As said, buy quality though, and expect the flue liner etc. to cost serious money.

It won't be cheap, but it will be worth it.

 

 

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[mendiplogs]

It was a game-changer for my parents farmhouse in Northumberland.

We used to huddle round the open fire like it was a campfire!

Now everyone spreads out all over the room.

 

As said, buy quality though, and expect the flue liner etc. to cost serious money.

It won't be cheap, but it will be worth it.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Arbtalk

HI MARK your RIGHT there mate it all down the QUALITY of the stove mate buy the best you can and a good flue liner to theres loads of :thumbdown:out theres but you will do is use more logs in the END thanks jon

[richardwale]

Buy a Burley. You will be amazed!

[Stubby]

Buy a Burley. You will be amazed!

 

Got one