Wood burner

[Quickthorn]

Probably teaching granny to suck eggs here, but..

 

If you burn wood, you need to keep the chimney swept clean..at least once a year, probably twice. The best way to get tar buildups is to burn unseasoned wood.

[Quickthorn]

Related to this..

 

I'm burning wood on an open fire at the place where I rent, but it's not that great. I think a lot of the heat just goes up the chimney, and it draws in a lot of cold air from outside, so the ground floor never warms up that much. There is a back boiler, which does an ok job of heating radiators and water. I can't really afford to spend a lot of money on having stoves and chimney liners fitted. however, a friend has suggested I simply fabricate a door with adjustable vents and fit it into the fireplace, then treat the whole thing as an insert stove. I'm not so sure about the idea, and am worried that it might cause expensive problems, or even a fire.

 

Has anyone done something similar ?

[Mr Ed]

Open fires - guaranteed to heat the sky and freeze your back

 

Seriously, buy a wood burner, or even make one out of an old calor gas bottle, and vent it up the chimney...

[benedmonds]

In my old house which was built in the 1880s, I pulled out the 70's gas fire and stuck in a nice morso squirel wood stove, I didn't bother with the liner, I didn't even properly seal the flue in. Worked a treat.

[Buzz]

My parents recently had a wood burning stove fitted and they had to have the chimney lined as well.

[nod]

My parents recently had a wood burning stove fitted and they had to have the chimney lined as well.

 

Hello All

 

We're about to fit a new burner with back boiler to our revamped heating system. A guy came over on on friday & told us that due to new building regulations a burner cannot be fitted without a flue on houses built after 1972 (I think but don't quote me on it). Our burner exits out of the back before turning 90degrees up the chimney; to my mind this will just about guarantee a chimney fire within 2years because it will impossible to sweep the chimney due the brushes going through the front of the stove & then upwards. Anyone any thoughts on that. Mine are to do it ourselves & give one large central finger to building control!! Well someone has to!!

 

:thrasher:Nod

[Quickthorn]

Our burner exits out of the back before turning 90degrees up the chimney; to my mind this will just about guarantee a chimney fire within 2years because it will impossible to sweep the chimney due the brushes going through the front of the stove & then upwards. Anyone any thoughts on that. Mine are to do it ourselves & give one large central finger to building control!! Well someone has to!!

 

:thrasher:Nod

 

That doesn't sound good. The chimney will need to be swept somehow..any chance of fitting a door or cover on the elbow to allow access for the brushes?

 

As for building regs, I'd agree with giving them the two fingers, in principle..but if the worst came to the worst, and there was a fire caused by the burner, would your buildings insurance company use it as a way of invalidating your policy?

[nod]

That doesn't sound good. The chimney will need to be swept somehow..any chance of fitting a door or cover on the elbow to allow access for the brushes?

 

As for building regs, I'd agree with giving them the two fingers, in principle..but if the worst came to the worst, and there was a fire caused by the burner, would your buildings insurance company use it as a way of invalidating your policy?

 

Hi Quickthorn

 

I understand where your coming from regarding the insurance thingy. I've lived in houses with open fire or a wood burner for a long time & think that the chimney fire comes from two things; a lack of understanding about how to burn wood well on your own particular burner/fireplace or a basic lack of maintenance. If these two things are preempted then a chimney fire is just about impossible.

 

Last winter I had my first chimney fire because I didn't sweep out when I knew that I should do. And for no good reason I threw on a small handful of fir prunings that I had in my hand when I came in from the garden with. Double tw*t really. What I'll do is to have a door of somekind fabricated which will go into the wall above the stove & access through to the chimney. This allows me to sweep through the door & collect all the debris in the bottom of the 90degree bend pipework at the base. With a decent piece of steel it can look quite funky also.

 

Nod