We are often asked by customers whether they should invest in a wood burning stove, or opt for a gas or electric fire. Whilst some are decided on a specific type of fire, others are restricted by the design of their house, or whether they have a gas supply or not.
However, there are some, who find themselves with the means and house design to have either a stove or gas fire (or electric fire), but are unsure what they should go for….
In this article we briefly look at the considerations, you should be thinking about of when looking at buying a wood burning stove.
Do you live in a smoke control area?
All our wood burning stoves are DEFRA exempt for burning in smoke control areas. This means with a Charlton & Jenrick stove, you can burn wood, even if you live in a smoke controlled area. This is not the case for all stove manufacturers however. You are able to find out if you live in a smoke control area by searching online at https://www.gov.uk/smoke-control-area-rules
How much space do you have to store wood?
Although you don’t necessarily need a large area for storing of wood, you will still need to dedicate some space to store logs. This may be as small as a few netted bags of logs, which you may have recently purchased, or it could be a a 6ft x 6ft x 6ft log store or larger.
If you are planning to prepare your own wood for seasoning, you will need a dry and airy place. Most who season their own wood tend to have a large log store already in place. You can learn more about storing wood in this article.
Will you comply with building regulations?
All Charlton & Jenrick stoves meet current UK building regulations, but this is not the case for all stove manufacturers, so you must always check when buying a stove. There are specifications around how the flue is fitted, the size of the hearth, and also the distance from combustibles, all of which will dictate the type of stove you can have.
What size stove do you want?
The (ideal) size of a stove will be dependant on the size of your room you wish to heat. There are also other factors, such as if you have double glazing, the age of your home, and if the house has any form of cavity insulation. Having a stove, which is too large will make a room far too hot. A stove too small will not heat it adequately. Unlike a gas or electric fire, you can’t as easily vary the heat a stove produces.
The preparation
As beautiful as wood burning stoves look, they do require a little more work than a gas or electric fire. Besides seasoning wood, which you may not need to do, you will need to add wood to the fire, light it, and then clear away ash, and clean the stove from time to time, plus have the chimney swept regularly. While for some this is an intrinsic part of stove ownership, for others they may not be prepared for the extra effort needed. Only you will know the answer to this.
Deciding on a stove or not is something, which needs consideration. For those that are set on a stove, which will fit perfectly in their home, its a forgone conclusion! But for those unsure, or have set their heart on one, but fitting one in their home is not possible, there is a wide range of beautiful gas and electric fires to suit all tastes and requirements.
Our stoves – more info
Our gas fires – more info
Our electric fires – more info
