Wood Burning Stove Information, Help & Advice

 

Welcome to our stove information page below is some common information. Please be sure to visit out other sections should they be applicable:

 

Stove Terms

What size stove do I need?

Stove Efficiency

CE Marks

Lighting Your Stove

Lining Your Chimney

What if I don't have a Chimney?

 

Fitting a Stove yourself

Installation of a stove is governed by building regulations Approved Document J. If you were to install the stove yourself, not only would you have to read and dissect this document, but you would also have to make sure you follow it to a tee and then notify building control on a building notice.
Unless you have previous experience as a builder, fireplace installer or gas fitter we would not recommend installing your stove yourself.
You can either find a company who has experience in installing stoves who will install your stove to the required standards, liaise with building control and make sure your stove is signed off. Or you can employ a HETAS registered company to install your stove who will self certificate the installation. Whichever route you take will not make any difference, legally. However be aware that if you use a HETAS installer, and he carries out structural work on your chimney, such as a knock out and lintel job, he must also inform building control via a building notice. This is an aspect that is overlooked by many HETAS engineers out there.

If you would like to view wood burning stove building regulations document J click here.

Will my stove heat my radiators and central heating?

You can buy models of stoves that are powerful enough to run your hot water, a few radiators or even your entire heating system. Please see our boiler stove section for more information

Stove Glass

In modern stoves you will find that 99% will have an airwash system designed to keep the glass on your stove clean. However should you burn unseasoned wood on the stove or have chimney problems you may find that this glass will cloud up. However all stove glass can be cleaned with our special glass cleaner.
Glass rarely breaks on its own, however it is quite a regular occurance where customers will shut the door on a large log, cracking the glass. For this reason we recommend always having a spare piece as it may take you a couple of days to get a replacement which may mean you can't use your stove!

Stove Flue Outlet

Most modern stoves now have the option to flue your stove from the top or the rear of the appliance. Most installations will flue from the top exit, however rear exit flue setups are handy if you want to push the wood burning stove forward out of the fireplace and more into the room.

Air Vents

All stoves with an output of over 5kW must have an air vent fitted in the room that it is installed in. There must not be an extractor fan in the same room as a stove as this will pull gases out of the stove bringing smoke and carbon monoxide into the room.

Can I fit a stove in a thatched cottage?

Thatched cottages need careful precautions when installing a stove. You must make sure that your chimney is lined and insulated. You must also make sure that you fit a Spark Arrester style cowl rather that a normal or anti-downdraught cowl.

 

Wood Burning Stove Glossary

Adjustable Grate
An Adjustable grate can be found in certain stoves allowing you to change the grate setup to suit wood or solid fuel applications

Air Wash
Air Wash is a term used where the combustion of the stove is calibrated to send a flow of air over the glass of the wood burning stove. This not only creates a nice flame pattern, but prevents soot and pollutants from forming on the glass fogging it up

Ash Pan
The Ash Pan sits below the grate in a multifuel stove and collects falling or griddled ash. This can then be removed to empty into your bin or spread on your garden.

Back Boiler
A back boiler is installed in a stove to allow you to run and heat water through the stove for hot water and/or radiators.

Balanced Flue

A balanced flue is found on some gas appliances. It is a flue that allows fresh air to be drawn in while allowing fumes to be ejected simultaneously.

Canopy
A canopy can be a hood mounted above you stove or a gathering device fitted above open/gas fires to assist in the drawing of fumes up the chimney.

Chromium Steel Grate
Chromium grates are designed to be heavy duty and able to deal with the intense heats produced by burning petro-chemical based fuels.

Convection Panel
This is a panel that allows heat from the stove to be convected (blown) into the room increasing the heating ability of the stove.

Double Sided Stoves
Double sided stoves are designed to be installed in a chimney between 2 rooms. This allows the fire to be seen and loaded from both sides.

Fire Brick
Fire bricks are used in stoves to protect the body from burning through. These are consumable parts often made from vermiculite board or clay based products.

Fire Cement
Fire Cement is a putty used to seal single wall flue and other gaps that experience high temperatures. When first used fire cement will emit an odour and cure (go hard) upon the lighting (firing) of the stove.

Fire Rope
Fire rope has a number of uses. It is a fire/heat resistant rope use to fill high temperature gapes such as flue joints. It is also used to seal doors on Wood Burning Stoves.

Flexible Flue Liner
Flue liner is used to line your chimney making your stove more efficient, your chimney safer and saving you money.

Flue Damper
A flue damper restricts the airflow of the stoves flue enabling you to shut down the stove further. This is useful should you want to keep your stove alight overnight.

Flue Outlet Position
Most modern wood burning and multifuel stoves have the option to flue from the rear or the top of the stove to suit your requirements.

Log Guard or Retainer
The log guard or retainer prevents logs from slipping out of the stove or falling into the glass and cracking it.

Log Store
There are 2 types of log stores. You can purchase stoves with integrated logstores. This allows you to store a small amount of wood underneath the stove ready for loading. You can also have a logstore outside of your home which acts as a dry place to store and season your wood.

Maximum Log Length
This is the maximum width of a log that will fit into the stove.

Overnight Burning
Shutting your stove down overnight will allow you to throw on a fresh log in the morning, open all the vents and allow the fire to get going again without having to re-light the stove.

Register Plate
The register plate is the steel plate that sits in the bottom of your chimney. The stove flue passes through it and the plate is there to prevent debris from falling down the chimney and into the room. It also stops warm air from being drawn up the chimney, reflecting it back into the room.

Riddler
The riddler is a steel bar that can be used externally on your stove. This rotates or rocks the grate which means ash falls through it into the stove's ashpan.

Secondary Air Regulator
This control the amount of air drawn into the second combustion cycle of the stove.

Side Loading
A few stoves have the option of side loading which means that you can load logs through the side of the appliance allowing for longer logs to be inserted.

Smokeless Burning/Clean Burn
Clean burn is a method of burning the gases within the stove so that little or no smoke is emitted from the stove making the stove more efficient and environmentally friendly.

Tertiary Air Supply
Method of introducing air to the combustion products just before they are vented up the chimney, to extract the remaining energy and further clean the flue products.

Thermostatically Controlled
A thermostatically controlled stove allows you to set a temperature which is will try to maintain.

Top Loading
In a top loading stove you may insert logs through a hinged top on the stove.

Twinwall Flue
Twinwall Flue is used in a situation where you don't have a chimney. It can be used to flue your stove out of the side of the house or through the ceiling and roof.