Anyone switched from open fire to a stove?

I agree with Frank, you can buy these enclosed units that fit into a fire surround. We had one in a former house, very nice to look at, efficient and they have adjustable flue so that you can to control the burn rate. There are no down draughts from the chimney when the fire is not in use, and cleaning them is simple as they have a built-in removable dust tray.

I think you also get less dust and smoke smell through the house, You can even open them to make toast !!

Cheers

Barrie

We have a lovely original Victorian fireplace which we all absolutely adore.

We don't light a fire though, but fill it with candles of different sizes and it looks fabulous with the lights down low. It also gives off quite a lot of heat and we usually end up turning down the radiators or it gets too hot.

Mark

In almost every case I'd say a log burner will give you more heat. Firstly an open fire sucks air and heat out of the room when it is not lit-something the stove and enclosed flu prevents. Secondly the large bulk of cast iron heats up and gives more heat into the room far more than an open fire. If you miss the 'open' look you can still open the doors-on most that will not cause smoke to enter the room.

If your current fire smokes the room it sounds like you may need some advice on the chimney and the draft in the room before doing anything anyway. Our house is so drafty (and the chimneys so wide) that we never have a problem but if you have a modern hermetically sealed home that will need thought.

Bruce

Many thanks for all the views - the stove/log burner seems an all round better solution. Can anyone indicate the approx cost of running one of these things from 6-11 at night and most of the day at weekends. Doing this with my open fire I'm currently getting through 4 sacks a month which is just a little less than £100 a month so it might be that the cost of the stove - £699 plus about £750 for the installation can be offset by lower running costs.

Jonathan

Try to buy logs loose and in bulk-a LOT cheaper if you can store them. We get a load delivered, maybe about 10-12 bags equivalent (imagine a pick up truck with the load area heaped in logs) for £40.

Different burners are such different sizes it is hard to estimate a typical cost. We don't light ours every day.

It has to be more fuel efficient than an open grate though.

Bruce

quote:

Originally posted by Jonathan Gorse:
I'm currently getting through 4 sacks a month which is just a little less than £100 a month

Flip! £100/month. Our gas bill comes to way under that (about £40/month) for the central heating.

I can understand that the attraction of a fire/burner could help to justify some of the cost, but that expense seems excessive. Is your log supplier taking the P?

Andrew Randle

I bought a Morso Swan stove as it looked better than the chintzy ones most places sell. The glass stays clean and you get a good view of the fire. Burning logs with the door shut is the way to go as you get much better efficiency than an open fire (20%->70% iirc). You do loose some of the sounds of a real fire but a wood burner is much more convenient and you can leave it running safely overnight.

I get bulk logs at 100 pounds for a double load and that lot lasts me the winter. You do need somewhere to store the logs as they need to be left for 12 months despite the wood already being part seasoned as I find they are normally too wet. You can get kiln dried logs but you pay a lot more.

Andrew,

Sorry I should have been clearer - we burn coal on the fire at present, mostly smokeless and that's £24 a sack everywhere so 4x sacks a month is £100/month. Looks like the wood burner would pay for itself in the course of a couple of years.

Many many thanks to everyone for advice and views. Currently looking at a Yeoman Devon flat top multifuel stove at around £730. Our chimney engineer reckons £750 ish to install the steel liner and stove so with some modifications to the hearth I think we're looking at £2000 or less.

Jonathan

quote:

Originally posted by Jonathan Gorse:
Andrew,

Sorry I should have been clearer - we burn coal on the fire at present, mostly smokeless and that's £24 a sack everywhere so 4x sacks a month is £100/month.


Jonathan

Yipes!

Coal here is approx £9 for 25kg bag. We use it on the open fire in our other room.

Bruce

We bought a wood burner with a fairly large window so we could still see the flames properly.



Behind the little 'door' there''s a small oven as well where we sometimes bake bread in. Works surprisingly well.