Why a Wood Burning Stove Should Be Properly Sized and Installed
Wood stoves can be an excellent, safe method of heating your home. However, a wood stove needs to be installed and sized correctly for maximum efficiency.
Be sure to shut and open the wood stove door frequently. This creates a vortex that pulls smoke and unburned volatile compounds into the room.
Energy Efficiency
A wood burning stove utilizes radiant heat to warm your home, instead of relying on hot air that is blown in through the home's ventilation system. This is a better method to heat your home, as the heat radiates out from all sides.
Modern wood stoves are designed to be as efficient as they can. Manufacturers have to meet stricter standards regarding emissions, and the best way to achieve this is to make their stoves more energy efficient. The vast majority of our stoves (both DEFRA approved and EPA certified) have efficiency ratings of more than 70%, which means that a large portion of the heat produced is used to warm your home instead of being lost to the chimney.
Another benefit of a wood burner is that it gives you an independent source of heat. A wood burner can provide warmth during power outages or gas shortage, as long as you have enough logs.
Wood burning stoves are more reliable than other types of heating since they don't rely on oil or electricity to operate. This is especially important in remote locations where other energy sources could be disrupted for extended periods of time.
A top-quality log burner can provide heat to your home at an 80% efficiency. This is a significant improvement over older stoves which typically operate at less than 20% efficiency. This is one of the main reasons why a new stove would be a wise investment.
A catalytic wood stove can re-burn the unburned gasses and smoke that exits the firebox by secondary combustion to further improve efficiency. However non-catalytic stoves are becoming increasingly popular because they don't require costly catalyst technology to attain similar levels of efficiency and are considerably less expensive to purchase. This is especially beneficial for those who want to reduce their carbon footprint and save on fuel costs.
Clean Burning
A wood stove burns wood and generates heat however it also releases particles and gases into the air. This can result in poor air quality in some areas and can affect our health. This is why it's crucial to use clean burning technology in your wood stove.
With a modern wood stove that uses Clean Burn technology, you can lower dust and airborne particles. This not only makes your home healthier and safe, but it also can save you money since you can get more heating for every log.
Today's ECO design stoves meet one of the strictest standards in the world with regards to particle emissions. They are allowed to release no more than 5 grams per kilogram of wood that is burned. We at Jotul have higher goals. We want to provide you with the best possible environment and health. We have developed an approach that allows our wood stoves to emit less than half the statutory requirements - in some instances, it's even less than one gram!
A modern stove comes with a variety of ways to improve the combustion of wood. It is important to monitor the air flow and only decrease it once the fire is hot and established.
Cleaner stoves produce less creosote. This sticky substance could cause serious fire hazards. The less creosote produced will also save you time and money on chimney sweeping expenses.
The pre-heated air in our new wood stoves is another key factor in their superior performance. It is an additional layer of air that is inserted over the fuel, and helps to ensure all particles are completely ignited. This is a large portion of the outstanding performance that is found in our newest stoves, such as the Defra approved Hi-Flame Graphite 5.
You should always make sure that your wood stove is used only in smoke control zones (or exempt zones) where it is legal to use it. Smoke from the wood stove isn't only dangerous for those within the immediate vicinity however, it can also travel far distances and contribute to poor air quality in neighboring communities.
Eco-Friendly
Wood burners are an alternative that is low in carbon to stoves that use fossil fuels. They absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release it when they burn as part of the closed CO2 cycle. This process is much less harmful to the environment than emitting carbon dioxide into air when using oil, gas or electricity to heat your home.
A modern stove has a greater efficiency than earlier models, which means that you can heat your home with much less firewood. Some models are so efficient that they emit virtually no smoke, generate less ash, and require 70% less logs than traditional stoves. Newer EPA certified stoves also come with safety features, such as an automatic shut off to stop overheating.
In addition to being a good source of heat eco-friendly stoves are also an excellent way to cut costs on your energy bills. Modern wood burning stoves and electricity prices seem to be rising each year. With a wood-burning stove, you will be able to take control of your heating needs and cut out the middlemen.
You can also use recycled or salvaged wood to make your stove to make it more environmentally friendly. Many people collect wood that could otherwise be discarded in building projects or disposed however it is essential to ensure it's dry before you burn it. This is especially crucial if you reside in a smoke control area where it is an offence to use damp or wet wood.
The green aspect of a wood stove extends to the fact that it is a renewable energy source. If you purchase your wood from a sustainable forest, one tree will be planted for every one that is removed to be used which helps counteract the deforestation caused by fossil fuel production.
It is important to note that while wood burning stoves produce less emissions than other stoves, they still produce some fine particulate pollution. These are tiny, toxic particles that can penetrate deep into your lungs, and are extremely dangerous to your health. The independent body that sets standards for heating appliances HETAS has been leading an effort to improve wood stoves so that they reduce this type of pollution as much as possible and a variety of manufacturers are working on eco-friendly wood stoves that comply with the most recent standards.
Cooking
Wood stoves are safe when used correctly. If you're not familiar with wood burning, you should to consult a professional to inspect your fireplace and ventilation system to ensure they are working correctly. Modern wood burners include chimneys and fireboxes that are designed to draw in fresh air and release smoke. The ventilation pipe and the chimney work together to limit the amount of creosote generated by burning wood. The buildup of creosote within the chimney can reduce efficiency and cause a fire hazard, so it is important to maintain your stove.
The scent of burning wood and the crackle of the flames create an inviting ambience that will take you back to simpler times. A wood-burning stove can also provide an unmistakable flavor that can't be replicated by electric or gas stoves. The smoky aroma of roasted meats and hearty soups gives meals a distinctive and memorable flavor that cannot be replicated with other methods of cooking.
Cooking on a wood-burning stove is also thought to be healthier than other forms of cooking. For instance, if you roast vegetables or meats in your wood-burning stove, the heat generated by the flames helps to preserve nutrients that can be lost when cooking food for prolonged periods of time.
Many people prefer using a wood burning stove in lieu of gas or electricity to heat their homes. It is a reliable method for heating that is particularly beneficial during power outages and in regions where fossil fuels are in short supply. A majority of people also believe that a wood stove can be a more economical way to heat their home than purchasing an electric or gas stove. It is also eco-friendly because wood is a renewable resource and when harvested and burned responsibly, it releases less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than fossil fuels.