Getting ready for the Winter

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Winter is now I’m afraid on its way and our wood burning stoves will soon be working again heating our homes to the maximum. The trouble is with our busy lifestyles we tend not to check what is important to us until it goes wrong or its too late.

Here are some very easy ways to ensure your stove is working too maximum efficiency.

 Most important – door Seal

The stove door should fit tightly to keep the heat of the fire concentrated inside and not leaking. To check it, you can lay a five-pound note across the door gasket lengthwise and then close the door with the note still in it. If you can pull the note out with a quick tug, your door is too loose and you will want to tighten the latch described in your manufacturer’s instruction manual. If your gasket shows signs of wear or damage, you will need to replace it immediately. This one simple fix can save you a great deal of money over the winter months by reducing to amount of timber you will burn. Read more

A Warmer Home For Winter

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Like a warmer home this winter?

A wood burning stove can be installed virtually anywhere in your home, providing there is a way to run a vent pipe to the outside of the house. This means you can zone-heat any room or space, making heating a home with a wood burner very economic and practical.

Economical heating

Wood is an inexpensive fuel source. It costs less per BTU than oil, gas or electricity. Homeowners who practice strategic zone heating in their homes can save hundreds of ££’s in utility bills each year. With the promise that gas and electric prices are going to rise significantly in the coming months wood burning is looking as sound alternative. Read more

Providing warmth and style

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One of the most desirable features and benefits of a wood burner is the warmth it provides. A wood burning stove provides a powerful heat source for your home, meaning that the room gets warm quickly and effectively.

There are wood burners available in a range of sizes and with varying energy output levels, so you can choose a model that is appropriate for the size of your home or the room that it will be used in.

It is vital to select the correct wattage output for the room you will be heating so do seek professional advice as it will save you a great deal of money.

As well as giving you a wonderful source of warmth which is ideal during those colder months, wood burning stoves also look great. When you add one to your room, you’ll find that the wood burner becomes a new focal point, adding character and style to the living space. Read more

The best wood for burning in stoves…

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To get the best heating results from your stove hardwoods are generally better for burning than softwoods. As a rule of thumb hardwoods are produced by slow-growing deciduous trees and therefore the logs have a greater density than the faster growing softwoods from evergreen trees.

Since hardwood logs are heavier than the same sized softwood logs they will provide you with much more heat output – up to 50%.

For the stove owner, using hardwood logs means having to fill the stove up less often than they would with softwood logs.

Most important: Only ever use dried, fully seasoned chopped wood logs with a moisture content of less than 20%. Always check with your supplier when the wood was cut and how long has it been drying: This should be a minimum of 2 years. Read more

Gas & Electricity rising again

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As we all know gas & electricity prices keep on going up and this is without doubt is causing problems for many households. The problem is this situation could well continue for the foreseeable future as the pound remains weak and the Brexit talks continue. So, ask your self is it time to explore the alternatives? If the answer is yes have a very serious look into a wood burner.

Wood burning stoves are getting rave reviews and are now a very serious alternative to any other form of secondary heating. Households up and down the country are looking for cheaper alternatives due to the frantically rising traditional energy supplies. Wood burners come in all shapes and colours these days and will enhance any household.

It is vitally important to have the appliance installed professionally and once done will increase the value of your property. Read more

Take your time and do the research

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To install a log burner safely and responsibly, it’s important to do your research.

Think first about the size of area that needs to be heated. Next contact a qualified fitter to ensure the model you are looking at will “do the job efficiently”. It’s also a very good idea to research the size and cost of logs you’ll need and whether you can buy them locally.

Wood burning stoves always make great focal points for interiors, they are cleaner and more efficient than open fireplaces, and can save you money on your heating bills. Install one and get ready for your friend’s positive comments, as they will be plentiful!

If you’re thinking of installing one you should start your planning now as sales are booming and fitters do have much longer waiting lists than ever before.

Wood burners are a great way of bringing the comfort of a real fire into your home, even if you don’t have a vast amount of space. If you live in an urban area that is smoke-controlled, you’ll need to check the stove you are buying is approved by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) or go for one that has the option of burning smokeless fuels as an alternative.

Expert advice and fitting

For your protection and safety, you should always have a fully qualified professional install your wood/pellet burning appliance. At Kent Stoves, we will evaluate everything for you to ensure your safety and maximise efficiency.

If you require assistance, please do make contact and one of our fully qualified fitters will be happy to help.

 

Sales Records of wood burning stoves broken

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Sales of wood burning stoves are increasing year on year but this year has seen exceptional growth with to date a massive 41% growth compared to the same period last year.

The increase in sales are down to the looming Brexit talks and the weaker pound, with the weak pound any fuel imported costs a great deal more resulting in our heating bills increasing.

Homeowners have responded to these sale increases by looking for alternative forms of heating and a log burner is very high on the wish list.

A wood burning stove not only looks good and performs to exceptional levels it can increase the value of your property, so you have a win win situation. Read more

Summer is a good time for maintenance

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Summer is here and we all forget about our lovely cozy stoves which keep us warm in the winter. Summer is the right time to do all the maintenance jobs to keep them functioning properly.

If you choose the right stove, it should be easy to maintain. But there are a few steps you should take to keep it efficient and safe.

To keep your stove in good working order, the Industry recommends that you have your chimney swept at the beginning and the end of the winter to avoid a build-up of tar and soot, which could damage the chimney and stove when not in use. From a safety point of view, blocked chimneys can also cause deadly carbon monoxide and fires. One sweep should only cost £30-£70.

Use matured logs only

Wet or unseasoned logs will leave more sooty deposits and could increase the number of sweeps you need, so it’s best to use seasoned or kiln-dried wood to cut down on maintenance (minimum 2 years old). Read more

The Stove Revolution Continues

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The Stove revolution continues

Sales of wood burning stoves continue to increase month on month as the UK public look for ways to reduce their heating bills. Never before has the industry seen such rapid growth, especially in the summer months. The figures go to prove without doubt that the British public are taking very seriously the increased costs of heating their homes. Facts are energy costs can only go upwards with the weakened pound and the pending Brexit talks.

Whether you’re the proud owner of a shiny new stove, or your thinking of installing one, there are a few things that you need to know to really get the most out of that heating monster in the fireplace.

Get professional advice

Before selecting a wood burning stove for your home get expert advice as to the correct model to suit your circumstances. Choosing the wrong stove will cost extra money and can be inefficient which let’s face it is just the opposite of what you are trying to achieve. Read more

Wood stoves and the environment

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This summer we are seeing more people installing wood stoves than ever before. Mainly due to the cost savings they can provide. One question our fitters are always asked is how good are stoves for the environment?  The green benefits of burning wood are gaining wider and wider support. Burning wood cleanly only releases the same amount of CO2 into the atmosphere as from a tree when it is left to rot naturally as it would do at the end of its life cycle. What is more, harvested trees are replaced with new trees, which in turn absorb CO2 in the process of photosynthesis as they grow. So in short for the environment, they are good!

The important aspect of this argument is that the wood is burnt correctly, using a modern efficient stove that employs secondary and even tertiary burning. Read more