What Are The Rules About Wood-Burning Stoves?

A crackling fire roaring away in the living room will always be one of life's little pleasures, but it's important to make sure that you're not getting on the wrong side of the law by burning sustainable logs in your stove at home.

As wood-burning stoves have become more popular, it's given rise to mounting concerns over the health and environmental impacts of these appliances and, as such, there are a few regulations that you would be wise to familiarise yourself with in order to remain compliant.

Firstly, if you bought your stove after January 2022, it has to be Ecodesign compliant, ensuring that it adheres to strict standards relating to emissions and efficiency. These stoves must not emit more than a specified amount of pollutants like carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, organic gaseous compounds and particulate matter.

You also need to know what you can and can't burn. As of 2023, it is illegal to burn wet wood or coal in England. You have to make sure that your wood is seasoned, as wet wood produces more smoke and can lead to tar build-up in the chimney, increasing the risk of fire.

And thirdly, check to make sure that you're not living in a smoke control area, as some parts of the country have stricter limits in place on how much smoke you're allowed to release.

In these areas, you're prohibited from burning wood in a normal stove (including Ecodesign ones). Instead, you have to either use a smokeless fuel like anthracite coal or a Defra-exempt stove in which you can burn wood.

Although there has been a bit of scaremongering going on of late, rest assured that the government has no plans to introduce a ban on domestic burning in England... but you should perhaps prepare yourself for tighter restrictions, particularly if you do happen to live in a smoke control area.

• by Admin