HIGHLIGHTING DANGER OF WOODBURNERS

[GlassHouseBlue]

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) -
essentially tiny particles of soot - is one
of the most dangerous air pollutants.
Breathing it in is linked to lung cancer,
heart damage, strokes, impaired cognition
and mental health problems, and can
exacerbate conditions such as asthma,
COPD and pulmonary fibrosis. Children
and elderly people are most vulnerable

The new "smokeless" coals still smoke. They are harder to light, don't give off as much heat and produce an awful lot of residue - almost as much as the original ovoid!

If my grate was suitable for wood then I would be switching to wood. However if I was to install a wood burner I would have to tear out an original iron grate and surround from 1802 which I am not allowed don't want to do.

Thanks. They sound a bit pointless then...

Re air purifiers, you or someone like you posted this fear mongering last year as I was on maternity leave and saving the central heating for when the house was full and using the wood burner for the cluster feeding trapping me on the sofa.

In a midnight panic I bought a fancy air purifier.

It registers 7 normally maybe 15 when candles and wood burner on for an hour and 350 when I made toast (not even burnt).

We have wood burners serviced every year, dry logs and CO detectors. It's a semi rural area, loads of fields, no smell of smoke in the street.

I now purposely go out if my way to mention the air purifier readings to anyone pregnant or with a wood burner as the crazy misinformation is scare tactics and feels bullying.

Thank you; but I have had an open fire my entire life. I am now 30 and have burned a log burner for the past 10. I am absolutely fine. And warm.

@Norskk Fair enough—glad you’ve stayed healthy! But the concern isn’t just about individual experiences; it’s more about how wood burners affect local air quality and those around us, especially kids, older people, or anyone with breathing issues.

It’s great to be warm, but it’s worth thinking about the wider impact too, particularly in built-up areas where pollution can build up quickly.

Is this a poem?

Bit of a facepalm there.

I mean if you ask 30 year old smokers most of them are fine. Maybe the odd cough here or there.

It's when you carry on doing it for 40 years. The lung disease, either cancer or various lung ailments hits you in your 50s-70s.

The problems people will see from inhaling or living in an environment of toxic PM2.5 particles aren't really going to manifest themselves mostly until later life.

Come back when you are 70 and let us know how you got on.

This post has sent me into a real panic as we have had a log burner for a decade or more. We live in a very rural area and regularly have winter power cuts where the log burner has been a life line.i suffer really bad with heath anxiety and honestly never realised they could have such a negative impact on health. I have read quite a bit during the last few days about pm2.5 levels. There are studies that have proved that burning scented candles, using an air fryer or toasters have had incredibly high readings. Has anyone actually monitored their own levels inside their homes? We have an air purifier that we bought for ironically for hayfever in the summer so could use this if it would make a difference.

We’re not at Delhi levels of pollution, but this shows what can happen when particulate matter isn’t properly managed:

www.instagram.com/reel/DC9DZvKv1l0/?igsh=cGM1b2NiZnpteHJ4

It’s important to note that log burners release this kind of particulate matter into your home as well as into the air outside. Something to think about when weighing up the pros and cons of using them.

Thanks for your reply. I wonder why log burners are so greatly talked about when the dangers of cooking toast, using air fryers can also lead to very high levels too ? In fact one article said the levels when cooking were higher than when the log burner was running?

People don't normally cook for as long as they leave the burners on.

I think there is also some questionable reporting over stoves, in the respect that if the stove is running, and burning the right fuel, the PM emissions should be quite low at least inside the house.

But when you open the door to fuel up or poke the fire, or clean the residue then emissions go up hugely. And if you burn the wrong kind of fuel, which many people do, the emissions also go up hugely, as well as the generation of toxic chemicals if the wood is painted or treated.

So very often the best scenario will be reported in terms of emissions, not the ones that people are actually experiencing. Probably a bit like the 0-60 mph in a car, which is done by a racing driver with all the seat cushions removed.

My elderly mother has smoked for about 60 years. She had a cough which was causing issues. It was damp related, by the way. Anyway, the doctor had obviously asked are you a smoker etc, answered yes; 20 a day for decades. Doctor didn’t believe her — lungs were verbatim that of a non smoker. Now of course it causes terrible issues for many, but it doesn’t for all. Many live to a very old age. Same with those who use log burners — which I am happy to do 😀

Sure — I live in the middle of nowhere though. Remote areas frequently rely on log burners.

Power has been off since 5am. Not expecting reconnection until at least 21:00. I'm rather glad that I have a source of heat that doesn't rely on electricity, and for that matter I'm also glad that I've got paraffin lamps, just in case.

My burner has been going since 3pm yesterday. Its terribly stormy, worse now than last night. Im off grid, 1000ft above sea level and totally rural. Its a godsend!

happy burning. Enjoy!

Latest update from the DNO: power out until 18:00 tomorrow. Yeah, without the log burner I'd be cold, hungry and miserable. Current plan for dinner is to wrap a potato in foil and stick it in the embers.

I hope you get sorted soon. I keep chilli for the purposes of bad weather. There is nothing to beat a baked potato with the chilli warmed in a pan on the top. I do not know why it tastes better, but it just does.

I ve a small frying pan for cooking atop the 'burner.

Ime, wrapping a potato in foil and putting in the fire, unless the fire is almost out & door left open, it results in a lump of charcoal, i ve never actually managed it as the stove is always so hot.

Power was out earlier and we sliced up spuds with garlic, rosemary from a pot we ve been growing it in, pan fried on the stove, had with salad, and warmed salmon pieces, the stuff that they sell off cheaply or rather a bit cheaper!!
Washed down with a £5 bottle of plonk!!

A woodburner is a sealed box, everything goes up the chimney, so how do i end up breathing in all these PM2.5 particles?

When the door is opened, that causes a rush of air into the fire, drawing even more heat/smoke up the chimney, nothing goes into the room, esp if the door is opened slowly to refuel.

There is of course an argument that people in towns and built up areas shouldn't have one because of general air pollution but thats not what you re arguing.

@TrashyP same. My air purifier doesn't blink when I open the door to refuel. It gets worked up if I fart however.

My fire burns clean, for most of the burn you can't even see or smell any smoke coming out of my chimney.

I've managed it before. Stab it a few times, wrap it at least twice, make sure that any flames have burnt out and move glowing bits to one side. Might be worth getting some ash out of the bucket as a bed for it to sit on.

It could be...

Fine particulate matter
Has caused a bit of chatter
It pollutes the air
But I don't care
If it sends me as mad as a hatter

Yes i ve tried this and more but with the door shut, for my stove, it is just too hot.

Only time i ve cooked them is too wait until the thing is pretty much out, then its ok but then i'm cold lol!

It would be useful to know how much PM2.5 is actually released into the environment, on average, as the measured figures only reflect what comes directly out of the top of the stove.

PM2.5 is the soot that coats the flue system, yes some of it will make it all the way to the top and out of the chimney but much of it will stick to the flue and that’s why we have them swept to remove this soot. (The soot mostly collects in the stove during sweeping and isn’t released at that stage).

Any figures you can find online on what they release are completely useless as the testing method didn’t reflect real world use.

Oh and finally, some concerns on this thread about PM2.5 being released into peoples homes from stoves, if that’s the case then they need to get them swept asap as they aren’t drawing properly!

Anyone arguing that a stove releases smoke into the room it’s in when you open the door clearly has zero understanding of basic physics.