Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Property/DIY

Join our Property forum for renovation, DIY, and house selling advice.

Flip

Original poster

WOODBURNERS

11 replies

missbopeep · 17/09/2013 10:15

Not sure if this is home decoration or DIY- but...

can anyone tell me about installing a wood burner? we have a coal fire with full chimney etc though the grate is quite small. How would we go about installing a wood burner ( or rather get someone to do it). Do you need to have the grate adapted so the burner fits, if there isn't enough space- is it a really big and costly job?

OP posts:

Joycey29 · 17/09/2013 10:18

Google a local supplier and get quotes. We took out gas fire and put in wood burner. Turned out due to opening size we could only look at a few and we also needed a new hearth.
Totally worth it! Love the look of flames and it kicks out a fair but of heat!

kkag · 17/09/2013 10:24

You need to get someone out to survey to see what you can and can't have, plus check what work needs done in your chimney. Don't skimp on this (liners etc) as it makes a massive difference to how the stove functions. You probably need to budget about £2000 for fitting/hearth etc and stoves are about £1000. We are in a smokeless zone so restricted in fire choice. You need to the the output right for the room volume, so that will affect what you get too.

Actually there's not much point looking at stoves til you've had this survey done as sure as eggs are eggs you will pick something you can't actually have.

Absolutely lovely if you get it right.

TheElementsSong · 17/09/2013 10:41

We had ours done this summer and are actually enjoying the unseasonably cold weather

The fireplace had to be knocked out to the original builder's opening (I think it's called that), a new concrete lintel installed, new hearth because we didn't have one, and the chimney lined. Whole thing cost us £2800 including scaffolding - we have a tall house, I've seen shorter houses done with just a long ladder.

Original poster

missbopeep · 17/09/2013 10:42

Thanks. we already use the coal fire all through winter, and already have a hearth,but it's quite messy with clearing up etc...my worry is that for the size of room we'd need a biggish stove and that would mean work done on the existing space.

OP posts:

MummytoMog · 17/09/2013 12:03

We had a fireplace knocked out, rendered, our chimney lined etc and a new chimney cowl put on, bought a stove, a hearth and flue pipe and had it fitted for around £1500. If you're anywhere near Basildon, I heartily recommend our fitter. He covers Essex and bits of East London.

MummytoMog · 17/09/2013 12:04

He did it with a ladder btw, I think it is quite a bit more expensive if you have a tall house. We have a short house.

MummytoMog · 17/09/2013 12:08

Lordy, keep forgetting to actually answer your question. He did the knocking out and rendering and fitting of the liner one day and came back a couple of days later to fit the stove and the hearth. So not a big job to my mind.

LadyKooKoo · 17/09/2013 12:19

Had ours done in March. Took four days to rip out 80s eye sore, rebuild fire, line chimney and redo cowl and then fit stove, hearth etc. We paid 2400 for whole thing and I love it. Don't have heating on as we are just using the burner so gas bills have plummeted. Also, the heat stays in the room rather than going up the chimney like with an open fire.

specialsubject · 17/09/2013 12:39

the magic word is 'HETAS' which is the assessment scheme for people who do this.

you need space to store the wood, the energy to move it about, to do a bit more housework and to have the chimney swept annually.

it's good fun though!

Original poster

missbopeep · 17/09/2013 12:52

Hmmm- thanks all!
The chimney is half in the lounge then bends and goes up the outside wall- so the chimney breast is in the lounge and exposed brick ( it's a modern house not old inglenook.)
Knocking the existing fireplace out would be a major job as the chimney breast is I assume part of the structure of an entire wall. I shall make enquiries and take the point about storing logs- they take up more space than coal bags and are possibly more expensive.

OP posts:

TheElementsSong · 17/09/2013 13:13

I don't know about modern houses, but ours is Victorian and the builder's opening is a lot bigger than the the finished fireplace (the one that would have been there originally, IYSWIM). So it wasn't a major job to knock out to the builder's opening.

The entire thing was done in a day. Scaffolding went up first thing in the morning, then the installer and his assistant knocked out the opening, installed the lintel, hearth etc, lined the chimney and put in the stove. Scaffolding taken down the following morning.

A week later someone came in to do all the finishing touches (repainting, replacing skirting boards etc).

Flip