One of the most appealing features of wood burning stoves is that they are significantly cost effective when it comes to heating a home with renewable energy. In this case ‘renewable’ means that the wood that you use can be replaced by growing more.
We have recently discussed this with wood experts and they have informed us that even if everybody in Great Britain decided to buy a wood burner and use them as their main heating provider, more focus would be put onto taking care of woods with coppicing and proper management and as a nation we’d be self-sufficient in wood fuel.
This of course depends on the wood fuel that is used being harvested from a wood source that is sustainable. This means that here is not an increase in CO2 emissions (this is the most significant greenhouse gas). Unfortunately, the current situation is that a lot of wood is left to rot in woods and then it’s not usable and is categorized as waste material.
If you source your wood from a sustainable supply that is local to you, then it’s actually a better fuel to use than oil, gas or coal as its also low carbon. Even the carbon that is released during the burning is captured by growing replacement trees. Extra emissions that would be released from burning fossil fuels are avoided. Woods that are well managed also provide an excellent habitat for a diverse variety of wildlife including insects and birds.
Another benefit of wood burning stoves is that they are highly efficient. They lose very little heat through the flue and they also produce minimal smoke pollution. Compared to an open fire that provides only 10% of its heat, the word burning stove can deliver up to 85% of its heat. Being so efficient also means that it produces less pollution. The pollution that it does produce isn’t really pollution either. The carbon that is released is consumed by growing trees, which is not the case with fuel fossil fumes. Even a typical gas fire is only approximately 60% efficient.
At the end of the day, operating a wood burning stove means practically zero carbon footprint and you’ll have a superb looking feature in your home that provides more heat than any traditional heating method. Isn’t it time you upgraded?
