Installing a wood burner
Excavating the chamber
If your firebox has been bricked up or boarded over, or you are removing a fireplace and don't know what's behind it, then it will need to be excavated as the first part of your wood burner installation.
This is the messiest part of the installation and we will cover the floor and furniture and run the vacuum cleaner whilst working in order to minimise the dust and mess. It might be a little noisy however.
The chimney opening which is sometimes known as the firebox, or builders opening, is the recessed area underneath the chimney flue. It is the inside of the chimney stack, where the fire basket usually lives. This is where your wood burner will be installed unless you are having a twin-walled system in a room without a chimney breast.
In these photo's a gas fire was removed to reveal the original 1960's builders opening. Once excavated you might find rustic bricks or a burnt bricked area as shown in the second photo.
Perfect for a wood burner!
If you need some of the fireplace terminology explaining - watch our helpful video
Sustainable option
* If you removed an old fireplace, renovate the fireplace and sell on Ebay or to a reclamation yard.
Protect Your Floor
A hearth is required by law unless the surface that the stove is sitting on already meets building regulations hearth requirements. Suitable materials for hearths are granite, slate, stone, glass and precast concrete.
Sustainable option
If buying new, order slate with a low carbon footprint that was quarried in the UK or use 'green' concrete slabs, which are manufactured in a more sustainable way.
Get ready for the wood burner
Drying or curing can take one day to a week, depending on the time of year and room temperature.
Main options are bare bricks, render, brick boards, vermiculite boards, Vlaze heat shields and tiles.
Sustainable option
Fitting the flexible liner
Once the chamber is ready the liner installation work can begin.
If you are only in need of a liner fitting to make your existing installation legal then this the work to expect.
Sometimes stoves can be fitted without fitting a stainless steel liner, but this the preferred method by HETAS and is deemed to be the safest and least likely to cause a chimney fire.
Fit the liner
- We only use flexible liner made in the UK
Close off the chimney
- We then fabricate a bespoke register plate to close off the bottom of your chimney
Sometimes known as closure plate
Made out of UK galvanised steel - Required by building regulations
Fit the wood burner
- Next unpack and check over the wood burner
Using vitreous pipe and bends if needed, install the stove and CO alarm
- Fit the thermometer and test the installation
- Carbon monoxide alarm (legal requirement)
Surround or Mantel
Once you have your wood burner in place you will need to consider what to do with the area around it. You may choose to have a fireplace surround fitted or just have the walls plastered and a simple mantel shelf fitted above.
The surround frames your fire or wood burner, it is a beautiful centrepiece for the room and provides a shelf for displaying your favourite items on. It is more traditionally known as the mantelpiece.
They come in many different materials, such as wood, limestone, marble and plaster and at many different prices. We can remove your existing and fit a new surround for you or you can have the wall rendered, ready for decorating.
The one in the first photo is a simple elegant limestone surround framing a cassette style stove with a granite hearth and slips.
Many people prefer a modern look by fitting an oak beam above the wood burner to act as a mantel. Pine is another alternative. The second photo shows an oak beam fitted with a flag stone hearth and a smooth rendered chamber, which was later painted to match the room.
Sustainable option
*Oak is in decline across the world and has to shipped from overseas. Look for cheaper alternatives such as pine, which is a much faster growing tree, making sure to buy from sustainable forests and where possible buy from UK forestries.
*Refurbish the old fireplace/ surround if it comes away nicely and re-sell. Alternatively we can recycle it for you. If buying new, check out second hand surrounds in reclamation yards such as WellsReclamation.com
Slips
You may also decide that you would like bespoke slips cut to size to cover any remaining wall inside your surround and maybe even inside the firebox chamber itself. For help with fireplace terminology , see our video.
Slips are used to cover the area between the surround and the chimney opening opening. A slip sets comprises of 3 rectangular pieces that are usually made to measure for the wall area around your wood burner. They are usually the same colour and made of the same material as the hearth but not always. Suitable materials for slips are granite, limestone and marble.
Alternatively the space could be rendered , tiled or fake bricks fitted depending on your preference. The photo shows granite slips and a granite hearth. The surround is wooden and a free-standing wood burner is in the chamber.
Sustainable option
*Re-purpose an old granite worktop from the kitchen and use a stonemason to cut to size.
*If buying new, order slate with a low carbon footprint, recycled quartz might also be acceptable if you have a large builders opening. Check with your stone mason to make sure.
Sustainable Options
There are many ways of making your install 'greener' here's a couple of suggestions.
Go Rustic
*Excavate back to original bare bricks
*Use second hand bricks for the hearth
*Fit a wood burner made in the UK
*Fit a pine mantel shelf
*Burn locally sourced seasoned wood
*Use rechargeable batteries in your CO alarm
Your new wood burner install doesn't have to cost the earth but peace of mind may cost a little more
Go Elegant
*Lime render the chamber
*Fit a British slate hearth and slips
*Fit a re-purposed surround
*Install a UK-made wood-burner
*Fit Recycled Quartz Slips
*Burn locally sourced seasoned wood
*Hard-wire your CO alarm