Wood Burning stove

[gmm243]

Evening all,

This may be a stupid question but does anyone know how often you need to clean the flue on a wood burning stove?

When I had an open fire I got it cleaned once a year,maybe twice.We have now built a new house which has a stove.This stove is our only source of heat in the house (passive,timber frame,heat recovery and insulated within an inch of it's life) so it had been used most nights over the past few months but it has never been cleaned.

Does it need cleaned as regular as an open fire or less?I am only burning logs in it.

Thanks.

Gavin.

[bornfree]

I do mine every two years. Originally did it every year but there was very little soot in it. 

[Pistol p]

Its dependant on what you're burning and when in what type of chimney/flue.

[billytheghillie]

I have a multi burn stove  and burn logs and coal, it has a metal liner flue up the chimney, my sweep says to get it cleaned every year.

[GingerCat]

every year at least once. If in constant use maybe twice. The sweep will tell you. You do not want a chimney fire. 

[Dougy]

Just had mine done, normally once a year and as mentioned depends what you burn on it, seasoned wood will be less sooty than Coal. 

 

[Zapp]

Once a year here

[McSpredder]

Some home insurance policies are invalid unless the chimney is professionally swept at least once per year.

[Dave at kelton]

We burn largely wood, only occasionally anthracite nuggets. We clean our lined flue once a year as recommended by sweep.

[Saltings]

once a year     before lighting up for winter     mine is an open fire with logs  rods and a brush les than £50 blue rods  the black £20 rods on evilbay not worth it they flex too much you will never reach the top      buy  blue heavy duty 👍 buy once last a lifetime

[39TDS]

22 minutes ago, McSpredder said:

Some home insurance policies are invalid unless the chimney is professionally swept at least once per year.

I often hear that quoted but not convinced it is true. I will accept that if they can prove your house just burnt down because you failed to have your chimney cleaned you are going to have a problem. The quote suggests they won't pay out on a burglary if your chimney hasn't been swept.

Or am I just being a widgey.

[Walker570]

I have a large Clearview in our kitchen and burn only two yearold dry wood. Once a year I lift the top off and normally find a handful of grey dust in the liner, check the inpection cover and the liner is just as clean as the day it was put in.  A) these are the Rolls Royce of woodburning stoves and the original airflow and B) we only burn well dried wood and never shut it right down always keeping and good burn. Once lit and running  5 mins, you cannot see any smoke from the chimney.  My other smaller model Clearview is in an original chimney and similarly there is very little soot and only grey dust but because it is the original 100 plus year old chimney I get it checked every two years or so but that stove is only lit about six or seven times a winter.  Down to design of stove, chimney liner and fuel burned.

Edited October 9, 2020 by Walker570

[GingerCat]

Mines a Westfield or west fire one series or something similar. I can use it in smokeless zones. It produces very very little smoke when going and is tremendously efficient, heating the whole house with ease and being only 5kw. As such it burns little fuel compared to my neighbours that heats a room but little else and goes through trees and trees. 

Mine is lined and next doors is not. Both house were originally built 1860. 

The sweep says once a year, its on most days from November till March. He doesn't get much out of the flu and says its all good. He gets a lot more out of next doors and if it rains heavy creasoet sometimes runs from their flu out the inspection hatch onto the wall. Not sure if he does theirs twice a year but there's isint on as much as ours and they have it going full chat when they use it. 

The insurance says it has to be swept professionally or they won't pay in case of a fire caused by it. Next doors says the same. 

I burn mostly seasoned oak but sometimes smokeless coal. my favourite is birch as i find there is little Ash to clean up after and the flame is nice but it burns a lot quicker, I got an awful lot of it a few years back for almost nothing.  A 20kg bag of coal will me do 3 days easily 24hrs a day. If fueled up with wood at about 11pm it will still be going at 7am when I go to work and not slumbering but not raging by any means or the room it's in gets way too hot to be in. 

For 40 quid its worth the peace of mind And every fire/flu/chimney/fuel will be different to some extent. 

[hod]

As above, depends on the efficiency of the stove, what you burn (how dry), how often you use it, and how you use it - slow burning with vents shut down causes more **** to go up the chimney. 
 

Ours is a modern pevex stove, using a variety of seasoned wood and some smokeless coal, for maybe the equivalent of every evening for 4 months of the year. Sweep has said every two years is plenty. 

[Saltings]

once a year     before lighting up for winter     mine is an open fire with logs  rods and a brush les than £50 blue  type rods  the black £20 rods on evilbay not worth it they flex too much you will never reach the top      buy  blue heavy duty 👍 buy once last a lifetime

[Ricko]

6 hours ago, 39TDS said:

I often hear that quoted but not convinced it is true. I will accept that if they can prove your house just burnt down because you failed to have your chimney cleaned you are going to have a problem. The quote suggests they won't pay out on a burglary if your chimney hasn't been swept.

Or am I just being a widgey.

Certainly true in France, Mayle mentioned it in A Year in Provence.

[mel b3]

29 minutes ago, Ricko said:

Certainly true in France, Mayle mentioned it in A Year in Provence.

I sweep my own chimneys , and I do them twice or maybe three times each year (I'm a bit paranoid about a chimney fire) . I have a log burner and an open fire . I'll burn anything except car tyres ,  and I never get very much soot.

[gmm243]

Thanks for all the replies. Not sure of the make of our stove but it is a double sided (can load from either side) 8kw stove. The house is very open plan so this sits in a wall that half divides the kitchen/living area then the heat is pumped around the house. 

I burn well seasoned,sometimes too well seasoned-4/5 year old which goes up quickly, oak,ash and beech.Am lucky as have a very good supply and I suppose it uses a bit under a fertiliser bag a night.I don't stack it when going to bed so it is usually out in the morning. 

Have never used coal or other fuel and can get the room with the stove in to 26 or 27 degrees which the wife loves but I am not so keen on.The rest of the house will be cooler but still warm with the circulated heat.

[terence]

only burn wood had mine done after 3years and sweep said it was a waste of time nowt there its normaly lit from about 4 till 10 some times all day at weekend 

[powler]

We also have a Clearview with a decent liner and only burn seasoned wood, normally swept every other year unless the wife decides different.

One thing the sweep advised was if you going to get them done yearly try and do it in the spring as he said the soot will sit up there all summer absorbing some moisture and doing more damage than good to a liner.

Mick

[39TDS]

At my last house the only heating was log burners and for 40 years the chimneys were never swept nor ever needed to.

Never had a chimney fire either. Only burned well seasoned wood, probably 90% of that was leylandii.

I wouldn't recommend not sweeping but I would suggest dry logs are a very big help to both clean chimney and warm house. 

[harrycatcat1]

[JTaylor91]

9 minutes ago, harrycatcat1 said:

Household coal is straight out of the pit and can’t be used on stoves. I’m guessing what people are referring to when they burn “coal” on a stove is the ovoid type of fuel that are made from ground down coal or anthracite and re-bonded together. Fine to use on a stove.

[harrycatcat1]

2 minutes ago, JTaylor91 said:

Household coal is straight out of the pit and can’t be used on stoves. I’m guessing what people are referring to when they burn “coal” on a stove is the ovoid type of fuel that are made from ground down coal or anthracite and re-bonded together. Fine to use on a stove.

I posted it for the avoidance of doubt because if it saves a problem 👍

Some may think that they can burn any coal. This type of stove questions seem to crop up at this time of year.

[markm]

Once a year. 
 

clearview stove with twin wall. I bought a brush and rods from Screwfix. 
 

Our chimney is single story so most of the heavy gas (that can tar up) is out of the top before it cools.

A sweep with rods produces less than a ash pan full in the bottom. As it’s straight up I can get a look it after cleaning and it’s never blocked, even before cleaning (and burning some daft things it in when drunk....)