Installing a wood burner, DIY or Pro?
Discussion
Looking to have a wood/log burner installed in my house. Currently I have an open fire, but most of the heat buggers off up the chimney, so these make sense.
So what costs am I looking to pay for someone to install a burner? Am i correct that building reg's need to be covered these days? From what i've read, i need a few bits, flu pipes, register plate etc.
Also, any recommendations of burner makes, links etc would be grateful. Looking for a standard plain type, nowt fancy.
So what costs am I looking to pay for someone to install a burner? Am i correct that building reg's need to be covered these days? From what i've read, i need a few bits, flu pipes, register plate etc.
Also, any recommendations of burner makes, links etc would be grateful. Looking for a standard plain type, nowt fancy.
Supposed to have building regs or installation by a pro who can certify. When I rang our local building regs people to ask about it they had no idea - 'The installer will certify' But what if I diy and want you to inspect?, 'Err, the installer will certify'
Depending on the age/condition of the chimney you are looking at maybe twin wall flexy pipe, housing/cap at the top, insulation down chimney, register plate, solid pipe to stove, various fittings.
Clearview get consistently good reviews.
Look at stovesareus http://www.stovesareus.co.uk/ for a fair choice at good prices. We have a fancy austrian one and a cheapo Aarrow.
If you were to diy it (some people do, so I'm told) hotline chimneys are reasonable for flexy/solid pipe and fittings.
You need a minimum of 6" flexy for a woodburner, possibly more depending on the stove. Get the chimney checked over (A webcam on the end of sweeps brushes inside a clear plastic protective container can give quite a good view). But best to get a sweep to inspect/smoke test.
If its an old chimney or has bends then cut a meter length of flexy with good rope top and bottom and make sure that it will easily pull through. One of our chimneys has a tight constriction and we ended up having to open the chimney breast up to get the pipe through.
I was quoted £1000 to install (hence looking at diy etc) although I think that was at the high end of the pricing scale. But the flexy is £20/m running up to £80/m from some installers
Depending on the age/condition of the chimney you are looking at maybe twin wall flexy pipe, housing/cap at the top, insulation down chimney, register plate, solid pipe to stove, various fittings.
Clearview get consistently good reviews.
Look at stovesareus http://www.stovesareus.co.uk/ for a fair choice at good prices. We have a fancy austrian one and a cheapo Aarrow.
If you were to diy it (some people do, so I'm told) hotline chimneys are reasonable for flexy/solid pipe and fittings.
You need a minimum of 6" flexy for a woodburner, possibly more depending on the stove. Get the chimney checked over (A webcam on the end of sweeps brushes inside a clear plastic protective container can give quite a good view). But best to get a sweep to inspect/smoke test.
If its an old chimney or has bends then cut a meter length of flexy with good rope top and bottom and make sure that it will easily pull through. One of our chimneys has a tight constriction and we ended up having to open the chimney breast up to get the pipe through.
I was quoted £1000 to install (hence looking at diy etc) although I think that was at the high end of the pricing scale. But the flexy is £20/m running up to £80/m from some installers
i've just bought a woodburner for my games room.
i don't normally do recommendations, but the company i bought from (http://www.woodburningstovesdirect.com/) was really really good.
i gave them a very hard time on price which i feel a little guilty for, as i spent a few hours with them working out the system i needed and then played them off against the big internet suppliers (who don't give that personal service). we eventually agreed a compromise on price and i picked up all the kit (8kw stove with full exposed flu kit). it came in at about £750 all in... not bad for what was included.
for anyone considering doing an installation, my best bit of advice would be to warn you that the flue kit can quite easily exceed the price of the stove itself (twin wall s/s pipe can come out at around £100 per metre)
i don't normally do recommendations, but the company i bought from (http://www.woodburningstovesdirect.com/) was really really good.
i gave them a very hard time on price which i feel a little guilty for, as i spent a few hours with them working out the system i needed and then played them off against the big internet suppliers (who don't give that personal service). we eventually agreed a compromise on price and i picked up all the kit (8kw stove with full exposed flu kit). it came in at about £750 all in... not bad for what was included.
for anyone considering doing an installation, my best bit of advice would be to warn you that the flue kit can quite easily exceed the price of the stove itself (twin wall s/s pipe can come out at around £100 per metre)
Paddy_N_Murphy said:
Look into the remote control option too. Sounds like a gimmick ann was only £70 extra. I don't use it to turn up and down from the sofa like a lazy b'stard, but it is great for :
Fill fire with fuel, light it, set the temp you want the room. Walk to pub......
It has the fire at full choke to get the room up to temp, than throttles back to tick over. Result. A not overpowering hot room.
That sounds more like a thermostat than a remote control - good idea though!Fill fire with fuel, light it, set the temp you want the room. Walk to pub......
It has the fire at full choke to get the room up to temp, than throttles back to tick over. Result. A not overpowering hot room.
Paddy_N_Murphy said:
and the mantle, they had various wood sections lentghts, styles and types. picked it off the shelf and they shaped / fitted it up. Oak I believe.
One thing you lost in the (very smart) conversion was a mantelpiece you could actually use. Could you have had the wood projecting a few inches?Rich_AR said:
As far as I know, the only work that's needed is installing the burner, register plate, dropping the flu down the chimney and fitting the plate on the chimney. There are no bends in the chimney. Guess I could do it myself if I get the right kit.
Don't underestimate this. Standing on the ridge 10m up trying to manipulate a coil of 9m of flue pipe an feed it down the chimney can be entertaining - before you start check how well your chimney pots are secured. You'll also want someone downstairs to pull it down. Ideally the bod on the roof is just straightening and guiding. We have bends in all our chimneys though so I had to push as well while the OH was at one point swinging on the end of the rope pulling it through the bends.I went out and spent cash on climbing kit. Harness, a couple of ropes (for me and for the flue) and crabs. I also fitted some goujons into the gable end wall. Communications are also important, if you have a couple of walkie talkies it will help. I used a couple of dect handsets on internal mode.
You left out the cap/cowl - I fitted that to the flue when it was on the ground, but that depends how big your fireplace is - you may not be able to easily cut to length from the bottom so might have to go back up to get it fitted right.
Tuna said:
village idiot said:
i don't normally do recommendations, but the company i bought from (http://www.woodburningstovesdirect.com/) was really really good.
"In Dorset?""Yes, I certainly do!"
they are a good honest genuine company offering fantastic value (imported from china) stoves and good value additional components.
you know when you walk away from a deal feeling happy that you have done well on it, but also happy that the right people have earnt some money out of it... well that's what i got there.
hey ho... just got to fit the bloody thing now.
TooLateForAName said:
Rich_AR said:
As far as I know, the only work that's needed is installing the burner, register plate, dropping the flu down the chimney and fitting the plate on the chimney. There are no bends in the chimney. Guess I could do it myself if I get the right kit.
Don't underestimate this. Standing on the ridge 10m up trying to manipulate a coil of 9m of flue pipe an feed it down the chimney can be entertaining - before you start check how well your chimney pots are secured. You'll also want someone downstairs to pull it down. Ideally the bod on the roof is just straightening and guiding. We have bends in all our chimneys though so I had to push as well while the OH was at one point swinging on the end of the rope pulling it through the bends.I went out and spent cash on climbing kit. Harness, a couple of ropes (for me and for the flue) and crabs. I also fitted some goujons into the gable end wall. Communications are also important, if you have a couple of walkie talkies it will help. I used a couple of dect handsets on internal mode.
You left out the cap/cowl - I fitted that to the flue when it was on the ground, but that depends how big your fireplace is - you may not be able to easily cut to length from the bottom so might have to go back up to get it fitted right.
t.Paddy_N_Murphy said:
It very much depends on the amount of bashing around you are looking at I would imagine?
I got a Euroheat 4kw unit fitted (superb v. happy with it) and looked at getting a local man to do the brick work and fit it.
Might of shaved 1-150 quid off the price.
But to be fair probably would of cut my own nose off to spite my own face.
Ended up with the Stove supplier doing the work, and really - why not?
They do them all day long, will of encountered problems and known the workarounds.
2 days to go from this to that :
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Dog is optional !
All in all, £1,000 for the stove c/w Remote control Thermostat which is great, and £1,000 for the work, incl Flue, Liner, Mantle, Tiles.
What size is your room? I'm trying to work out what kW stove I need.I got a Euroheat 4kw unit fitted (superb v. happy with it) and looked at getting a local man to do the brick work and fit it.
Might of shaved 1-150 quid off the price.
But to be fair probably would of cut my own nose off to spite my own face.
Ended up with the Stove supplier doing the work, and really - why not?
They do them all day long, will of encountered problems and known the workarounds.
2 days to go from this to that :
[/url]
Dog is optional !
All in all, £1,000 for the stove c/w Remote control Thermostat which is great, and £1,000 for the work, incl Flue, Liner, Mantle, Tiles.
Cheers
I've also looked into this a bit more since my last post on the subject when I was just at the 'good idea' stage.
In our bungalow I recon about 4 Metres of flue should do it and 6" should be an interference fit down the chimney pot. I will keep the steel pipe from the register plate quite short - about 300mm and I have already made a blanking plate to close the orofice to the chimney at room level.
As for the stove, the cheapies on the bay are just too tempting for me and we've decided to try one of those.
Hearth needs tiling first but otherwise it looks like a straightforward DIY proposition. Not sure whether to buy a cowl though... Probably just rely on the chimney pot initially and see how it goes.
Having floated the idea and asked people to let me get rid of their surplus wood I keep getting calls now "When are you coming for this wood then!"
In our bungalow I recon about 4 Metres of flue should do it and 6" should be an interference fit down the chimney pot. I will keep the steel pipe from the register plate quite short - about 300mm and I have already made a blanking plate to close the orofice to the chimney at room level.
As for the stove, the cheapies on the bay are just too tempting for me and we've decided to try one of those.
Hearth needs tiling first but otherwise it looks like a straightforward DIY proposition. Not sure whether to buy a cowl though... Probably just rely on the chimney pot initially and see how it goes.
Having floated the idea and asked people to let me get rid of their surplus wood I keep getting calls now "When are you coming for this wood then!"
Rich_AR said:
Looking to have a wood/log burner installed in my house. Currently I have an open fire, but most of the heat buggers off up the chimney, so these make sense.
So what costs am I looking to pay for someone to install a burner? Am i correct that building reg's need to be covered these days? From what i've read, i need a few bits, flu pipes, register plate etc.
Also, any recommendations of burner makes, links etc would be grateful. Looking for a standard plain type, nowt fancy.
Where are you based? My father has a small firm selling and installing wood/multi burners, he will be able to provide you with anything you might need, even just advice.So what costs am I looking to pay for someone to install a burner? Am i correct that building reg's need to be covered these days? From what i've read, i need a few bits, flu pipes, register plate etc.
Also, any recommendations of burner makes, links etc would be grateful. Looking for a standard plain type, nowt fancy.
email me if you like....
Paddy_N_Murphy said:
Do you really want to trust a stove, which lets be honest, will contain fire and brimestone at tempretures of hell in the middle of your lounge to be anything but unquestionable in quality?
I agree with you in principle, particularly with efficiency and workmanship, adn also buying locally. But really, how many reports have their been of wood burners burning down houses or killing their inhabitants? I would have thought that, given the popularity of burners recently, there would be a huge outcry, and government controls, like gas boiler fitting, if this was the case.Gassing Station | Homes, Gardens and DIY | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff