Heat in the home

[Mick F]

PS:
This is the room back when the house was new.
Built in Edwardian times early 20th cent.

[pete75]

PS:
This is the room back when the house was new.
Built in Edwardian times early 20th cent.

Old No 3.jpg

Magnificent!

[Ben@Forest]

The hearth to the left of the fire is maybe 6ft long and wood can be stacked neatly up to 3 or 4ft high.
Rarely bother with that much at one time though.

That really is some hearth!

[francovendee]

Just been gifted about 3 cu mt of large oak logs. They should be really dry as they've been stored inside for 15 years! I know it's been this long as I stacked them for the owner who never used them.
A friend has warned me they will burn but not give out much heat as they are too old, we'll see.

[mjr]

Just found this!

1980s at our last place - just up the road.
The girls are in the mid/late 40s now.

Coal fired fire. Coal Fire.jpg

And how many other offences would you like taken into consideration?

[Jdsk]

...
If you and your neighbours aren't being bothered by your flue outputs then fine. There are some locations and atmospheric conditions which can concentrate smoke pollution from chimneys and flues, others where the pollution carries on up and away. There has been at least one succesful court case taken against a neighbour whose smoke was affecting a neighbour's health.
...

Unfortunately there are long-term health effects of pollution which might occur when the immediate pollution isn't bothersome or apparent.

Jonathan

[Biospace]

Unfortunately there are long-term health effects of pollution which might occur when the immediate pollution isn't bothersome or apparent.

Especially so inside homes, although toxic fumes are not limited to those from wood and coal burning.

New carpets are treated with flame retardants and are made from synthetic fibres, a plastic backing and glue - all giving off chemicals, particle board (kitchen units and other furniture) usually contains formaldehyde or isocyanate glues which can off-gas for years, polyurethane foams and soft furnishings are treated with flame retardants, as are duvets and some clothes.

These fire retardant chemicals have changed recently but are still a cause for concern, "The committee’s findings were contained in a report on chemicals that reveals the UK has one of the highest concentrations of flame retardants in breast milk and that babies are born “pre-polluted” - https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/h ... 06041.html

Exposure to phthalates is something I try to avoid given the choice, too - an endocrine disruptor often found in wallpapers, vinyl blinds, plastic plumbing pipes and vinyl flooring. Old furniture, fabrics and rugs are pleasing in so many ways!

Houses are being built which are increasingly airtight, combine these cancer-causing chemicals with the continuous fog of WiFi and other aspects of modern living and I reckon we're storing up enormous health problems for future generations.

[Nearholmer]

That really is some hearth!

Equipped with an “electric fire”, or possibly a “gas fire”, unless I’m mistaken.

[Mick F]

The old place where we used to live, had an electric fire as illustrated by the old photograph from before I was born!

When we moved in there in the summer of 1985, there was a tiled 1950's fireplace with a gas fire in front of it.
That stayed like that for a couple of years, but we found a cast-iron fire-place for free, and removed the tiled unit and fitted the cast iron one in keeping with the original.
We bought tiles to fit on the side .............. we still have the originals but they were cracked ............... and a new clay fireback.
The terrace homes are built with "mirror-image" three bedroom houses. 9ft ceilings, picture rails, long staircase, wide hall and landing.
Heath Terrace Drakewalls. We owned No3 from summer 85 to spring 97.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.51602 ... 384!8i8192

There are eight chimney pots on the stacks. Four per three bedroom home. Lounge, dining room, and the two bigger bedrooms. The small bedrooms had no fire place.

Completely different now. We had a front garden!
We wanted to keep it Edwardian as it was basically when we bought it. The place had character. I wish we still lived there.

[pwa]

Just been gifted about 3 cu mt of large oak logs. They should be really dry as they've been stored inside for 15 years! I know it's been this long as I stacked them for the owner who never used them.
A friend has warned me they will burn but not give out much heat as they are too old, we'll see.

It depends on how well they have been kept. I have just finished burning the last of some oak decking boards that have been keeping us warm for years, and they have been very good fuel. Although the trees must have been felled more than 20 years ago, and the timber used as boardwalk decking for several years (NCN4), it remained dense and excellent for burning. It wasn't so good as decking because a lot of it had splits and other flaws that made it liable to failure, which is why it didn't remain as decking until it began to rot. Age itself doesn't degrade oak. Being constantly damp will do, over time.

[francovendee]

I'm hopeful they will give out a lot of heat and last well.
It was wood from a felled oak that had been in the open for about a year. I then stacked it on a cement floor in a non leaky shed. After 15 years the logs are still very heavy. They're also pretty big so I'll have to split a few.
I'll report back after I've burnt some.

[Biospace]

I try and burn a wood with a slightly lower ignition temperture to get the best out of oak especially if the oak is in larger pieces. Typically ash or birch.

[Pebble]

I'm hopeful they will give out a lot of heat and last well.
It was wood from a felled oak that had been in the open for about a year. I then stacked it on a cement floor in a non leaky shed. After 15 years the logs are still very heavy. They're also pretty big so I'll have to split a few.
I'll report back after I've burnt some.

15 years of seasoning, it will burn beautifully giving out vast amounts of heat - has it been split or is it still in rounds? it will be as hard as hell by now.

we had some old oak rounds that had been left to season for many years with a view of wood turning, but it wasn't going to be any use due to shrinkage cracks - could barely split it with the maul, it was rock hard. Was putting sizable bits onto the fire and it just slowly burnt away to nothing over many many hours. a real joy to spend a long winters evening sitting in front of it.

[Biospace]

I try and burn a wood with a slightly lower ignition temperture to get the best out of oak especially if the oak is in larger pieces. Typically ash or birch.

Along with, that is.

[853]

I won't go as far as a Trombe wall, because I'll effectively lose a window, but I am considering an insulated, south-facing, cold-frame to heat up bricks which could then be brought inside to dissipate their heat. Only worthwhile in sunny to very sunny days, which we do get a few of over the winter, so worth some experimentation

I tried a first experiment yesterday, when it was nice and sunny here. The 'cold-frame' was a quick lash together of a transparent acrylic sheet resting on bricks, so drafty, uninsulated and without any reflectors. Heated the one brick I put inside slightly, but not significantly. Looking like the marginal end of 'marginal gains'