From 1st January 2022, the new Ecodesign Regulations will be rolled out so we’ve put together this handy article answering some of the questions we get from customers to put your minds at ease.
We’ve known about these new regulations for a while so have been busy ensuring each and every one of our stoves is eco design ready and in most cases they beat the minimum requirements by a lot!
The regulations set out:
- A new minimum seasonal efficiency
- A new maximum emission requirements
This means that only those appliances that have been tested and verified as meeting these new limits will be allowed to be sold.
The aim of this is to dramatically reduce emissions into the environment, making all stoves more eco-friendly!
Read more about the legislation here.
How will it benefit our customers?
- By purchasing an eco-design stove you are helping towards a greener planet! So you can sit back and enjoy the fire, knowing that you are doing your bit for the environment.
- Here at Town and Country Fires all of our stoves are eco-design ready so you can rest assured that your stove is compliant and have full confidence in your purchase.
Shop our full range of stoves here.
What does it mean if you have a non-eco design stove already, do you have to remove it?
The short answer to this is no, however if you are keen to upgrade and do your bit for the environment then do have a word with your local stockist.
What are the rules on burning wood?
At Cop26, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, that took place in Glasgow from 31 Oct to 12 Nov, there was lots of guidance released on how you can burn wood in an environmentally friendly way.
You can read more here.
Despite some misleading information in the media, burning wood, as long as it’s done in an efficient way such as using an Ecodesign stove, is a very green way to keep warm:
- Make sure your wood is ready to burn
Dry wood produces less smoke and more heat, and so is much cleaner and better for the environment. If you’re cutting your own logs for firewood, store them in a dry area, and allow them to dry for at least 12 months, for wood like oak, this can be as long as 24 months.
Before you burn, use a moisture meter so you can check the water content of the logs. They should be less than 20%. Having too high a water percentage will increase pollution, produce a poor level of heat output and cause tar to form in your chimney so it’s important you get the right level.
- Use the best type of wood for burning
Airdryed, Kiln dried, or seasoned hardwood such as Ash, birch, or beech.
- How should I dry my logs?
When it comes to drying your logs it is important to note that they won’t dry in the garage – instead they need to be out in the open, preferably with just a roof to cover them.
- How efficient is wood-burning?
When seasoned wood is burnt on a very efficient stove, you can produce over 5kW of heat per hour using only 1.5kg of wood – which is the equivalent of two hardwood logs, roughly 6” long x 3” diameter
FUN FACT: Wood is a carbon neutral fuel! When trees grow they absorb carbon dioxide and generate oxygen. Therefore, when wood is burnt in a stove or left to rot, it will release the same amount of carbon dioxide!
More information about multi-fuel stoves
- What fuel can I burn in a multi-fuel eco design stove?
As previously mentioned, after April the fuel you can use will be different. Wood will need to be under a certain level of moisture content. This is because wet wood can be very dangerous, and also bad for the environment.
- How do Town and Country Fires test these stoves?
All of our stoves are tested in our very own lab at the factory. They are then set off to be tested at an independent body, Kiwa Gastec.
You can find all the information about emissions of our stoves here.
How else do we look after the environment?
Here at Town and Country fire we are committed to be as environmentally friendly as we can be, here are a few more ways that we do this:
- We use recycled paper for packaging all our stoves to keep them safe in transit
- We pride ourselves on using as many British materials as possible to lower our carbon footprint.
- We have 120 solar panels on the roof of the factory so we can create our own electricity.
Our factory, office and showroom are closed from 1pm Wednesday 22nd December and reopen 8am on Tuesday 4th January 2022.