charnwoodstoves

The importance of wall protection when installing a freestanding stove

As the cold season is fast approaching, many homeowners are rushing to prepare for the winter, and one effective way is to get your fireplace ready. As you will be aware, the fireplace serves to keep you and your family warm and comfortable during the winter months. Whether it’s a wood-burning or multi-fuel burner, it produces controlled heat that can warm your home’s space.

However, did you know that a vital part of the overall equation in your wood-burning stove is the heat shield? As the name suggests, it is typically installed behind a freestanding stove and it is designed to protect your wall from heat damage. However, while most wood stoves come with heat shields, some don’t have one.

In this article, we’ll specifically cover how to set clearances and install heat shields for wood stoves:

Have adequate clearances

When it comes to a wood stove, there are two key safety features you must keep in mind – sufficient clearance and wall material behind. A properly installed and maintained wood stove can ensure the safety of your appliance. Yet, inadequate clearances can be extremely dangerous for your home.

The Fire Protection Association recommends that the common radiant-type stove must be spaced out at least 900mm (36 inches) from a combustible wall although different wood burning stove manufacturers will offer their own tested safe distances. This is extremely important as your wood stove can get very hot when in operation. As a result, combustible materials too close to the stove can catch fire. By cheating on your wood stove’s clearances, you can potentially create a fire hazard.

Reduce wood stove clearances

On the other hand, know that you can reduce the clearance of your wood stove without compromising your home safety. Although you cannot completely eliminate the clearance, you can significantly reduce it. There’s only one solution to this, and that is to install a properly constructed heat shield.

For your reference, there are various types of heat shields you may want to consider for your wood stove. Be sure to follow the guidelines set forth by the HETAS for the heat shielding requirements, from the appliance selection down to its actual installation.

Vitreous Enamel heat shields

When it comes to wood stoves, installing a wall mounted heat shield is an excellent way to reduce clearance and promote home safety. A vitreous enamel heat shield is a great solution.

Vlaze Heat Shields are designed to protect and enhance the wall behind a wood burning stove creating a modern fireplace.

The vitreous enamel panel features a dual skin that provides thermal protection and an effective convection system that distributes heat back into the room. Using their rail mounted system the heat shield is quick and easy to install and is available in 3 sizes and over 30 luxurious glazed finishes. When installed on a wall the shield reduces the stoves distance to the face of the panel to 95mm and in the case of a Charnwood stove to just 75mm – a vast improvement on HETAS regulations.

Conclusion

At this point, you now know several valuable tips for your wood stove. As mentioned above, be sure to have adequate clearance or reduce wood stove clearances by installing heat shields. Furthermore, it’s best to deal with a reliable manufacturer when purchasing and installing a heat shield for your wood-burning stove. Doing so will help you make the most of your stove, protect your home, and keep you warm during the cold season!

 

 

charnwoodstoves

Home is where the hearth is: Tradition and forward-thinking technology are the fundamental tenets for this family-run Isle of Wight firm with more than half a century of history.

Back in 1972 when Charnwood Stoves founder Alfred Wells and two of his sons John and Alistair sat by an open fire in the village of Niton on the Isle of Wight, little did the trio know that their small engineering firm would become a 21st-century market leading company.

That night saw the three men come up with the notion to create a compact, efficient woodburning stove that was to become the cornerstone of the company. Fuelled by rapidly rising oil prices and the advent of Dutch Elm disease, meaning there was a plentiful supply of wood across the UK, their idea soon became a reality that today encompasses both traditional values and forward-thinking technology in the form of clean, green and efficient woodburning and multi-fuel stoves.

The privately owned family company employs around 140 people – ten of whom are family members – and continues to operate in the same location, to the same exacting standards set out by the three men some 50 years ago, with all stoves and accessories made on site with British parts. “Though we’re constantly innovating, our products are designed to last a lifetime,” says Ced Wells, grandson of Alfred and creative director of the company. “We still hold spare parts for our original stoves – we firmly believe that when you purchase a stove it is a long-term relationship.”

Tradition and prescient thinking are held in equal stead by the Wells family. Whilst the gentle crackle of burning logs and the soothing allure of flickering flames has long held a romantic appeal, as evidenced in Charnwood’s stylish designs spanning contemporary through to traditional, happily the reality of using wood as fuel equally sustains its draw. In order to best utilise the material’s properties as a renewable, sustainable and CO2-neutral fuel, technological solutions employed by the company include stoves with emissions so low that they are DEFRA-approved for burning wood in smoke-control areas, whilst the latest clean-burn technology in the Aire models amongst others ensures that the strict new Ecodesign regulation planned for 2022 is met as priority (the regulation being the stove industry’s response to the DEFRA Clean Air Strategy, which itself aims to improve air quality and reduce emissions and pollution).

Alongside its products, the relationships fostered by Charnwood are rooted in the family’s close-knit ethos and Christian beliefs, and extend into the community and beyond as a reflection of their deeply held values. “The concept of ‘relationship’ is probably the most important thing in our lives and business,” explains Ced. “We believe it’s important to take care of others, which in business terms manifests itself in supporting people – so our employees, our suppliers and our customers – and in connecting with the environment.”

In addition to using local suppliers and materials where possible, Charnwood’s commitment to the island pays homage to the intrinsic it plays in the company’s origin story. “The people that work for us have shaped what we have become,” says Ced. “They are our most valuable asset and are an extension of our family – many of them have been with us for more than 30 years.” As well as being well-connected to schools, colleges and businesses, the company offers apprenticeship schemes for young people in engineering, design and manufacture, “as job opportunities can be scarce on the island – and we very much want to see it thrive and grow as an economy.”

Plans for the future include a continued focus on uniting tradition with innovation: “We’re soon to be launching the world’s first intelligent woodburning stove that automatically burns your fuel to optimum efficiency,” outlines Ced. “The idea is that you load it, light it, close the door and then the stove does the rest” – a concept which doubtless is as faithful, loyal and consistently aligned with the core values of the company 50 years ago as it is today.

Words: Eve Middleton for The English Home November 2020

 

charnwoodstoves

Charnwood stoves specified for Danh Vo's Chicxulub show

We were recently asked to supply six Ecodesign Ready wood burning stoves for a show at The White Cube Gallery in Bermondsey, London. The work ‘Live Free or Die’ is part of artist Danh Vo’s exhibition, Chicxulub. Stacks of firewood are used to fuel six Charnwood Skye 7 stoves installed throughout the gallery, in return giving off heat and an atmospheric light which illuminates the space.

The stoves are placed on gloss black vitreous enamel Vlaze hearth plates

The show runs from 11 September – 2 November 2020 Click here for further details 

Stoves were installed by London stove specialists Stoake