kestrel Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 I posted a few months ago about a pre installed wood burner that I inherited when but was experiencing poor performance with the heat output etc. I've recently started dismantling the brick work around the fire place in the hope improve things but this has raised some additional questions around the original install... Firstly, by me modifying the install.( I plan to fit a rear flue adapter to replace the current top outlet configuration in order to bring the stove forward into the room a bit more) Does this mean I need to get the install re-certified? If so what's the process as a diyer? Second there are a few questions around some aspects of the original install... 1. The register plate sits in a groove cut into the masonry and is pretty secure. ( You need to push it up and wiggle it out at an angle it to remove it) however it's not mechanically fixed in place... Should it be? 2. The flue pipe that joins the stove to the flue liner is an offset bend made of two pieces that slot together. When I dismantled them to remove there was no sealant between any of the joints. (Ive never had any issues with smoke entering the room or my co alarm going off) Just wondering if they should have been sealed for good measure? Lastly the clearance around the stove to the masonry... When I removed the stove I realised that it was fitted with a rear heat shield that was actually touching the back of the recess. I'll be removing this and fitting the rear flue adapter thus creating a gap at the back of the stove. Is there a specific minimum distance the stove needs to be from the rear and side masonry? Can't find anything pertaining to non combustible surfaces. Tia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 11 minutes ago, kestrel said: Does this mean I need to get the install re-certified? Yes 11 minutes ago, kestrel said: If so what's the process as a diyer? Hire a certified professional who will need to either certify your work or tell you that he has to do it himself to certify it. 12 minutes ago, kestrel said: it's not mechanically fixed in place... Should it be? Probably 13 minutes ago, kestrel said: Just wondering if they should have been sealed for good measure? Yes, can’t be any downside, as long as you use the correct heat proof sealant. 14 minutes ago, kestrel said: stove. Is there a specific minimum distance the stove needs to be from the rear and side masonry? If it’s not combustible, then as long as it’s not a wall attached to another house, eg the party wall between two semis, then you should be fine. But the heat may darken the colour of the wall slightly, so better to have a gap if possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Ambrose Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 (edited) I'm all in favour of ambitious DIY and I did my own BC-signed-off wood burner install. But .... in this case, I would try my best to find both a really good builder and a HETAS-stove person and get them to jointly recommend a way forward. The risk elements are structural re the chimney, fire, carbon monoxide poisoning and smoke infiltration into other rooms. FYI you should find a notice plate (e.g. below) and a CO alarm installed - if not it's a suspect installation. It may not actually be that inefficient a set-up that you have now. So, it may be that 'do nothing' is the best option. You might want to check the stated output for that model and judge whether, say, a fan heater of the same rating would heat any slower. (If you want to be a bit more exact in this judgement allow for the efficiency of the wood stove - that'll be published by the manufacturer and probably be 80% or lower.) Also note that Scandinavians often use a traditional stove design where the stove is deliberately surrounded by bricks or heavy ceramic tiles to smooth the heat output of the stove into the house (see photo below). Edited December 24, 2023 by Alan Ambrose Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nod Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 Get a Hetas qualified person to certify A few years back local to me A qualified gas engineer installed a log burner on a barge Poisoning his all family He survived to face the consequences Not worth the risk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMo Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 2 hours ago, nod said: Get a Hetas qualified person to certify A few years back local to me A qualified gas engineer installed a log burner on a barge Poisoning his all family He survived to face the consequences Not worth the risk Plus make sure you have CO alarm in the room. Plus make sure you have enough air available for correct combustion, if it's not fed direct from outside, do whatever building regs or manufacturer manual says. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kestrel Posted December 24, 2023 Author Share Posted December 24, 2023 4 hours ago, Alan Ambrose said: it may be that 'do nothing' is the best option. Err i kind of already started 😅 4 hours ago, Alan Ambrose said: FYI you should find a notice plate (e.g. below) and a CO alarm installed - if not it's a suspect installation. Yep got them both 4 hours ago, Alan Ambrose said: I'm comfortable doing the masonry work as it's all cosmetic. Just need to find the accurate info on what clearances (top bottom and sides) are allowed to be so I can get that bit sorted out since I plan to lower the wood beam as well as re model the brick work. There's already a flue liner, register plate, stove with notice plate and all the other hardware installed from before so I'm happy to get a hetas person in to make/advise on the required changes Needed for the reinstall/sign off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 Lots of info here. https://www.stovesonline.co.uk/stove_building_regulations.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ETC Posted December 24, 2023 Share Posted December 24, 2023 Don’t forget to make a Building Control Application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Ambrose Posted December 25, 2023 Share Posted December 25, 2023 Some clearance dimensions (hearth sizes etc) are in the BC regs. Some (to combustibles etc) are in the stove manufacturer’s specs for that specific model. If you think about it, it has to be that way as it depends on say what’s going on inside the stove re insulation at the back. Yeah you should really make your BC application up front. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kestrel Posted December 28, 2023 Author Share Posted December 28, 2023 Thanks for the info guys. @Alan Ambrose can you point me in the right direction to where i can view the BC regs? Currently looking through this in addition to the other links provided above https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/combustion-appliances-and-fuel-storage-systems-approved-document-j Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Ambrose Posted December 28, 2023 Share Posted December 28, 2023 Yeah, I think it's all in there although it's a long read. In practice, I used one of the summaries by stove suppliers e.g. https://www.woodburnerwarehouse.co.uk/building-regulations https://www.stovesonline.co.uk/stove_building_regulations.html https://www.imaginfires.co.uk/blog/log-burner-regulations/ I guess in theory you can't rely on those 100%, but I think I did - it was 4-5 years ago I did mine. Re getting max heat out into the room - I wonder whether a reflective sheet of stainless behind the stove might help? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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