A Wood-Burning Stove In Your Fireplace Could Add Value To Your Property!

March 9, 2015 by Marc Miller

Put a wood-burning stove into your fireplace and it could add value to your property as well as saving money on heating bills.

Many of us can recall those brutal days when, in the name of modernity, some homeowners began skipping their old fireplaces and removing awkward chimney breasts to create contemporary spaces with clean lines and flat walls. Even today, most new-build flats have no hint of a fireplace. After all, who’d want a smoky relic of a bygone age when you can have under floor heating or slim line radiators?

But times are changing. Soaring heating bills, environmentally-sound and clean fuels, and the return of people wanting more character in their homes have all contributed to a revival of the traditional fireplace and surround.

Blazing a stylish trail: This cylindrical Morso stove can add minimalist chic to any home in fact, a feature fireplace can add up to 5 per cent to a home’s value. And at this time of year, the warm glow and crackle of logs burning in the hearth seem very appealing indeed.

More people are starting to realise that they can have a real fire, even in the city and in smoke-controlled areas. Technology has advanced — many wood-burning stoves are now DEFRA -approved, meaning you can burn wood and other smokeless fuels even in London terrace properties. Not only that, by burning wood you are heating your home as carbon neutrally as possible — and, with a little investment, it will actually save you money long-term. Open fireplaces go through so much more wood compared to a wood-burner.  For those with modest means and a modern home, wood-burners are increasingly the fire of choice.

Heating just the room that you are in is certainly more cost-effective than centrally heating an entire house. Using wood as your heat source costs 2.5p per kw/h compared with gas at 4p and electricity at 11p, say HETAS, the solid fuels industry body. HETAS has seen an unprecedented interest in wood-burning stoves, with more than 200,000 installed last year — up by more than 50 per cent in five years.

‘People are viewing stoves as a focal point for their home as much as an efficient way to heat it.That’s why cylindrical, curved shapes are becoming more popular, and stoves with the option to be either wall-mounted or raised on a simple pedestal. But it’s not just the financial incentive that is fuelling the fashion for fireplaces — increasingly they are in vogue, and not just in period country properties.

The most luxurious London apartments have designer fireplaces at the heart of their cutting-edge interiors. Fire walls that create a screen between two areas, as well as a focal point, are both practical and desirable.Fireplaces can be used to make a statement with striking designs and the use of top materials. Long and sleek fireplaces have become increasingly popular, being more artistic and sophisticated than traditional designs. This new kind of fireplace can be more imaginatively placed within the room to achieve a dramatic effect.’ Wealthy, urban clients tend to prefer easy-to-use gas fireplaces, where minimal smoke emissions allow for the use of bronze finishes and glass facades, making for an elegant, modern yet homely look.

Another trend in the luxury sector is outdoor fireplaces, a step up from the fire pit, resulting in a glamorous outdoor space.

Period properties are also seeing resurgence in traditional hearths, with owners reinstating the original fireplaces that, until recently, were being ripped out and thrown on skips. The number of people opening up their fireplaces has risen by 20 per cent over the past three years, according to the National Association of Chimney Sweeps.

The aesthetic value of choosing an antique or reproduction fireplace is immeasurable. They have the ability to make a house more alluring to live in, function better as a home and make a property more attractive to future buyers. There’s no reason to be snobbish about reproduction fireplaces; they typically cost around a third of the price and a good period reproduction looks a hundred times better than plonking a brand new fireplace into an old property.

Marc Miller (Director)
Thornwood Fireplaces Ltd
Esgors Farm, High Road
Thornwood, Epping
Essex, CM16 6LY