What is a Defra Approved Wood Burning Stove?
If you live in a region where smoke is controlled, it's essential to buy a DEFRA exempt stove. A DEFRA exempt (or SE) stove allows you to burn wood legally in a smoke-controlled zone.
The stoves are independently tested for the lowest emissions possible. Stoves with this status often feature the word 'Defra approved' in their name or on their specifications.
Approved for Smoke Controlled Areas
Many people believe that living in a smoke-free zone means that they aren't able to make use of a fireplace that burns wood. This isn't the case. In reality, many cities and large towns are located in a smoke controlled zone but that doesn't mean you can't have stoves, it just implies that you have to make use of an exempt appliance and only burn fuels that are approved (usually brquettes) in your stove. The Defra approved stove is a specific type of wood burning stove that has been tested to ensure it meets certain requirements in regards to the emissions it emits when burning fuels that are approved and therefore, it can be used legally in the Smoke Control Area.
The Defra logo is widely used in the industry and many of the stoves that have been approved bear SE after their name which means they are smoke exempt. To be SE approved the stove must meet strict emission criteria. This means that you can be confident you are buying the best wood stove that is available.
If you search for a wood burning stove that is Defra exempt or is marked with SE after its name, you will often discover that the manufacturer has taken care of things such as made sure there are enough air inlets on the front of the stove to permit full combustion of the fuel and that the chimney outlet size is sufficient to stop the build-up of soot. This is important as it ensures that the smoke from the wood burning stove is not able to escape through the chimney and into your home.
A stove that is Defra-approved permits you to install a 5" liner which is compliant with UK building regulations. Non-Defra-approved stoves require an 6" liner.
At Stovax we are pleased to offer a range of Defra approved stoves and fires, as well as our Ecodesign Ready stoves that have been developed with the future of air quality standards in mind. In fact, many of our Defra approved stoves are also suitable for use with a smoke control kit for those properties that are in a Smoke Control Area and can therefore be used with a range of approved smokeless fuels, including fire logs.
Approved for Smokeless fuels
A DEFRA approved wood burning stove, also referred to as a DEFRA exempt stove is the only kind of stove you can install in a smoke control area if you plan to make use of it for solid fuel (wood, preferably well seasoned). They are tested by the government to ensure that they don't generate excessive amounts of smoke and can be used with approved' fuels (coal only).
The difference between the difference between a DEFRA approved stove and a non-approved one is usually very little. With a kit provided by the manufacturer, a lot of modern stoves can be easily converted to DEFRA conforming in just a few only a few minutes. This is due to the fact that a Defra approved stove has to undergo rigorous tests and must be restricted on how much smoke it can produce.
To ensure that these limitations are not violated during testing, the stove will have to be capable of limiting the combustion air supply to ensure that it doesn't deplete itself of oxygen, which may cause it to smoke. This is done by a mechanism in the stove that opens an air pocket into the firebox during combustion, which is usually hidden within the stove and beneath the base of the firebox.
Stove World UK has a vast selection of DEFRA approved stoves, made by some of the best manufacturers in the country such as Stovax Arada and Burley. They are available in a vast variety of styles and finishes. You can also pick from a wide selection of Ecodesign ready stoves that are designed to meet the future requirements for air quality.
mouse click for source are typically situated around cities and towns with large populations and you can look up the official website of your local authority to see if your area is classified as one. It is important to purchase an approved DEFRA stove if you reside in a smoke-controlled zone. This will allow you to avoid being fined by your local authority. This is because if you burn unauthorised fuel on an unapproved stove, such as coal or other solid fuels that could result in fines of up to PS300.
Approved for Wood
A DEFRA approved wood stove also called a smoke-free stove, is a device that can be utilized in a Smoke Control Area when burning wood. The stove will have the Defra approved symbol or 'SE' the front of its name meaning it can only be used in areas controlled by smoke where you can burn approved fuels. In this case wood.
A lot of older wood stoves release lots of particles into the air that can trigger or contribute to respiratory issues asthma attacks, heart issues and premature death. This is why it's important to purchase an updated wood stove that meets the strict emission standards established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). You should look for the "EPA 2020 Certified" label, which indicates that the stove meets the emissions limits that are now in place.
If you purchase an appliance that isn't EPA certified and you reside in a smoke-free zone it is necessary to have it recertified before you can use it. It's expensive and time-consuming, however the law requires it. Additionally homeowners who sell a home with a wood stove that isn't certified could be subject to clean air tax credits as well as fines.
With a kit or an adjustment made by the installer, the majority of modern stoves can be Defra approved. This is because the main difference between the DEFRA approved stove and those which aren't, is the combustion air management system which regulates the amount of air that passes through the stove during normal operation. Modifications are usually applied to the base or the underside of a stove's firebox.
Some manufacturers produce two versions of their wood stove one that is Defra approved and the other not. The reason for this is that the cost of putting a stove through the rigorous Defra testing is expensive. To offset these costs, they will sell the non-approved version at a cheaper cost. The DEFRA-approved model will have undergone the combustion air modification as part of the testing procedure.
Gas Approved
Prior to the Clean Air Acts, residential homes were able to burn any fuel they wanted to, resulting in large amounts of smoke emissions. This could cause health problems. To combat this, Defra established Smoke Control Areas. This meant that homes could not emit any smoke unless their wood burners and multifuel stoves were Defra-approved to allow burning only approved materials like manufactured smokeless coke and anthracite.
Defra approved SE (Smoke-Exempt) Stoves have been put through rigorous tests to prove that they can efficiently burn fuels that are approved within a Smoke Control Zone. They do this by using the latest combustion technology which continuously delivers a minimum amount of secondary air to the firebox, so that even if the stove is used with authorised fuels such as anthracite or manufactured smokeless coals it will still be able to comply with Defra's rules for Smoke Control Areas.
The Stove Yard has a wide range of Defra-approved stoves that are perfect for those who live in a smoke control zone and require a brand new fireplace that burns wood. We have a broad selection of contemporary, traditional and inset Defra approved stoves from the most reputable manufacturers such as Stovax, Arada, Burley and AGA.
The good news is there is no distinction in appearance between a Defra-approved woodburning stove and a non-approved model. However the models that are Defra-approved have a few features designed to help them burn more efficiently. In general, they have a different grate design and air vents, and on the gas versions they might also have a different sized flue outlet.
Another benefit of a Defra Approved stove is that they'll almost always come with a 5" (125mm) flue outlet, which means you can use a narrower stainless steel twin wall chimney liner that is less expensive than the standard 6" (150mm) liner. We've seen this helpful when customers have an old or non-standard chimney stack that we are installing the Defra approved wood burning stove into and it reduces the cost of re-lining the chimney stack with a wider diameter liner.