Heating with Wood
Sara Hill, Honiton

In the damp depths of last winter, I visited a friend who had moved into a wreck of an old cottage on the river Exe between Tiverton and Exeter. It is now, after much hard work, the kind of idyllic picture postcard place everyone dreams of owning or holidaying in but it also has the downside that in winter it is slap bang in the middle of a frost pocket and sees little sunshine.
I had been invited for the weekend and, to be honest, expected it to be colder inside the cottage than out, and had layer upon layer of clothes on along with an extra blanket in my bag. When I walked in I couldn’t believe how cosy it was. One of the first things Jen had done after getting the roof fixed, was to install a new and very efficient woodburning stove and did it pump out heat! It wasn’t cheap by any means but the upside for her is that the bulk of the fuel she burns costs her nothing other than the time and labour spent gathering and chopping it. Her keep fit routine! She even makes logs out of old newspapers with a funny old press that someone gave her for when wood is in short supply. With low ceilings, small windows with heavy curtains, and very thick walls the cottage heats through very quickly and the heat stays in. Visiting friends love to help with the wood chopping and often turn up with branches they have foraged. It is a getting back to the land, little house on the prairie, closer to nature attraction especially for friends who work and live in London and Bristol. The area around Jen’s cottage is quite heavily wooded and, with the permission of the landowner, she is free to gather fallen branches throughout the year from his woods. She is also a bit of a scavenger and if it has blown a gale she’ll be the first out in the morning picking up fallen branches from the roads and getting them home in her trusty old van. She has been the happy recipient of battered old pallets, discarded floorboards, and fencing posts. Anything that can chopped, stored and burned as required is welcome. These “spoils” are the primary source of all that delicious warmth and constant hot water. Jen spent about £100 on split seasoned logs immediately after installing the burner as she had first to lay in and season her own free supplies. Now she is “quids” in and is delighted not to be reliant on gas, oil or electricity for heating and hot water.

Would wood be good for you?
With the rising popularity of wood as a fuel and a greater range of wood burning cooking and heating systems available, more people than ever are exploring whether to switch. The South West Woodburning Centre at Winkleigh will be hosting a free Wood 4 Energy event over the weekend Saturday 30th September – Sunday 1st October. Experts will be on hand between 10.00am and 4.00pm each day to give obligation free advice and offer opportunities to find out about eligibility for grant schemes, solar heating, biomass boilers, choosing the right fuel, underfloor heating and woodland management. Visitors will also be able to take a look at the 130 or so appliances in the showroom to get a feel for what is on offer these days and what the costs are. Not suprisingly the centre also has flue and chimney specialists on board to help with the technicalities of installation.
Rebecca Dayment who is showroom manager and the organiser of the event said that there had been a real surge of interest in all types of woodburning stoves and cookers over the past year as prices for electricity, gas and oil continue to rise. Many people , she said, are also testing wood as a back up fuel alongside their existing oil or gas heating or cooking systems before making a full commitment to switch to wood.

Heating With Wood Facts
One tonne of locally sourced dry wood can replace 300 litres of oil. The Co2 produced is considered to be neutral as it is reabsorbed by trees and vegetation.
Wood is normally a cheaper fuel than oil or LPG. If you spend £500 a year on oil consider a log fired boiler. If more than £1000, a wood chip system.
Well managed woods provide an excellent source of fuel, support sustainable jobs and provide a safe habitat for a wide range of fauna and flora.
A reduced rate of 5 per cent VAT applies on the installation of certain specified energy saving materials. From Janaury 2006 it was extended to include the installation of boilers fuelled solely by wood, straw or similar vegetable matter in homes, certain residential and charity buildings.
Admittance to the Wood 4 Energy Event is free. The South West Woodburning Centre is based at The Airfield, Torrington Rd., Winkleigh. Tel: 01837-83333