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Care and Maintenance - Good Practice with Solid Fuel

GOOD PRACTICE WITH SOLID FUEL

1. INTRODUCTION

Many solid fuel fired appliances are expected to "work" 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, keeping us warm and supplied with constant hot water. However, like any other machines, they work better and last longer when correctly installed, burn the right fuel and are properly maintained. It is therefore important to ensure that new installations are carried out by recognised and established heating engineers and serviced by competent companies working in this area. Keep warm and secure by taking the simple steps below.

2. THE RIGHT FUEL

In order to get the best value for money it is important to burn the right fuel in your appliance. There are many reputable brands in the marketplace which are tried and trusted. General principles are not to burn fuels which are wet, like wet turf or unseasoned wood. Also, for closed appliances to be aware of the range of slow burning fuels such as anthracites and manufactured fuels which are particularly suitable to closed appliances.

3. AIR SUPPLY All fuels require an adequate supply of air to make them burn correctly. This is not a problem with open fires as there is plenty of air available. In the case of closed appliances, like room heaters or cookers, there are two aspects - too little air because the settings are closed off or secondly where there is too little fresh air going into the room from outside. In the first case, you need to ensure that a good fire is set in your room heater or cooker before closing off the air supply to allow the fire to ‘bank‘ - failure to do this will create tarry deposits in your chimney. In the second case, if too little air is available, fumes that are harmful to your family may escape into the room. If you have double glazing or draught proofing you will need to allow air to enter the room in which the appliance is installed via an air brick or grille. Never seal air bricks or grills up as you may be putting your family at risk.

4. FLUE CLEANING Many solid fuel fired appliances like room heaters and cookers have flueways through which the hot gases pass to the chimney. These flueways should be swept clean every month to remove any soot or ash. Some stoves and roomheaters have a removable/drop down plate in the top of the fire box - this should also be removed and cleaned once a month. Remember, always let the fire go out the day before cleaning.

5. CHIMNEY SWEEPING All chimneys must be swept at least once a year preferably by a trusted sweep. However, if your appliance is used continuously throughout the year or burns wood or turf more frequent sweeping is recommended. The best time to have your chimney swept is at the start of the heating season. Remember these recommendations apply even if you burn smokeless fuels.

6. ASH REMOVAL If ash is allowed to build up within the appliance the fire will not burn properly and the appliance may be damaged. Generally speaking, the appliance should be de-ashed before being filled with new fuel. The ashpan should be gently removed from the ash pit area and emptied into a suitable container. A hot ash carrier (a metal box with a lid) is ideal for this purpose. The ash pan should be replaced, the fire bed de-ashed with a poker or the de-ashing mechanism on the appliance and fresh fuel added.

7. FIREGUARDS We recommend that a fireguard be used with all open fires.

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