We love our wood-burning stove in the house we’ve just bought, but...

We love our wood-burning stove in the house we’ve just bought, but I have discovered we live in a smoke control area. 

This is the question faced by dozens, if not hundreds of individuals, couples and families faced every year as they purchase their new house, complete with stove, envisioning the stereo-typically romantic image of sat around the stove, the warm glow eminating from the window and bathing everyone in the warm glow. Putting an extra log on the stove as the fire every so often, just to top up the heat.

However this dream can quickly become a nightmare if you become informed you live in a smokeless zone and your stove is not DEFRA approved.

However not all is lost, you can still keep your stove, however you would be slightly restricted to burning smokeless fuels, DEFRA approved status merely means that the stove has been given approval by DEFRA to be exempt from the clean air act when burning wood.

So not to worry if you've just bought a house with a stove that isn't DEFRA approved, you can still burn smokeless fuels and enjoy that romantic image of relaxing in front of a blazing stove with the room covered in the warm glow.

Exempt And Authorised But Not Approved

In the last couple of months, we've heard and written about lots of DEFRA approved stoves for use in smoke control areas and also received a number of emails asking for guidance of what can and can't be done when burning logs.

Unfortunately we're not complete experts in the subject (but we're learning) but having spoken to a number of experts in the field we have quickly learned that we should get our terminology correct.

There's no such thing as smoke control 'approval'. Assuming an appliance satisfies DEFRA's test requirements, it becomes 'exempt'. On a similar basis, a fuel meeting DEFRA requirements becomes 'authorised'.

Assuming it is not against the guidance of the manufacturer, you can burn any 'authorised' fuels in any stove or fireplace in a smoke control area. BUT, and it's a big but, the list of DEFRA 'authorised' fuels does not include wood logs, so if you want to burn wood logs in a smoke control area, you must use a DEFRA 'exempt' appliance.

We strongly recommend you look at www.uksmokecontrolareas.co.uk which provides detailed and in-depth detail of the legislative background to the UK smoke control areas, the general locations of the smoke control areas and list of both exempt appliances and authorised fuels.

Finally, because each governing body has differing mechanisms and timetables relating to legal status and exemption, the lists of exempt appliances and authorised fuels will be different in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

Guide To Smoke Control Areas

The Clean Air Acts of 1956 and 1968 were introduced to deal with the smogs of the 1950s and 1960s which were caused by the widespread burning of coal for domestic heating and by industry. These smogs were blamed for the premature deaths of hundreds of people in the UK. The Acts gave local authorities powers to control emissions of dark smoke, grit, dust and fumes from industrial premises and furnaces and to declare "smoke control areas" in which emissions of smoke from domestic properties are banned. Since then, smoke control areas have been introduced in many of our large towns and cities in the UK and in large parts of the Midlands, North West, South Yorkshire, North East of England, Central and Southern Scotland. The implementation of smoke control areas, the increased popularity of natural gas and the changes in the industrial and economic structure of the UK lead to a substantial reduction in concentrations of smoke and associated levels of sulphur dioxide (SO2) between the 1950s and the present day.

These Acts, together with other associated clean air legislation, were repealed and consolidated by the Clean Air Act 1993 which, together with regulations and Orders made under the Act, provide the current legislative controls. Control of smoke emissions may also help reduce emission of a wide range of other pollutants such as particles, sulphur dioxide, PAH and PCDD/F (dioxins and furans) which may be present in smoke.

Can I Still Have a Multifuel Stove If I Live In A Smoke Control Area?

Yes! Although there are some exceptions, most multi-fuel stoves can only burn authorised smokeless fuels, which means that logs are not an option. Only stoves that have been DEFRA approved for smokeless zones can burn logs in smoke control areas due to their high efficiency.

Stoves such as the Broseley Fires Serrano 5 have been DEFRA approved and are suitable to burn logs in smoke control areas allow you to burn arguably the most eco-friendly fuel while not damaging the surrounding atmosphere.

If you do not know whether you live in a smoke control area then check with your local council or simply visit this website