Deep retrofit. A-rated home..............wood burning stove??

Bot1 · 06-03-2026 03:59PM #1

So we're renovating our 1960s house purchase.

Full deep retrofit. External insulation. New insulated concrete floors. HRV etc. etc.

We'll be getting a heat-pump.

I was hoping to also put in a wood-burning stove as a back-up space heater in the living room.

It'll probably never be used though!

Is this madness?

Has anyone positive experience of doing this?

Or should I do as the builder is suggesting and plug the chimney as a vent and possibly install fake stove for ambiance?

All opinions welcome.

TIA

Mickeroo · 06-03-2026 04:02PM

Personal preference really. We got rid when we got a heat pump mainly because we never used it when we had oil either so figured we'd benefit more by closing the chimney up altogether rather than having it sitting there not being used.

If you are in an area prone to power cuts I would definitely consider it as back up though.

glen123 · 06-03-2026 05:26PM

We dont have a heat pump but we have air to air units (well, aircon units, calling it simply) that we use for heating upstairs bedrooms and kitchen with conservatory in the mornings or when there is someone at home. In the living room we have a stove with backboiler which we use in the evenings and this heats living room and two bedrooms downstairs + heats the water +heats radiators upstairs. We have oil but air to air units + stove have completely eliminated its use (we turned it on once this year to test).

In our case we have access to free wood so it makes sense. Otherwise I wouldn't bother with it especially if you have a heat pump. Having said that, real fire on cold evenings is nice and I would never get rid of it as I personally really like it and like the process of starting it despite being a female (as long as my man does all the cleaning involved)))

Flinty997 · 06-03-2026 05:38PM

I can understand why you'd want one as backup and the auld fire is lovely to look at. I've a electric fire I turn on just for the ambience even though it's not heating anything.

Fumes off those wood stoves are terrible. I dread when it's cold and people light them. Dunno if it's the wood or the height of the flue or what.

glen123 · 06-03-2026 05:47PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124291139#Comment_124291139

Probably coal. We only use wood and practically no fumes or smell. Neighbour uses coal only and it's a completely different story - you can smell it when passing his house.

Flinty997 · 06-03-2026 06:30PM

I thought it was wood like green wood really acrid. Dunno though might be coal.

LambshankRedemption · 06-03-2026 07:02PM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/124290821#Comment_124290821

Nevermind if your area is prone to powercuts, you could get a power cut and the only source of heat and food cooking would be the stove. I definitely say keep the stove. With the doors closed, it is almost air tight.

There is a lot of people in the country who went all electric who will eventually regret that decision.

A number of years ago there was a storm in galway and we lost power on Christmas day. My mother didn't know what to do. My dad suggested : we give the ESB a couple of hours, maybe the electricity will come back on, Worst case scenario, you can put the turkey in a roasting dish on the stove, and you can bast it. Obviously he was praying the power would come back on because her basting the turkey on the stove would block his view of the TV. It did come back on.

glen123 · 06-03-2026 08:23PM

If prone to power cuts, generator is a must. Stove alone won’t do if it lasts days and one has young children. When last year after the storm we had no electricity for 5 days (despite living only 5km from a hospital), we were glad we made a decision and bought it 4 years ago. Our electricity goes a few times a year as we live in the country so it made sense to invest into one.

C3PO · 03-04-2026 08:27AM

Personally wouldn’t consider doing a renovation without fitting a wood burning stove if at all possible - they add something special to a room during the winter months imo! Don’t use mine very often but always appreciate it when I do!

magicbastarder · 03-04-2026 09:10AM

Do you have anywhere to store wood? If you're buying bags of wood from the likes of a petrol station forecourt, that's a very expensive way of heating your house.

Remember that if you don't have a supply of wood already stored, it may not be much of a backup during an outage if everyone around you is buying up the local supply.

Baybay · 03-04-2026 09:38AM

Our house is A rated & was fitted with a wood burner in the sitting room at the time of building. We have used it only a handful of times in the few years we’ve lived here as the house gets too warm & we just don’t need that level of heat generally.

Having said that, I have no intention of getting rid of it as it’s a nice to have, just in case.

I do have a flickering bulb inside with a few logs for effect as I didn’t like the empty look of it.

tphase · 03-04-2026 10:24AM

Definitely put in the stove. I installed one with no back boiler so it can be used during a power outage and it has come in handy a few times for both heating and cooking. Only downside, the flue had to come out the back so the stove sticks out a bit into the room but I can live with that. My original plan was to have the flue out the top but a) the builders made a standard fireplace (not what was requested) so would have been a pain to fit and b) the surface for cooking would have been very limited.

Also, give some consideration for access for cleaning the flue or extracting birds.

Busman Paddy Lasty · 03-04-2026 11:34AM

Get the stove 100%, especially as you have a chimney already. Can't beat looking at a wood fire.

Deep retrofit. A-rated home..............wood burning stove??

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