The Reason Defra Approved Stove List Will Be The Hottest Topic In 2023
What is a Defra Approved Wood Burning Stove?
If you reside in a smoke control area then you must purchase a DEFRA exempt stove. A DEFRA exempt stove (or SE) permits you to legally burn wood in a smoke-controlled area.
The stoves are independently tested to ensure the lowest emissions possible. Stoves with this status will often display the 'Defra-approved' logo on their name or the specifications.
Approved for Smoke Controlled Areas
Many people think that living in a Smoke Control Area means you can't have a wood burning stove but this isn't the case. In reality, most cities and towns are in an area that is smoke-free, but this doesn't mean you can't have a stove, it just means you need to make use of an exempt device and only burn authorised fuels (usually Briquettes) in your stove. The Defra approved stove is a type of wood-burning stove that has been inspected to ensure it meets certain standards in regards to the emissions that it produces when burning authorised fuels and therefore it can be used legally in a Smoke Control Area.
The Defra logo is widely adopted in the industry and many of the stoves approved bear SE after their name, meaning they are smoke-free. To be SE approved, a stove must meet strict emission standards. This means that you can rest assured that you are purchasing the top wood stove available.
If you are looking for a stove that burns wood that is Defra exempt or is marked with SE after its name, you will often discover that the manufacturer has taken care of things like ensuring that there are enough air inlets on the front of the stove to allow for full combustion of the fuel, and that the chimney outlet size is sufficient to stop the build-up of soot. This is important because it helps to ensure that the smoke from the stove does not escape through the chimney into your home.
A stove that is Defra-approved allows you to use a 5" liner that is compliant with UK building regulations. Non-Defra-approved stoves require a 6" liner.
Stovax is proud to offer a variety of Defra-approved stoves and fireplaces, as well as our Ecodesign Ready stoves which have been designed keeping future standards for air quality in mind. In fact, many of our Defra approved stoves are suitable for use with a smoke control kit for those properties that are located in a Smoke Control Area and so can be used with a range of authorised smokeless fuels including fire logs.
Approved for Smokeless Fuels
A DEFRA approved wood burning stove, also known as a DEFRA exempt stove is the only type of stove you can install in a smoke control area if you plan to make use of it for solid fuel (wood or wood that is well-seasoned). The government tests these stoves to ensure that they don't emit excessive smoke and are only suitable for use with 'authorized' fuels.
The difference between the differences between a DEFRA approved stove and a non-approved one typically is very small. DEFRA list stoves of modern stoves can be converted to DEFRA certified by a kit that is supplied by the manufacturer and fitted within a matter of minutes. This is due to the fact that Defra approved appliances must pass extremely stringent tests and are limited in the amount of smoke they can produce.
To ensure that the restrictions are kept, the stove must be able limit its combustion air so that it doesn't rob itself of oxygen and cause it smoulder. This is done through a mechanism within the stove which opens a small amount of air into the firebox during the process of combustion, which is typically hidden within the stove and underneath the base of the firebox.
Stove World UK has a large selection of DEFRA approved stoves, from some of the top brands in the country such as Stovax Arada and Burley. These are available in a wide variety of styles and finishes. You can also pick from a vast selection of Ecodesign ready stoves that have been specifically designed to meet future air quality requirements.
Smoke Control Zones are mostly in large towns and cities. You can check the website of your local authority to see whether you reside in one. If you reside in a smoke-free zone, it is crucial that you buy an DEFRA approved stove for your property, to avoid being fined by the local authority. If you burn coal or any other solid fuels in a non approved stove, you could be fined PS300.
Approved for wood
A DEFRA approved stove, also known as a smoke-free wood stove is an appliance that can be used to burn wood in the Smoke Control Area. The stove will bear the Defra approved logo or bear an 'SE' in its name which means it is able to be used in smoke-controlled areas when burning approved fuels, in this case wood.
A lot of older wood stoves release a lot of particulate matter into the atmosphere which can trigger or contribute to respiratory issues asthma attacks, heart problems and premature death. This is why it's important to purchase new wood stoves that is compliant with the strict emission standards established by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Look for an "EPA 2020 Certified" label, which means that the stove has met the emission limits currently in place.
If you purchase a stove that is not EPA certified and you reside in a zone of smoke control you must get it recertified before you can use it. It's time-consuming and expensive, but the law requires it. Homeowners who decide to sell a property with a wood stove that is not certified may be liable for tax credits or fines relating to the clean air.
With a kit, or an adjustment made by the installer, most modern stoves can be Defra approved. This is due to the primary difference between the DEFRA approved stove and those that are not, is the combustion air management system that controls how much air passes through the stove during normal operation. The modification will usually be made on the underside of the firebox or within the base.
Certain manufacturers make two types of wood stove, one that is Defra-approved while the other that isn't. This is due to the process of placing a stove through stringent Defra tests is very expensive and to offset some of this expense they'll sell the non-approved version at a cheaper cost. The DEFRA approved version will have been subjected to the modification of combustion air performed as part of the testing procedure.
Approved for Gas
Prior to the Clean Air Acts, residential homes could use any fuel they wanted, leading to high levels of smoke emissions. This led to health issues. To combat this, Defra established Smoke Control Areas. This means that residential homes can not emit any smoke unless their wood burners and multifuel stoves were Defra-approved for burning only authorised materials like manufactured smokeless coke and anthracite.
Defra approved stoves, also referred to as SE (Smoke Exempt) Stoves, have undergone rigorous tests to prove that they can cleanly burn authorised fuels within a Smoke Control Area. They accomplish this by using the latest combustion technology which constantly delivers a minimum level of secondary air to the combustion chamber, so that even when the stove is being used with authorised fuels such as anthracite or manufactured smokeless coals, it can still meet Defra's regulations for Smoke Control Areas.
If you're in the market for a new wood burning stove and live in an area that has a Smoke Control Area then we would recommend to look into the range of Defra approved stoves that are available at The Stove Yard. We have a wide range of stoves that are Defra-approved, including traditional, contemporary and inset models that are made by top manufacturers such as Stovax. Arada, Burley and AGA.
The good news is that there isn't much of a difference in appearance between a Defra approved woodburning stove and one which isn't, however the Defra approved models have a number of features which are designed to ensure that they burn cleaner. They typically have an unintentionally different grate as well as air vents and on gas models, they may have a smaller flue outlet.
Another benefit of an Defra Approved stove is that they'll typically come with a 5" (125mm) flue outlet, which means you can use a narrower stainless steel twin wall flexible chimney liner which is cheaper than a standard 6" (150mm) liner. We've seen this helpful when customers have an old or non-standard chimney that we are installing the Defra approved wood-burning stove in and it saves the cost of re-lining the chimney stack with a larger diameter liner.
