Burning wood and coal in the home

Regularly maintaining your open fire or stove means it will use less fuel to produce more heat and perform better.

To properly maintain your appliance you should:

• always use your open fire or stove in line with the manufacturer and installer’s guidance, including only burning suitable fuels
• make sure your open fire or stove is installed by a registered/certified installer - if you’re unsure whether your current system was installed correctly, you may want to consider having it serviced
• have your stove serviced once a year
• consider buying a new stove that has a Defra exemption, or an Ecodesign Compliant stove
• get your chimney swept at least once a year as soot and tar build up in your chimney over time, reducing its efficiency and increasing the risk of chimney fires

Burning coal, paper, plastic or old furniture will create more toxic air pollution and cause additional damage to your health. Even though you may have obtained these items for burning free of charge, there is also a risk they may cause expensive damage to your open fire or log burner.

Burning home fires is the single largest source of the most toxic form of air pollution called fine particulate matter (PM2.5) which can enter your lungs and blood and damage your health. Open fires and log burners emit double the contribution than that of industry and triple the contribution of road transport.