What is a Defra Approved Wood Burning Stove?

If you reside in a zone of smoke control it is essential to purchase a DEFRA exempt stove. A DEFRA exempt stove (or SE) allows you to legally burn wood in a smoke controlled area.

They are independently tested to provide the lowest emissions. Stoves that have this status are usually branded with the 'Defra approved' logo on their specifications or name.

Approved for Smoke Controlled Areas

Many people believe that living in a Smoke Control Area means you can't have a wood burning stove but this isn't the case. In reality, a majority of cities and towns are within a smoke controlled zone but that doesn't mean you cannot have a stove, it just means you need to make use of an exempt device and only use authorised fuels (usually brquettes) in your stove. The stove that is Defra-approved is a wood-burning stove that has been rigorously tested to ensure that it meets certain standards regarding the emissions it produces when burning authorised materials. It is therefore able to be used legally in smoke-control zones.

The Defra logo is widely used in the industry, and a lot of the stoves that are approved bear SE after their name, meaning they are smoke free. To be able to be SE approved, it must satisfy strict requirements in relation to emissions, so you can be assured that when you purchase a stove that is defra exempt, you will receive the cleanest and most efficient wood stove on the market.

If you are looking for a wood burning stove that is Defra exempt or is marked with SE after its name, you'll often discover that the manufacturer has done things like ensuring that there enough air inlets on the front of the stove to allow for full combustion of the fuel, and that the chimney outlet is large enough to stop the build-up of soot. This is important as it ensures that smoke from the wood stove does not escape through the chimney into your home.

Another benefit of a Defra approved stove is that it usually permits you to use it with a 5" chimney liner, which is in compliance with UK building regulations. However, stoves that are not Defra approved will need to be fitted with a larger 6" liner.

At Stovax we are delighted to offer a range of buy DEFRA stoves approved stoves and fires. We also have our Ecodesign Ready stoves that have been created with the future standards of air quality in mind. Many of our stoves that are Defra-approved can also be used in conjunction with a smoke control system for properties located in Smoke Control Zones. They can be utilized to burn a variety of non-smokeless fuels, such as fire logs.

Approved for Smokeless Fuels

A DEFRA approved wood burning stove, also referred to as a DEFRA exempt stove is the only type of stove you can install in a smoke control area if you plan to use it to burn solid fuel (wood and preferably well-seasoned). They are tested by the government to ensure that they don't produce excessive levels of smoke. They can be used with approved fuels (coal only).

The difference between a DEFRA-approved stove and one that isn't approved is usually quite small. With a kit supplied by the manufacturer, many contemporary stoves can be easily transformed into DEFRA certified in a matter of minutes. This is because Defra approved appliances must pass extremely stringent tests and have a limit on the amount of smoke they can produce.

To ensure that these restrictions are not violated during testing, the stove needs to be able to limit the amount of combustion air it gets to ensure that it doesn't deplete itself of oxygen, which could cause it to smoke. This is accomplished through a mechanism within the stove that opens the air into the firebox during the process of combustion, which is often hidden inside the stove and beneath the base of the fire box.

Stove World UK offers a large selection of DEFRA approved stoves from some of the top manufacturers in the country such as Stovax, Arada and Burley. They are available in a wide variety of styles and finishes. You can also pick from an impressive range of Ecodesign ready stoves that have been specifically designed to meet future air quality requirements.

Smoke Control Areas are usually located around cities and towns with large populations and you can visit your local authority's website to determine if the area you live in is classified as one. It is important to purchase an approved DEFRA stove if you live in a smoke-controlled area. This will help you avoid being fined by your local authority. If you burn coal or other solid fuels using a non approved stove, you could be fined PS300.

Approved for Wood

A DEFRA approved stove, also called a smoke exempt wood stove is an appliance which 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 meaning it can be used in smoke-controlled areas that burn approved fuels only that is, in this instance, wood.

Many older wood stoves emit large quantities of particulate matter. This can trigger or exacerbate respiratory problems, asthma attacks and heart problems. Therefore, it is essential to choose a wood stove that is in compliance with strict emission standards as set by the Environmental Protection Agency. You should look for the "EPA 2020 Certified" label, which signifies that the stove has met the emissions limits currently in place.

If you purchase a stove that isn't EPA certified and you reside in a smoke-free zone, you will need to get it recertified before you can use it. It's expensive and time-consuming, however the law requires it. Additionally, homeowners who sell their home with a wood stove that isn't certified could be liable for clean air tax credits and fines.

With a kit or an adjustment provided by the installer, a majority of modern stoves can be defra stoves for Defra Stoves For Sale sale - morphomics.science, approved. The major difference between DEFRA approved stoves and ones that aren't is the combustion air control system, which regulates the quantity of air that goes through the stove when it is in normal operation. The modification will usually be located on the bottom of the firebox or in the base.

Certain manufacturers make two different versions of a wood stove. One is Defra-approved, and the other not. The reason is that the cost of putting a wood stove through the rigorous Defra testing is expensive. To help recoup these costs, they sell the non-approved version for a lower cost. The DEFRA-approved version has been subjected to the modification of the combustion air in the course of the test process.

Approved for Gas

Prior to the Clean Air Acts, residential homes could use any fuel they wanted, resulting in large amounts of smoke emissions. This could cause health problems. 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 to allow burning only approved materials like manufactured smokeless coke and anthracite.

Defra approved SE (Smoke-Exempt) Stoves have been put through rigorous testing in order to demonstrate that they can safely burn approved fuels within a Smoke Control Zone. They achieve this by utilising the most advanced combustion technology that continuously delivers a minimum amount of secondary air to the firebox to ensure that even if the stove is operating with authorised fuels such as anthracite or manufactured smokeless coals, it will still be able to meet Defra's regulations for Smoke Control Areas.

If you're looking to purchase an all-new wood burning stove and you live in an area that has a Smoke Control Area then we would recommend that you look at the wide selection of Defra approved stoves which are available at The Stove Yard. We have a broad selection of Defra-approved stoves, including traditional, contemporary and inset models from top brands like Stovax. Arada, Burley, and AGA.

The good thing is that there is no difference in appearance between a stove approved by Defra and a non-approved model. However, the Defra-approved models do have a few features that are designed to ensure they burn cleaner. They usually have an unintentionally different grate as well as air vents and on gas models, they may have a smaller flue outlet.

A Defra Approved Stove will almost always have 5" flue outlet (125mm). This means you can use a smaller stainless twin wall flexible liner that is cheaper than a 6" (150mm). We've seen this helpful when a customer has an old or non-standard chimney stack that we are installing a Defra approved wood-burning stove in and it reduces the cost of relining the chimney with a bigger diameter liner.