Warm your heart and home… with a wood stove

With winter just around the corner, there is nothing quite like coming home to a welcoming snug and comfy space. But how do you make sure your home can offer that much-needed warmth during the cold months ahead? Central heating units? Air conditioners? Convectors? Gas heaters? The choices are many… and some can prove to be quite expensive. Perhaps it’s time you considered an alternative solution that may be more suited to your everyday needs!

The wood stove is making a dynamic comeback across the world, and could just be exactly what you are looking for when it comes to effectively heating your home, without burning a hole in your pocket.

But a decision like this needs to be thoughtfully made. So, let’s take a closer look at a few of its many benefits.

A wood stove burns considerably less wood than a fireplace, while its heating performance is much more efficient than many other heating solutions, as it does not consume electricity, petrol or gas. In fact, if you have access to your own wood, from pruning or gardening, the operational cost of a wood stove, apart from the initial purchase, may actually be €0!

Wood stoves can transfer heat into any space, very quickly. This is because they are typically made of cast iron or steel, which immediately absorbs heat from the burning wood, and distributes it effectively across the room. Cast iron and steel are both great options, and choosing between them depends on your personal needs and preferences. Their main difference is transfer time and heat duration. Cast iron wood stoves heat the surrounding area a little slower than steel wood stoves, but they can maintain the temperature for longer.

You may be under the impression that wood stoves are a little old fashioned, and may not be suited in a modern home, but things have changed. These effective, high performing heating solutions have become a fast trend over the past few years, comfortably and stylishly making their way into our homes and lives once again. With many modern designs being rolled out, you can now find wood stove models that satisfy both your own personal taste and your home heating needs, whatever the size or look and feel of your interior space.

You’ll find wood stoves are much easier to set up than you think, as they do not require the use of a large chimney and can therefore be installed quite quickly and easily, even in rooms that do not already offer the necessary infrastructure. As far as upkeep is concerned, wood stoves need just one through maintenance treatment a year, in order to perform just as effectively every winter.

Wood stoves don’t just offer heat. They also create a cozy environment that is perfect for the colder months of the year. Just imagine an evening at home with good company, red wine in hand, soft music mellowing the mood, enjoying freshly roasted chestnuts around a slow burning fire while rain rhythmically splashes on your windows. A wood stove can add that special touch to even the simplest of moments, and transform them into truly unforgettable memories.

When you start looking into it a little, it becomes clear that wood stoves aren’t simply yet another heating solution among many others. They offer a very special kind of all-encompassing warmth that will quickly become a way of life. And once you make your wood stove a part of your daily routine, you’ll also start revealing some of its many other clever uses:

#Tip_1 
Throw a few orange peels and/or cinnamon sticks to the fire and create your very own natural aromatic home fragrance.    
#Tip_2 
For even stronger performance, use dry, dense wood for burning such as olive, oak and beech, cut to the right size depending on the dimensions of your hearth.  
#Tip_3
If you are particularly keen on hearty slow cooked meals, make sure you get yourself a wood stove with an inbuilt oven. Meals prepared over a fire will fill the house with a sense of nostalgia, as delicious scents bring about warm memories of Sunday dinners with family and trips to the village that very often ended with a lovingly made home-cooked feast.