A ban on wood stoves will burn rural pockets
sir – The increasing use of woodburning stoves has been attributed to their popularity among the middle classes (“Polluting wood stoves banned”, report, May 22).
The reality for those of us in rural areas, however, is that woodburning stoves are the only economical way to heat our homes.
We are pensioners on a fixed income. The winter fuel allowance buys us a full load of logs each year. We have no mains gas – nor the possibility of ever having any – so we have to use LPG gas. This is so extortionately expensive that we are only able to afford to use the gas for five hours a day during the winter.
So please, before wood burners are branded as a middle-class designer choice, think about those for whom keeping warm is a constant and costly challenge.
Sue Fraser
Grimston, Norfolk
sir – We live in a Grade II listed building, so it is difficult obtaining consent for modern, heat-retaining windows. Consequently, we use log burners throughout the winter.
If the Government removed its outdated planning restrictions on old houses, those of us living in them would be much more supportive of a ban on coal and wood-burning stoves.
Kim Thonger
Finedon, Northamptonshire
sir – Apart from being a sustainable and efficient heat source, woodburning stoves are a serious cooking aid and hygienic solution for the disposal of rubbish. Sandra Capon
Puddington, Devon
sir – Wood-burning stove owners can reduce the amount of smoke their stoves emit by drying logs out first in an Aga or Stanley oven. The residual heat from cooking dries the logs very well.
Marjory Carey
Glasgow
sir – Anyone wishing to avoid the ban on wood-burning stoves might consider moving to France.
I recently fitted a wood burner in my house in Normandy and was rewarded with a cheque for €200 from the French government. Gordon Milne
Wokingham, Berkshire
sir – Stacking logs around a woodburning stove, as shown in the photo with Allison Pearson’s column (May 23), is a dangerous practice.
It can cause logs to combust with disastrous results, especially if the occupants have retired for the night.
A safe gap should always be left between a stove and combustible materials.
Chris Cammidge
Leigh-on-sea, Essex
sir – What about inventing a catalytic converter for chimney tops?
I feel sure our technical geniuses could come up with a design that could be fitted like a cowl on to chimneys.
Derek Vivian
Whyteleafe, Surrey