If you burn wood, burn it cleanly, and retire the open fire
Wood smoke harms health inside and outside; use dry wood, light the fire from the top, never close the air supply, never burn waste, skip burning on still or foggy days, and stop using an open fireplace.
Do it yourself
Sources checked on .
Breathing wood smoke causes coughing, headaches and stinging eyes, and it can also lead to more serious harm such as heart and vascular disease. An open fireplace, or a stove without a self-closing door, also has a very low efficiency and is open to the air you breathe indoors. The VMM advises taking it out of use.
If you do burn wood, let it dry for at least two years in a dry place, and light the fire from the top. Never close the air supply of the stove, which also creates a carbon monoxide risk, and never burn waste, plastic or treated wood. An automatically controlled pellet stove is cleaner than a stove for logs.
Don't light a fire on foggy or windless days, or when a burning advisory (stookadvies) has been issued.
Details
| Impact | Indirect · This saves no energy by itself: it is a rule, a service, a contract, or a health or safety item. How we rate impact |
|---|---|
| Estimated saving | About air quality and health; VMM says an open fireplace has a very low efficiency. (confidence: medium) |
| Who acts | You and your landlord |
| Needs landlord's agreement | No |
| Type | Action |
| Constant or subject to change | Constant · Good practice that barely changes with new laws, prices or services. |
Do this together with
Sources
- Verwarmen met hout (in Dutch) · Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (VMM) (official source) · checked on
- Stoken met stukhout (in Dutch) · Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (VMM) (official source) · checked on
- Meest gestelde vragen over binnen stoken (in Dutch) · Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (VMM) (official source) · checked on