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Stoves Ireland – understanding the history of stoves, by Heat Design
Stoves Ireland – Origin of stoves
The Old English word stofa meant any individual enclosed space, such as a room, and 'stove' is still occasionally used in that sense, as in 'stoved in'. Until well into the 19th century 'stove' was used to mean a single heated room, so that Joseph Banks assertion that he 'placed his most precious plants in the stove' or René Descartes observation that he got 'his greatest philosophical inspiration while sitting inside a stove' are not as odd as they seem.
Stoves Ireland - Introduction
Enclosed stoves hold out the possibility of greater efficiency, controllability and lower smoke emission than simple open fires. In free air solid fuels burn at a temperature of only about 270°C, too low a temperature for perfect combustion reactions to occur, heat produced through convection is largely lost, smoke particles are evolved without being fully burned and the supply of combustion air cannot be readily controlled.
By enclosing the fire in a chamber and connecting it to a chimney, draft (draught) is generated pulling fresh air through the burning fuel. This causes the temperature of combustion to rise to a point (600°C) where efficient combustion is achieved, the enclosure allows the ingress of air to be regulated and losses by convection are almost eliminated. It also becomes possible to direct the flow of burned gasses inside the stove such that smoke particles are heated and destroyed.
Enclosing a fire also prevents air from being sucked from the room into the chimney. This can represent a significant loss of heat as an open fireplace can pull away many cubic metres of heated air per hour.
The type of water-heating 'back boiler' stoves commonly used in Ireland, for instance, can be more than 80% absolute efficient.
Stoves Ireland - Emissions
The burn temperature in modern stoves can increase to the point where secondary and complete combustion of the fuel takes place. A properly fired masonry heater does not contribute to the buildup of creosote in the heater flues or the chimney. Some stoves achieve as little as 1 to 4 grams per hour. This is roughly 90% less smoke than older stoves, and equates to nearly zero visible smoke from the chimney.
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