4.  Other Efficient Wood-Burning Appliances

Aside from advanced combustion units, two other types of potentially efficient wood fireplaces are also sold in Canada. They are as follows:

Pellet fireplaces

Pellet fireplaces are similar in concept to advanced combustion fireplaces but use fuel pellets (made from wood and other biomass wastes) rather than cordwood. The ease of fuel handling and automated feeding can make up for the significantly higher cost of pelletized fuel. Many pellet systems can burn even cleaner than advanced combustion units because of the nature of their combustion system. Although they are usually more expensive than advanced combustion fireplaces, some units can be sidewall-vented in certain installations, avoiding the cost of a chimney.

Buy only a pellet fireplace that has been tested to and meets the United States EPA 1990, 40 CFR Part 60 or CSA B415.1-M92 standard.

To ensure that you are purchasing an advanced combustion wood-burning fireplace, buy a new unit that meets the emissions criteria of either the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) wood-burning appliance standard (1990, 40 CFR Part 60), or the Canadian Standards Association's standard CSA B415.1-M92 (Performance Testing of Stoves, Inserts and Low to Medium Burn Rate Factory Built Fireplaces).

Masonry heaters

Masonry heaters can also be clean burning, and some can achieve good efficiency levels. Although they are common in Europe and have been for some time, until recently such heaters were rarely sold in North America. However, in the past few years, the small but vigorous North American industry has made significant strides in producing much improved masonry heaters.

In this type of fireplace, wood is burned at a high rate but for a shorter period. Coupled with good combustion design and reduced excess air, this high burning rate can yield low emissions and higher efficiencies. The hot flue gas leaves the combustion chamber and passes through massive masonry (often with a reverse flow path), where much of the heat from the gas is extracted and stored. Ideally, the masonry subsequently releases the heat to the house slowly over a longer period. To ensure that this happens, it is preferable to build this type of a fireplace on an inside wall.

Guidelines have been developed that will allow a well-designed masonry heater to be properly used as a clean, effective heat source in energy-efficient housing, such as the R-2000 Home.

Free-standing wood stoves

Although not technically a fireplace, free-standing advanced combustion wood stoves with ceramic glass doors are another clean and efficient wood-burning option. These units have an attractive flame, can be effective space heaters for a single room or a large house, and are even more efficient than advanced combustion fireplaces (to find out how to learn more about this and other wood-burning options, see the section on "For More Information on page 20 of this booklet").

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