If you’re wondering what fuel is best to use in your stove, we’ll aim to give you some guidance in this blog post.

While we’ll try to keep the advice as general as possible, it’s worth pointing out that anything your manufacturer says in the user manual about the type of fuel that’s best for your stove should take precedence over our tips.

Wood-burners

If you’ve bought a wood-burning stove rather than a multi-fuel stove then you can only burn wood. So, in terms of the best types of fuel for you to use, you’re limited to wood. But there is a big difference in the quality of different types of wood.

These variations include the heat given off by the wood, how much it sparks, how long it takes to burn and how pleasant its scent is.

Some of the best woods to burn in your wood-burning stove include:

• Apple: Burns slowly and does not spit. Gives off a nice scent
• Pear: Has a lot in common with apple.
• Ash: Provides good heat output and a steady burn. Burns well freshly cut, but is better once seasoned.
• Beech: Not quite as good as ash, but not far behind.
• Cedar: Doesn’t look very impressive as it burns, but generates a lot of heat and take a while to burn.
• Hawthorn: A slow burner that provides great heat.
• Blackthorn: Very similar to hawthorn.
• Maple: An excellent all-round performer.
• Eco-logs:Made from compressed sawdust. Very low in moisture and don’t spark.

Regardless of the type of wood, it’s always advisable to use seasoned wood.

What not to burn

• Wood that has been treated with varnish or paint.
• Unseasoned wood
• Wood from poisonous plants
• Coal or any other fuel

Multi-fuel stoves

Since wood is suitable to be burnt on a multi-fuel stove, the advice on the best types of wood to use as fuel apply here too.

That said, multi-fuel stoves are best suited to fuels with a high calorific value (i.e. fuels that give off a great level of thermal units when burnt). Fuels that can be used include:

• manufactured coal
• smokeless fuels
• anthracite

What not to burn

• ‘Pet coke’ or petroleum-based coal
• Household coal (more information on why not)
• Coals and wood at the same time. Use one or the other.