Cleaner burning appliances

Choosing a wood burning appliance

EPA-certified wood stove

EPA-certified wood stove tag

 

 

Source of above images: U.S. EPA

All wood-burning appliances are not created equal. A properly installed, correctly used woodstove should not release smoke in your house. It is important to use a good quality U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-certified wood burning appliance that is properly installed and vented.

Replace stoves manufactured before 1988

All woodstoves manufactured since 1988 must be EPA-certified, which means they use one-third less wood than older stoves to produce the same heat. And EPA-certified woodstoves emit 50 percent to 60 percent less air pollution. EPA certified stoves are easy to identify because they carry a special label and hang tag.

Newer EPA-certified wood stoves also save time. Because you get more heat out of less wood, you’ll spend less time chopping and re-loading your stove.

Wood pellet and corn burning stoves tend to be the most efficient and cleanest burning wood appliances.  The worst polluting wood-burning appliances are fireplaces and outdoor wood boilers.  New standards for outdoor wood boilers are being developed because current appliances are big polluters and often annoy neighbors with their heavy smoke.

Relative emissions of fine particles (PM2.5) pollution

Though new EPA-certified wood stoves are much cleaner than uncertified stoves or fireplaces, they still produce more than 100 times more harmful fine particle pollution than a gas furnace for the same amount of heat.  All wood stoves should be inspected and cleaned annually to prevent the buildup of creosote in the chimney and check for any leaks.

If you already own a fireplace or noncertified wood stove, consider buying a natural gas fireplace insert or EPA-certified wood stove to reduce fine particles and improve efficiency. Just as furnaces or water heaters have a range of efficiency, so do wood stoves. Check the List of EPA-Certified Stoves to find those with the lowest emission rates.

EPA-qualified outdoor wood-fired hydronic heaters

If you are thinking of purchasing an outdoor wood boiler, consider a unit with a white EPA Phase II-qualified tag. Cleaner-burning units are expected within the next few years. For a list of EPA-qualified boilers. Visit the EPA's Outdoor Wood-fired Hydronic Heaters Program.

Links to related websites

• Wood Heat Home Energy Guide, Minnesota Department of Commerce and Energy
• EPA Choosing Cleaner Burning Wood Stoves
• EPA Choosing Cleaner Burning Wood Fireplaces
• EPA's Qualified Outdoor Wood-fired Hydronic Heaters Program
• List of EPA-Certified Wood Stoves
• Q and A about EPA-Certified Wood Stoves
• Smoke Gets in Your Lungs, State of New York Office of the Attorney General, Revised 2008