The wood-burning stove market has exploded beyond recognition in recent years. Wood burners UK boom started around the time of the global economic crisis of 2008 and it is unlikely that is merely coincidence.
With banks collapsing, jobs under threat and money tight, there were both practical and psychological reasons to make having the cost of heating your home entirely under your own control very appealing. The prospect of sourcing free or cheap fuel meant heating bills could be cut considerably. And with major institutions falling by the wayside, comfort could be found in wresting control away from the big energy companies.
On a deeper level, there is probably a lot to be said for the simplicity and primal nature of lighting a fire, which definitely harked back to less confusing times.
But the new-found wood burner UK love affair survived beyond the recession. After that initial burst of interest in stoves around the time of the recession, they became fashionable and desirable items. Spurred on by the array of property programmes on TV, lifestyle magazines and the shabby chic and country style interior design trends, sales of wood-burning stoves and multi-fuel stoves continued to go from strength to strength.
Indeed, HETAS, which offers a government-approved competent installer scheme, says its installers have seen a 60 per cent increase in the number of wood-burning stoves being installed over the last seven years.
So can the UK wood burner revival continue to grow? Certainly it shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. Wood burners remain desirable items and their money-saving potential is unlikely to lose popularity any time soon. Perhaps more importantly, people are rediscovering the joy of having a real fire burning in their home. This effect spreads something akin to a viral video on the internet: once you’ve spent time in a house or holiday cottage that has a wood burner, it becomes increasingly tempting to install one in your own home.
Find out the hotspots of the wood burners UK boom, according to our sales figures.