Energy savings are the taste – or rather, the need – of the day and come into play when choosing the ideal heating system, according to budgets and lifestyles. Apart from the good old fireplace, a modern wood stove or a pellet boiler are relevant options for heating.
Then, it's all a question of organization and insulation... And aesthetics too, because among the elements of choice the pleasure of the flame is just as important!
Unfortunately, today, the price of a so-called "ecological" boiler is still not within reach of all budgets:if you put the equipment, the installation and the "sides" end to end, you quickly reach the 25,000 EUR!
So, this may be valid in a large house which will also have a non-wet storage space for wood, but don't incur such costs if you only have a modest or "normal" house.
Then prefer a wood stove:it will do the job perfectly if it is in the center of the house and allows you to distribute its heat correctly. However, unlike a boiler, the stove will not provide you with domestic hot water:you will need to use either thermal solar panels or a small gas or electric water heater.
You will find stoves at all prices:from the simple model that needs to be relighted every morning and fed all day, you can also choose a forced air pellet stove whose feeding is automated. Of course, your budget will guide you, but keep a few important aspects in mind:
Logs or pellets? This will also depend on your region of residence:it is obvious that if you live in Les Sables d'Olonne, a seaside resort not particularly renowned for its wooded regions, it is illusory to opt for a log stove because you will have difficulty buy cubic meters of wood and you risk paying dearly for them.
In this case, pellets are more appropriate or even densified wood logs:made from sawmill waste (chips and sawdust) dried, compressed and calibrated into logs, they are 100% natural and ecological. Since they are used in all wood-burning appliances, they can work in stoves. An additional advantage:they are so compact that they take up much less space than traditional logs.
