Lancaster business flips emissions thinking

Ahead of Shrove Tuesday, Lancaster-based wood fuel supplier, Logs Direct, is highlighting how a recent Imperial College London Environmental Research Group report showed more PM 2.5 pollutant particles are generated by making pancakes than by burning seasoned wood. 

Cooking pancakes was found to have far worse impacts on indoor quality than any generated by compliant woodburning.  Some woodburning stoves, were actually shown to improve indoor air quality.  

Some of the myths circulated about woodburners have been flipped, which should come as a relief to homeowners who have feared using them for heating this winter.

Rather than finding large increases in emissions when legal, ready to burn or seasoned wood was lit, it was cooking events and cigarette smoking that caused incident spikes in PM 2.5 particles.

Whilst pancakes were cooking, an increase  of 168µg m-3 occurred. In contrast, when a fire was lit, the increase was from just 6 to 17 µgm-3.  In another incident, PM 2.5 increased from 3 µg m­-3 to 223 µg m­-3 just 20 minutes after the toaster and grill were switched on.

Throughout the study, when foods were being fried, grilled or cooked in an oven, the impacts on indoor PM 2.5 particles were notable, particularly when no extractor was used.

Furthermore, the researchers discovered that the latest models of woodburners – Clear Skies 5 stoves – actually improve air quality within a home, rather than damaging it.  Here, the study used a Charnwood woodburning stove.

Logs Direct’s sales director, Stephen Talbot, says: “We have long known that the scaremongering about the impacts of woodburning stoves on indoor air quality could not be validated.  It is, therefore, refreshing to see that Imperial College’s research study could find no evidence to suggest that woodburning stoves damage indoor air quality and that other daily chores cause far greater impacts. 

“To also have the study prove that Clear Skies 5 stoves actually improve indoor air quality is even more of a plus point for the woodburning community.”