Why Summer Might Be The Best Time to Install a Woodburner

      Shorter lead times for installation

 Despite the popularity of woodburners, there are only a limited number of competent fitters and they tend to get booked up quickly. In peak season in autumn-winter, it’s not unusual for lead times to stretch to 3-5 months, depending on a company’s popularity and capacity. In the summer, there’s typically a far shorter wait, and you’re more likely to get an installation date that’s really convenient for you.

      Better stove availability

 Most wood-burning stove manufacturers use the summer months to re-build inventory and those who build-to-order will have a shorter queue, so there is generally much better availability of popular models. Demand has thoroughly outstripped supply the last couple of winters because of a perfect storm of unprecedented demand, insufficient manufacturing capacity and complex and problematic supply chain issues. We’ve been able to service demand through recent winters partly due to our deep stock levels & pre-ordered capacity, but there’s often a point in the winter when customers have to choose between settling for stoves that are actually available and waiting for the one they ideally want. In summer, there’s a far higher likelihood that your perfect choice of stove will be available within a reasonable time frame.

        Less mess and cold

 Depending on the kind of installation you have, it might involve keeping a lot of doors and windows propped open. Knocking out a fireplace can be a messy business and generates plenty of dust. Even with a relatively simple stove installation, there'll be a lot of foot traffic through your front door and you’ll certainly want windows open for the stove’s maiden ignition because the curing paint smells quite strongly for the first couple of hours. All of which is definitely more tolerable when it’s warm and sunny outside!

      Summer is not always summery!

Although most of us visualise using our stoves in bleak midwinter, sometimes they’re particularly useful on those liminal days when you’d have a hard time guessing what season you’re in by looking out the window or counting your goosebumps. In England, that can easily happen on June days, when you’d feel silly putting the heating on, but still feel chilly and damp even with a jumper on. Lighting up the stove can brighten up the most miserable of summer days, because the heat from a stove is radiant, just like sunshine. There’s a reason you find wood-burning stove shops in such unlikely locales as the Algarve, Cote d’Azur and even Beirut: woodburners are the perfect mi-saison heating appliance.

       Think while you're warm so you can be warm when it's cold

     Although it might be difficult to summon up enthusiasm for a woodburner in the summer, there is a strong argument, like not shopping for groceries when you’re hungry, for shopping for a stove while the sun shines. Sometimes there’s a tendency when the needle is dipping towards freezing to over-estimate the size of stove you might need; looking at the options when you’re not shivering frees you up from impulsive sensory incentives to enjoy a more balanced and considered perspective. It might also allow you to give more thought to how your stove is going to look in its dormant months. For sure, the most important aesthetic consideration is how your stove looks when it’s lit –how well it's going to showcase the riot and splendour of the fire within - but by the same token, you also want to choose a stove, or just a stove colour, that’s going to be kind on the eye during the summer months. That can be easier to visualise in the brightness of a summer day. 

    About New Forest Fires

New Forest Fires is the leading installer of wood burning and multi fuel stoves in the New Forest and the surrounding areas. We supply a wide range of stoves for many different types of properties. From terraces and semi-detached houses to stately manors, from garden offices and shepherd’s huts to country cottages, and even pubs and restaurants, we’ve done it before and we've got the perfect stove to suit your requirements.

We have a showroom in Hordle that stocks a wide range of wood burners along with electric and gas fires, with more than a dozen live appliances showcasing the best in British and European heating solutions. Come and pay us a visit.