Can You Burn Coal In A Wood Fireplace

You can t burn coal in just any fireplace.

Can you burn coal in a wood fireplace.

But can you burn coal in a wood burning stove. You could scour the railroad lines near them to pick up any cast coal. However if you are primarily looking to burn wood a wood burning stove will be your best bet. Now it s time for the bad news.

Coal when burned will give off carbon monoxide which can be poisonous. If you are not using the fire for warmth but are still looking for something heartwarming and aromatic try a few candles and scents to build an ambiance instead. Because coal burns so much hotter a masonry fireplace built to burn coal could also handle a wood fire but the wood has to be cut into very small pieces and you ll need to feed those little logs to it almost constantly to keep a fire going. Coal cannot be burnt inside a wood burning stove.

If you have a working rumford style coal fireplace and the right fixtures you re set. Coal when burned gives off carbon monoxide which can be poisonous. Otherwise check with an expert to ensure your fireplace is coal compatible. The smell of coal smoke isn t as pleasant as that of wood smoke and coal fires require much more kindling to light than wood fueled fires do.

This is because a wood burner is more efficient at burning wood than a multi fuel burner because wood burns best on a flat bed of ash. Multi fuel stoves have a grate and so allow you to burn coal. But this coal would not burn in your fireplace as. Coal needs a source of air from below the fire to burn efficiently and so there needs to be a grate at the bottom of the stove which wood burning stoves won t have.

It is still possible to avoid the poisoning though when taking the right precautions to burn coal in a coal fireplace. Coal however works differently and needs to burn on a raised grate to allow additional air flow. Coal requires more careful handling and more exacting ventilation than wood. If you want to burn coal for a heat source you need to invest in a coal fireplace.

Although coal does produce less smoke than burning wood there are some dangers to a coal fireplace. Overall wood smoke is not considered a healthy or environmentally safe way to burn fires especially if it is an ongoing daily occurrence in the home. Coal burning fireplaces and stoves are also subject to government regulations as is the disposal of coal byproducts.