fort collins co. wood burning fireplace.Since 1988, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been placing ever-tightening requirements on wood heater manufacturers. With each new piece of legislation that goes into effect, manufacturers have had to come up with more ways to build highly efficient appliances. The next milestone to take effect in 2020 has been experiencing some push back. A bill sponsored by Minnesota U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson recently passed in the U.S. House, and it proposes a delay of those new EPA standards until 2023. A manufacturer of wood-fired home boilers that has kept up with the strict EPA requirements has also been arguing that the regulations are changing again in a way that asks for too much too soon.

What all this means for consumers is that newer models of heating appliances are always more efficient than those that have been around for a couple of decades or more. It can also mean that much higher prices for wood-burning fireplaces, wood stoves, and heaters are on the horizon. Estimates show that the upcoming stricter requirements will mean an additional $1,500 in cost for single resident wood heaters that already cost between $5,000 and $10,000.

It is not required that homeowners return their existing heating appliances that no longer meet with the latest EPA standards. The change lies in newly manufactured wood heaters how they are to meet or exceed the most up-to-date efficiency requirements.

Why So Strict on Wood Burning Appliance Efficiency?

The EPA points out that the microscopic particles in wood smoke can cause serious respiratory diseases such as asthma, pneumonia, and bronchitis. They can also aggravate chronic lung and heart disease. A research scientist with the agency for pollution control says that the pollution produced by wood heaters is near enough to the ground that it lies in people’s breathing zones, making it a danger to our health.

It is a great sentiment to want to cut down on pollution, but a lot of development, research, and testing goes into the creation of a new type of heating product that achieves greater efficiency. Changes in the law can also create a crisis in the wood stove and fireplace manufacturing industries. For instance, after EPA Phase I and Phase II emission standards went into effect in 1988 and 1990, respectively, approximately 400 of 500 wood stove manufacturers in the U.S. were forced to shut down, since they didn’t have a product that met the new standards.

The Story of a Wood-Burning Appliance EPA Loves

wood stove installations in fort collinsWhile other manufacturers of wood-burning products often struggle to meet the latest EPA standards, the pellet stove is already way ahead of the game. Pellet stoves were originally developed in 1973, at about the time an oil embargo caused a huge spike in the sale of wood stoves.

It took another 10 years before pellet stoves became available for residential use on the U.S. market. Pellet stoves are innovative and incredibly efficient. The EPA doesn’t even regulate pellet stoves or pellet fireplace inserts. Why? It’s because they are considered virtually smokeless.

FyrePro has the Latest EPA-Approved Wood-Burning Appliances

If you are interested in adding a new high-efficiency fireplace or wood stove to your home, stop by FyrePro, Fort Collins’ favorite hearth store. The experts at FyrePro have decades of experience and will help you find the gas or wood-burning stove or fireplace that best suits your needs and also goes well with your décor. Buying now or in the next few years could save you a lot of money, before new EPA requirements drive up prices. Visit the FyrePro showroom at 4631 S. Mason Street in Fort Collins or call 970-266-8556 for friendly, personalized customer service.