HETAS Certified · Wood Burning
A real fire, installed properly, in the right stove for your chimney and room, with a HETAS certificate, a written 12-month workmanship guarantee, and no surprises on the invoice.
20+ years installing across Windsor & Berkshire · HETAS 3869 · Written quote within 24–48 hours.
20+ yrs
Installing in Windsor & Berkshire
HETAS
Registered installers (3869)
£5m
Zurich Public Liability cover
12 mo
Workmanship guarantee minimum
24–48h
Fixed written quote turnaround
Overview
What it is
Wood burning stove installation is the full engineering job of turning an unused chimney breast, or a brand-new opening, into a safe, efficient, code-compliant fireplace. It covers survey, chimney lining, hearth and chamber works, the stove itself, first flue, testing, and the HETAS notification that keeps your home insurance valid.
Who it is for
It is for homeowners in Windsor, Eton, Maidenhead and the surrounding Berkshire and Surrey borders who want a lifetime focal point in their living room, snug, dining room or extension, and want the job done once, done properly, by a designer-led team who install fewer than a dozen stoves a month on purpose.
When to book
Book now if you have an unused fireplace, are mid-renovation, are building an extension, or your current appliance is more than fifteen years old, smokes back into the room, or fails to hold heat. Autumn and early winter slots book up first; a spring or summer survey routinely secures a September install.
Why professional help matters
Wood burning stoves are one of the few home improvements where a bad install is genuinely dangerous, carbon monoxide, chimney fires, invalid insurance. HETAS registration exists precisely so you can identify installers who self-certify to Building Regulations. Working with a registered team removes the Local Authority approval step and gives you a paper trail every insurer and future buyer will ask for.
If it's ignored
Victorian brick flues craze and gap with age. Hot flue gases find the cracks, ignite creosote deposits or adjacent timber, and cause chimney fires, the leading cause of house fires linked to stoves. A lined flue eliminates it. A cash-in-hand install without one leaves you exposed.
Oversized stoves get run low, glaze the glass, tar the flue and produce more soot than heat. Undersized stoves get thrashed and burn through fuel. A survey-led sizing decision saves hundreds a year in wood and callouts, and adds years of life to the appliance.
Solicitors ask for the HETAS certificate on every sale. If the original installer cut corners, you inherit a Building Regs breach the buyer's surveyor flags. Fixing it retrospectively costs more than doing it right the first time.
Our process
The same disciplined sequence on every project, whether it's a Georgian townhouse in Windsor or a new-build media wall in Ascot.
01
Chris visits your home to measure the chimney, hearth, room volume and ventilation. We inspect the flue, discuss aesthetics and confirm what is achievable in your specific property, from Georgian townhouses to sealed new-build breasts.
02
Every line item priced: stove, flue components, hearth, chamber works, building control. Potential extras (unforeseen chimney issues, structural adjustments) are itemised in advance so the number you sign off is the number you pay.
03
We refine the stove choice, materials, chamber finish and flue route with you. Deposit: cost of the stove plus 50% of installation, secures your slot within 72 hours of quote acceptance.
04
Dust sheets and protection go down first. Our HETAS-registered team completes the install to Building Regulations, cleans as we go, and treats your home like our own, no shortcuts, no mess left behind.
05
Smoke test, draw test, first light with you present, plus a full walk-through of controls, fuel and maintenance. HETAS certificate issued to you and your insurer. 12-month workmanship guarantee starts the day we leave.
The benefit
Six specific, measurable outcomes we deliver on every job. No vague marketing claims.
Correctly sized modern stoves reach a usable heat in twenty minutes and hold a bedroom-friendly warmth for six hours on a single load.
Well-seasoned hardwood at current UK prices runs a 5kW stove for a fraction of an equivalent gas boiler evening, especially where you already have a wood source.
You receive the notification within days, satisfying every UK home insurance policy we have seen.
Every stove we install meets Ecodesign 2022 standards, legal in smoke-control areas, lower particulate output, cleaner glass.
We have installed in almost every housing stock in RG, SL and TW postcodes, we know what the chimney will do before we open it.
You deal with Chris directly. No call centre, no rotating fitters, no lost details between quote and install.
Deep detail
The engineering, materials and decisions behind the finished job.
We install DEFRA-approved Ecodesign 2022 stoves from Heta, Hunter, Parkray, Ekol, Mendip, Dean Forge, Hergom and Chilli Penguin among others, steel and cast iron, 4kW to 14kW, top-flue and rear-flue, single- and double-door. Selection is driven by room heat-loss calculation, chimney draw and how you actually plan to use the fire, not by what happens to be in stock.
The vast majority of Berkshire chimneys built before 1965 need a 316 or 904-grade stainless steel flexi-liner dropped from the pot, back-filled with vermiculite for thermal performance. We supply liners with 15–30 year manufacturer warranties and cowl the pot with an anti-downdraught, bird-and-rain guard.
Constructional hearths in solid fuel installs must satisfy BS 8303 for size and non-combustibility. We build slate, stone, honed granite or brick chamber and hearth combinations in-house, coordinating with your plasterer or decorator if the room is being redone at the same time.
Stoves over 5kW require dedicated combustion air, we specify direct-air kits or floor vents where needed. Every install includes a compliant carbon monoxide alarm sited to BS EN 50291 and a hand-over that covers seasoning, kindling technique, lighting method, and how to read the flue thermometer.
Recent installations
Every image below is a job we finished, no stock photography, no staged sets. Full portfolio on our work page.
Frequently asked
Installation starts from £1,700 (excluding the stove itself) where a suitable hearth, chamber and chimney are already in place. Where scope is uncertain: a sealed chimney breast, a knock-through, or a full new-build install, we itemise every potential additional cost in the written quote so there are no surprises on invoice day.
Most site surveys are booked within a week. Your fixed written quote follows within 24–48 hours. From accepted quote to install day is typically two to six weeks depending on the season. On site, a standard install is 1–3 days.
Yes. As a HETAS-registered business (registration 3869) we self-certify every installation to Building Regulations. You receive the HETAS certificate for your records and to forward to your home insurer, no separate Local Authority notification needed.
A minimum 12-month, no-quibble workmanship guarantee on the installation. Flue components carry 15–30 year manufacturer warranties. Stove bodies carry 5-year to lifetime warranties depending on brand. Consumables such as glass, rope seals and firebricks are not covered.
Yes. We install twin-wall insulated flue systems that run internally through the property or externally up the outside wall, giving you a fully compliant flue in extensions, new builds and cottages that never had a chimney.
Almost never for the stove itself. For twin-wall flues on the outside of a listed building or in a conservation area, we manage the planning submission on your behalf. Standard chimney installs are permitted development.
A deposit: the cost of the stove plus 50% of installation, is requested within 72 hours of quote acceptance. The remaining balance is due on satisfactory completion. No hidden fees, no per-day extras.
Only if the survey and smoke test show it is sound, sized correctly, and free of leaks into adjacent flues. In practice on Berkshire's period stock, that is uncommon, most benefit from lining, and we tell you honestly either way at survey.
Related services
Areas we serve
Next step
Chris personally attends every survey, measures the chimney, discusses the design, and prices every line item transparently. No sales pressure. No hidden extras on invoice day.
