Leading Australian manufacturer and supplier of wood heaters, gas heaters and wood fired ovens, Nectre provides useful guidance on what to consider before investing in a wood heater.

Nectre’s suggestions aim to help homeowners make the best choice when selecting a wood heater to suit their home as well as their budget. A wisely chosen wood heater will not only be a seasonal workhorse providing warmth, but will also offer excellent efficiency and sustainable energy for years.

Radiant or convection

A radiant heater is an uncased heater with the heat generated from the firebox warming the objects and furniture in the room as well as the air. A radiant heater is ideal for homes with high or cathedral ceilings.

A convection heater has an outer casing that serves to reduce clearances to combustible surfaces at the sides and rear as well as create a convection chamber for the fan forced air to pass through and be returned to the room as warm air.

Inbuilt or freestanding

The Nectre inbuilt heater is designed to be installed into an existing masonry fireplace while the freestanding models are available on either legs or pedestals.

Heating requirements

Before deciding on the wood heater, it’s important to determine the area that needs to be heated in the home. Nectre offers assistance to customers through their dealers for determining the size of the room to be heated. Based on the requirement, one can select the wood or gas heater with the right heating capacity.

Insulation

The performance of a heating appliance relies on how well the home has been insulated; for instance, a well-insulated home will retain the heat produced by the appliance, effectively maximising its efficiency and reducing running costs. However, a home that is not well insulated will lose heat through the walls, ceilings and windows.

Ceiling height

The height of the ceilings is one of the most important factors to be considered when choosing a heater. Convection or radiant heaters are recommended for homes with a standard ceiling height of 2.4m while a radiant heater with a ceiling fan is ideal for ceilings above 2.4m. Radiant heaters will heat the objects in the room whereas convection units will heat the air.

Clearance to combustibles

A convection heater is recommended for homes where installation may be constrained. Since convection units are constructed with an outer convection chamber that reduces the amount of heat emitted from the sides and rear of the appliance, the required clearances are also correspondingly reduced, allowing the heater to be installed closer to combustible materials.

Cooking

The original Nectre freestanding range of combustion heaters offers the versatility to be used as a cooktop. The Baker’s Ovens and Pizza Ovens are all designed for cooking and heating.

Fan options

Fans can be optionally fitted on all Nectre heaters except on the Baker’s Oven and Pizza Oven models. The fans assist with circulating the cooler air on the lower level back into the room as warm air by forcing it through the convection chamber. Convection heaters with pedestal are fitted with a double barrel three speed fan, whereas heater models with legs have single barrel three speed fans attached to the bottom of the rear heat shield.

Ceiling fans should be considered when installing a radiant heater in rooms with higher ceilings as they will assist with circulating the warm air evenly throughout the room.

Image: Nectre Mk 1 LE Radiant Wood Heaters