What is a bioethanol fire?

What is a bioethanol fire? 

All the fires you see at Prestigious Fires are flueless fires requiring no chimney.
They burn using bioethanol; an environmentally friendly, non-polluting, odourless, carbon neutral fluid; made from sustainable sources across Europe.
They can be quickly installed in any room in a matter of minutes, using basic DIY skills.
All of our bio fires are eco friendly. This is largely due to the fuel that is used. Bioethanol is a very clean burning fuel and produces no soot whatsoever.

When using our fires, the CO2 production is equal to the amount of CO2 removed from the atmosphere. This makes our fires very environmentally friendly with a low carbon footprint.

Our bioethanol fires produce no smoke whilst the fire is running. This allows you to sit around the fire without the usual inconvenience of smoke and clothes smelling of smoke.

100% of heat energy produced by a bioethanol fire remains in the room. Depending on burning conditions, 1 litre of biofuel is consumed in between 2 and 3 hours, and although they do create heat, a bio fire do not replace a heating system, rather it serves as a supplementary feature.

A bioethanol fire is a fire that runs on bioethanol. Bio ethanol is an alcohol which is produced from the fermentation of sugars, originating from agricultural crops, such as sugarcane, potatoes and more recently wheat.  When you burn Bio Ethanol the only substances given off are water, steam and Carbon Dioxide. All emissions are within a safe standard for flueless fireplaces - C2H6O + 3O2 → 2CO2 + 3H2O + heat

Bioethanol fires do not require a flue or chimney and therefore can be used in almost any room in the house without the need for fixed ventilation.  Unlike electric fires, they produce a live flame and do not need an electric power source.

How do bioethanol fires work? 

The fire itself runs on an alcohol based fuel (bioethanol). This allows a real flame to grace your home; something that we have found is undervalued. Being aware that not every home has a chimney, we ensured that these fires were completely flueless, with no need for a gas connection or chimney (or even an airbrick)

Rather that burning the liquid, the fireplace works by burning the vapours released from the bio ethanol. The burn is controlled and extinguished using a simple sliding mechanism. The bio ethanol is stored within the ceramic stone which is at the heart of the burner.

The use of ceramic technology within the burner along with the sliding mechanism allows for a much more controlled flame, almost indistinguishable to a gas fire. Prestigious Fires offers fireplace suits and also a drop in shelf burner, which you could incorporate into your own existing surround.   

When is a bioethanol fire the best option? 

Bioethanol fires are perfect for when you have no chimney or no gas connection/lgp. If you want your fire in a room with no chimney and you don't want a balanced flue or external air vent, bioethanol fires are the solution.

Aren't all bioethanol burners the same? 

In short, NO! Most burners you will see are open troughs.

An open trough burner is simply a resovoir into which the fuel is poured. If this burner is knocked, the flammable liqiud could spill out, particularly when full. Any draft around the fire will cause the flames to jump dramatically, sometimes dangerously. Once you actually manage to light the burner (which is very difficult when cold) the flames will be very blue until the burner is warm unlike our ceramic burner, which produces instant yellow flames.

How are our burners different?  

As you have worked out from the above information, bioethanol burners have a number of rather unique benefits:

·         Bio ethanol fires produce no smoke when the fire is running - This allows you to sit around the fire without the usual inconvenience of smoke and clothes smelling of smoke. 

·         No maintenance and no cleaning of the burner at any stage - Each time you want to user the burner you just fill it up and light it. Fuel will remain in the burner and won’t evaporate, so it is ready for the next time you use it.

·         Indoor or outdoor use - Since the bio ethanol burns so cleanly you are able to bring the fire indoors to enjoy the vibrant flame anywhere in the household.

·         Decorative flame effect without the need for electric cables or gas bottle - Fires can be placed anywhere without the usual consideration for gas or electric connections or heavy gas bottles.

·         The CO2 released is neutralised by the CO2 absorbed when making the fuel - Our fires are environmentally friendly with a low carbon footprint.

To our knowledge, our bioethanol fires have the only burner in Europe to gain TUV GS safety approval. The TUV have granted this burner its safety approval stamp because of the ceramic core set inside the chamber. The ceramic serves a number of functions not present on other burners:

1.      It acts as a flame safety trap - stopping the flame receding into the chamber (similar to a Davy lamp). This is an important safety feature preventing situations as outlined in the following document - Click Here

2.      The ceramic core soaks up the ethanol like a sponge meaning there is no liquid sloshing about in the chamber.

3.      The flame is regulated as the ethanol vapour rises through the porous block, feeding the flame.

There are a number of great looking stainless steel burners on the market, but as we have a patent on the use of a ceramic core, they will inevitably be open trough systems. Over the course of the next few months stainless steel versions of each of our burners will become available. The first, which is available now; is the mini burner in stainless steel.

Our Ceramic Burner vs. Open Trough Burner