how much is a bag of coal?

louise1966louise1966 Posts: 4,012
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We are moving house in the next couple of months and, as we have the option of having an open coal fire, I wonder if anyone can tell me how much a sack of coal costs these days, and how many bags one uses per week (in winter!)?

It's so long since we had a coal fire but, despite having to clear the fire out - the OH will do that! - artificial heat isn't a patch on the real thing.

I think there is only one coal van doing the rounds in our area.

Thanks for any help.

Comments

  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 19,538
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    Depends where you get it from but usually a couple of quid :) Depending on how long you light the fire for, say for example 6pm-10pm then i'd say one bag would last about 3 nights maybe.

    Definitely go for it whatever the price though, as you say a coal fire beats radiators any day! Even if its more the look than the feel :)
  • mrsmetropolismrsmetropolis Posts: 1,787
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    We had a coal fire up to around eight years ago. In winter time we usually used between two and three bags of coal per week. The coal fire was lovely and cosy in the winter months and we always had piping hot water but the downside for us personally was the cleaning it all out and the large amount of dust it produced and disposal of the coal residue.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 19,538
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    Oh yes and dont forget to have the chimney swept before you light your first fire!! Very important!
  • CrashedCrashed Posts: 1,725
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    Go walkies, grab twigs, logs, trees, Yellow pages are useful.

    Wholesale it was about £45 - £50 a ton, not sure now..
  • tanstaafltanstaafl Posts: 21,796
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    Exulus wrote:
    Oh yes and dont forget to have the chimney swept before you light your first fire!! Very important!
    Oh, I don't know. I've been around long enough to remember the occasional chimney fire; whether by accident or to save money, I was never sure. I believe that pushing burning paper up the chimney was the traditional way.
  • PorcupinePorcupine Posts: 25,222
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    We have open fires, and we spent about £80 a month on keeping the house warm.

    We dont use just coal though - we get fire wood delivered too.

    As a previous poster said - the mess is awful. EVERYTHING gets dusty and you have to wash your windows every week really as they go misty.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 19,538
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    Porcupine wrote:
    We have open fires, and we spent about £80 a month on keeping the house warm.

    We dont use just coal though - we get fire wood delivered too.

    As a previous poster said - the mess is awful. EVERYTHING gets dusty and you have to wash your windows every week really as they go misty.
    Really? Wow we must be lucky then, obviously the fireplace gets dusty and has to be cleared in the morning but i dont notice dust anywhere else or on the windows!
  • bluebladeblueblade Posts: 88,859
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    Stoking up a coal fire is a right chore, but worth it when it's going well.


    Price of a bag of coal ?
  • tanstaafltanstaafl Posts: 21,796
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    blueblade wrote:
    Stoking up a coal fire is a right chore, but worth it when it's going well.

    Price of a bag of coal ?
    Plus you can do toast on it (do old-fashioned toasting forks still exist) and roast chestnuts on it.

    Dredging my memory, the technique was to have a layer of crumpled paper, then a layer of wooden sticks (or kindling, as I believe it's called in posh society) topped by a layer of coal. The paper was lit and a metal blazer was then placed across the opening to produce a forceful draft.

    For optimum results a newspaper was placed across the blazer to seal openings at the side and top of the fireplace. Of course, this required careful watching - there was a real risk of setting the paper on fire.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 1,048
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    What's with the "VAT is 5% under one ton and 17.5% over one ton" all about?
    What's to stop you having half a ton, getting the coalman to go round the block, and then getting another half ton?
    Mind you, you'd need a big coal shed!
  • louise1966louise1966 Posts: 4,012
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    Thanks everyone for all your info.

    I thought it would have been more expensive nowadays. Makes you wonder how much it was in the 80s. :D
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 11,133
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    Bumping this because I maybe moving to a one bedroom cottage in the middle of nowhere .

    The place has a solid fuel burner ( closed door stove type )

    It is quite small but used for heating and hot water.

    How much will it cost me roughly to keep myself heated with coal ? Is it to much hassle ? ..

    I've always had GFCH and never used solid fuel burners before .

    I am interested to hear the views of coal users, and how much it costs . :)

    Thanks
  • stud u likestud u like Posts: 42,100
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    Crashed wrote: »
    Go walkies, grab twigs, logs, trees, Yellow pages are useful.

    Wholesale it was about £45 - £50 a ton, not sure now..

    Picking up logs and twigs can get a person into trouble. It is classed as theft.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 11,133
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    Picking up logs and twigs can get a person into trouble. It is classed as theft.


    really ? Interesting .


    I suppose something has to be in place , otherwise everyone would be out chopping down trees in these times of austerity :eek:
  • kerrminatorkerrminator Posts: 618
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    I pay a little over 15 quid for a 50kg bag of large piece coal. It burns great and produces plenty of heat. Cleaning can be easy if you have the right grate etc and a fire can bu used 2 or 3 days before you need to clean it out (you can light fire with kindling or firelighters on top of yesterdays ashes and the also quicky reheat making it warmer faster)

    Find out where your local coal merchants is and give them a call.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 11,133
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    I pay a little over 15 quid for a 50kg bag of large piece coal. It burns great and produces plenty of heat. Cleaning can be easy if you have the right grate etc and a fire can bu used 2 or 3 days before you need to clean it out (you can light fire with kindling or firelighters on top of yesterdays ashes and the also quicky reheat making it warmer faster)

    Find out where your local coal merchants is and give them a call.


    Thanks very much :)

    Found one 3 miles away thanks to the power of Google.

    I found some good info here for those that may be interested

    http://www.solidfuel.co.uk/frame/main.html :D
  • feckitfeckit Posts: 4,303
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    If you live in a non smokeless zone then you can get 3 bags of 20kg house coal for £22 at Countrywide Store.
    Scats also have good deals. They do bags of compressed square shape coal made from coal dust which is very cheap and burns to dust. Also try to get kiln dry logs (£5 a bag) they last longer and give out more heat. Any wood you buy locally (usually £70 for a small truck load) make sure it has been seasoned for at least 18 months and has not been stored damp/wet.
    Also buy some Baileys lockfast drain rods and a lockfast chimney sweep brush and clean your own chimney it's not difficult. Enjoy.
  • irishfeenirishfeen Posts: 10,025
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    €18 euro here a bag when buying singly I heard yesterday... outrageously expensive!
  • kiviraatkiviraat Posts: 4,634
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    We had a smokeless stove on our living room and cost us about twenty quid for a big bag of anthracite.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 11,133
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    Thanks for the replies :)
  • zx50zx50 Posts: 91,201
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    Porcupine wrote: »
    We have open fires, and we spent about £80 a month on keeping the house warm.

    We dont use just coal though - we get fire wood delivered too.

    As a previous poster said - the mess is awful. EVERYTHING gets dusty and you have to wash your windows every week really as they go misty.

    I don't know what the hell happened in your house then. We had a coal fire and there was no mess like you're describing. There wasn't as much dust on everything as you're describing. What you're describing is quite strange when comparing what it was like in my old house back then.
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