If you are planning to buy a rental home, or you're thinking about what to do with one you have just acquired, this is the place for any questions about starting out in the rentals business.
We are currently planning the conversion of a long cow shed into 2 holiday lets on our farm. We will market them primarily to couples, and we hope to make them great for romantic getaways. We are also in the country and the farm is quite remote.
I believe that a log burner would be cosy and will differentiate us from our competitors. My significant other believes they will be messy, a fire risk, and a law suit waiting to happen.
I plan to make the fire up each visit so that there is one fire sorted, and let them make it up from then if they choose and supply just a little bit of wood with more available to purchase if required. I would leave instructions for them on how to use it.
Just wondering if on balance you guys think they are a good idea or not?!
Loads of holiday places do have log burners but personally I don't like inviting problems. How likely is it that people would stay during colder months?
Also in my experience when log burners are in situ owners usually provide a complementary basket of logs and this would be another cost to come out of any income you may get which needs to be thought about
We've had a number of guests tell us they were specifically looking for a place with either an open fire or a logburner. We have full underfloor heating throughout our 3 units, so the logburners aren't needed for heating purposes, but guests love them.
Yes, they involve extra work. We supply a basket of logs and kindling, matches and firelighters and very detailed instructions - many people don't have any experience with lighting one. We'll sell people more logs, or point them to a number of places where they can buy them (which is what we prefer as it's less work for us, but we don't tell guests that). They need cleaning out at each changeover and the glass needs cleaning no matter how good the airwash might claim to be; the HG Stove Glass Cleaner is head and shoulders above anything else on the market and is quick to use, but I reckon with carting logs etc in, cleaning the stove out and the glass you can add about 20 minutes to changeover time. Occasionally people will stand something on the top of the logburner and destroy it - our last one was a tealight holder. Hey ho.
We don't leave them made up as it would serve no purpose; ours are fairly typical and it's essential to get the kindling lit and down to red embers before adding any logs (hence the detailed instructions, which include using the air controls) otherwise there's not enough heat in the bed or the (fairly long) chimney to get it going. YMMV.
From a safety perspective, we have a small notice warning that the surface gets very hot, and not to leave the doors open. It's really easy to lean on one if you're not used to them, so we had decorative guards made up to prevent people bumping into them; you can get an idea if you look at the photos of two of our units on our website. You should put CO detectors in, and get the chimneys swept annually.
In short, if you can have them, get them. You will get extra bookings as a result, and it is worth the extra work.
I love them, prefer an open fire.There everywhere here. We have two in our cottage that we live in, would love to put one in our holiday let but there's only so much money to go round.
A winter romantic getaway needs some kind of real fire IMHO
They are very strict here in Slovenia regarding fire regs, we have to have our chimneys inspected twice a year!
Emmylou wrote:I believe that a log burner would be cosy and will differentiate us from our competitors.
There's your answer. You've indentified a niche or USP so I would go with it. If you're marketing towards a high end finish then a log burner just tops it off in the winter months and will be enjoyed by many, especially if they don't have one in their own home.
You can build in all the safety aspects you need - a large hearth and the right sort of flooring for example. I know there are building regs etc, but I was surprised when a spark jumped way beyond our large hearth (as per current regs) and landed on the sheepskin rug in front, to smoulder until I wrestled with it. I now take away the rug unless I'm physically in the room.
Really clear instructions needed etc, and it sounds as if laying it and then leaving a limited supply is a good option. Yes it will take more time at changeover, but I assume you will be able to charge a bit more than your competitors. Plus you get the winter bookings and they may not!
We have one too, it gets a good amount of use, and we've had positive comments about it in the guest book.
Like Greenbarn we also provide detailed instructions on how to light it, and haven't yet found it filled with half-burned logs, so presumably nobody has failed to light it yet!
We also provide a fireguard, and advise guests with small children to use it, as the stove body gets very hot.
A pair of welder's gloves is a good idea too - they only cost about £5, are amazingly heatproof, and seem to last at least a couple of years.
If you have somewhere secure (i.e. out of guests' reach!) to store wood then it doesn't cost a lot to provide a basket of logs per week. Where we are £110 is enough for around 80 baskets.
So many people live in houses without chimneys these days, and really enjoy the novelty and cosiness of a real fire when they are on holiday.
Yes, agree with all the yes-es. We have one and it gets used summer and winter even though we have full LPG central heating in our Barn. Lots of positive comments from guests and can save on gas heating bill on cool summer evenings.
I have to admit I'm rethinking my position on this following these comments. We took one out before starting the rentals, but having just discussed it with my cleaner, I may put one back in. I guess it would have to be not to dear, easy to clean etc. Now we just have to work out the wood option, and how to keep the guests out of ours!
Even in the summer the woodburner and our "railway sleeper" mantle are a great focus to the room. I would say it is a deal breaker.
We leave an initial supply of wood/coal with instructions on where to buy more. As the central heating is at the guests control I see the fire as an extra they can choose to use or not.
I am using a photo sent by a guest as the header of my web page, I think it sums up our "welcome dogs" and we have a great log burner perfectly.
If you get the fire drawing correctly the glass seems to clean itself. As Dave said welders gloves are useful. We got Stovex ones with the fire but somehow one went missing. The stove shop had Stovex gloves £25 or welders gloves £5 so no difficulty there, I didn't really want to pay £20 for a logo on them!
We have a wood burning stove at the beach and it is very popular. I have just discovered I have to take out a HUGE tree from my garden because the trunk has split so I guess I will have a lot of firewood for the future!
Just wondering if on balance you guys think they are a good idea or not?!
Emmylou, not so much a good idea as a great idea!
Having a fire can be a massive draw for some people. It's one of those things that you can't quite rationalise or explain - it's the feel good factor.
Now, looking at it from our point of view... we supply free logs and as many as the guest wants. It reduces our electricity bills no end and wood is cheaper than electric.
I'm absolutely certain that many of our off season bookings are clinched because of the wood burner because of those "and you supply the logs?" questions.
We also have a woodburner (smaller one) at home for ourselves, and it is a Morso cleanheat squirrel which is a fantastic stove for a smaller space.
A must in my opinion. You must also have very clear instructions as people haven't got a clue and we supply enough logs and kindling for the first night but telling them where to buy more logs.
It definately gets us bookings
If a log burner is correctly installed there is no reason it should be a fire risk - and there is certainly less of a risk than guests using candles etc. I have one in one of the gites and it is no more difficult to clean than the open fire in another gite so I don't understand the cleaning issue either. It is quicker to clean the woodburner (use a damp piece of kitchen roll dipped in ash to get any black off the glass and then brush out the ashes) than it is to clean the b****y barbecues in the summer!
la vache! wrote:I have one in one of the gites and it is no more difficult to clean than the open fire in another gite so I don't understand the cleaning issue either. It is quicker to clean the woodburner (use a damp piece of kitchen roll dipped in ash to get any black off the glass and then brush out the ashes) than it is to clean the b****y barbecues in the summer!
Ah, but some of us have none of these in our properties LV.
They are a huge plus for higher occupancy in the shoulder and off seasons. Getting the right one, a reliable source of logs at a reasonable price and knowing useful tips to keep it looking new are also important.
Strongly recommended although there is more cleaning to do and you have to be sure that guests know how to use it.
