Stoking? Check the stoking guide!

Cozy, such a fireplace or stove! It also saves on gas consumption. But, the smoke is harmful to your health, can cause nuisance to your neighbors and it contributes greatly to air pollution. Therefore, first check whether the weather conditions are suitable for making a fire and be considerate of each other.

Health

Smoke contains harmful substances, such as particulate matter and other carcinogens. This can cause lung diseases such as lung cancer, COPD and asthma and cardiovascular disease. Both in the stoker and in nearby residents. Even if the smoke cannot be seen. On average, residents of the Netherlands live 11.2 months shorter due to inhaling unhealthy substances in the air. In Haaglanden this is about 12.4 months shorter.
Children are extra vulnerable to air pollution, as are people who already have lung problems. In 1 in 4 children in the Haaglanden region who develop asthma, air pollution is the cause. 

Consider your neighbor and surroundings

Did you know that many people are really bothered by the smoke released by fire-burning? That includes odor nuisance and health issues. Be aware that burning wood affects people in the neighborhood. For example, neighbors may be bothered by the smell or irritation to eyes and airways. They may even have to close their windows because of your fire! So talk to your neighbors and make good arrangements together.

Stoking? Check the stoking guide!

In any case, leave the fire out during windless or foggy weather. At such times, pollutants linger and this leads to additional air pollution and nuisance to neighbors. The Stookwijzer is a tool that indicates whether lighting a fire at that moment (and for the next 24 hours) will cause nuisance or not. Handy to check before you start stoking. Via the website you can set up a notification to be sent to you when there is a code red in your area. 

Better fire stoking

Wood smoke is harmful to your health. But how harmful also depends on the type of stove, the wood you use and the way you fire. Use only dry wood, never painted or impregnated wood. Have the chimney swept properly at least once a year. This will also prevent accidents. And ventilate well while stoking. A good fire has yellow, even flames and produces almost no smoke from the chimney. Finally, another option is to have a wood smoke filter installed on your chimney.

Report nuisance

Are you bothered by wood burning? Have a conversation with each other. Use the tips on this page. Not everyone is aware that the cozy fireplace or stove leads to the emission of harmful substances. And that these are bad for the health of both the environment and the owner himself. Therefore, always try to come out of it together.

If residents cannot work things out with each other and the nuisance persists, a report can be submitted via the Stookwijzer. This allows the RIVM and Wassenaar municipality to see how many and what kind of complaints there are. If you would like the municipality to contact you, please indicate this in the note.