Bio Fuel Supply - The Facts

1 / What must I never do?

Do not spill any fuel when filling the fuel box. IF this does happen, remove the fuel meticulously. The decorative fireplace may not be lit as long as the spilt fuel has not completely dried. Never top up the fuel box of a burning decorative fireplace. If the fuel box has to be topped up, make sure that the flames are properly extinguished. Our Metropol decorative fireplaces have a unique design and are very easy to hang up. Hang it up, light it and enjoy!

 

2 / What does a decorative fireplace that runs on bioalcohol cost?

An hour of fire in our decorative fireplace costs less than one euro in fuel, depending on the size of the flames and the amount of fuel purchased. A decorative fireplaces with a full fuel box will burn for about 3 to 4 hours.

 

3 / Are there any legal regulations I have to follow?

In principle there are no DIN or other regulations from the fire brigade for mobile decorative fireplaces that run on alcohol. The TÜV recommends the following criteria: per burning hour not more than 0.5 litres of fuel should be consumed. All the metal parts must be made of stainless steel.

 

4 / How does a decorative fireplace function?

Our Metropol decorative fireplaces burn after a few minutes. You fill the fuel box with bioalcohol up to about 0.5 cm under the edge. Use the funnel provided with the fireplace or possibly a measuring jug. Be careful not to spill any.  For the first 5 to 10 minutes the typical blue alcohol flame will appear, which will change into a beautiful yellow-red colour when the desired combustion temperature is reached. The flame can be compared to a flame that comes from a wood fire. Before the fireplace is lit, the fuel box must always be filled to 5 cm under the edge. You can extinguish the fireplace at any time. You simply youse the firekiller or move the over the slit of the fuel box so that the fire goes out by itself.

 

5 / Will a room be heated by a decorative fireplace?

Physically it comes down to the following: if a litre of alcohol burns in one hour, about 7.1 kWh of ´heat value´ are achieved. If you burn a litre of alcohol in two hours, you still have about 3.5 kWh of ´heat value´.
Nevertheless, our Metropol decorative fireplace is not heating but a very decorative piece of furniture. When you use the decorative fireplace, you will enjoy a delightful, pleasant warmth. At the same time, the fire will function as a slight dampener because water is released when fuels that contain alcohol are combusted. This CO2 ´emission´ is neutral because the CO2 released is absorbed by plants. And the heat released is not removed via a chimney.

 

6 / How much oxygen is needed?

Every fireplace needs oxygen. We recommend, for example, for a room volume of 70m3, an oxygen supply of about 2m3 per hour. The oxygen supply is achieved by opening a window for about 5 to 10 minutes.

 

7 / What is the emission ?

Almost completely of water vapour and CO2 (carbon dioxide). The amount of CO2 emission is comparable to that of two medium-sized candles. The other components emitted are so small in quantity, that the limit value is easily remained under since the combustion temperature is so low. The other hazardous substances of a combustion such as monoxide, stockoxide and aldehyde are not released until a combustion temperature of 700°C; the temperature of the decorative fireplace is under 400°C.

 

8 / How does a decorative fireplace work without a flue?

The Metropol decorative fireplaces run on bioalcohol; an alcohol specially designed for our fireplaces that has been repeatedly cleaned and filtered, consisting of various raw materials such as potatoes, maize and molasses. The combustion of this biological alcohol in the stainless steel fuel box is so clean that extraction does not have to occur via a chimney.
What exactly is bioalcohol? Bioalcohol is made up of pure ethyl alcohol that is denaturalised. This means that the alcohol is made unusable for consumption. Natural substances are added to the alcohol so that the flames have a natural, warm, yellow-red colour.