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Pausito · smart living

Air

How harmful is a wood stove or open fire?

Short answer

In Flanders wood burning is the largest source of particulate matter from households: 85 % of their emissions. WHO advises at most 5 µg/m³ PM2.5 as an annual mean.

Explanation

Fine particles (PM2.5) penetrate deep into the lungs. Wood burning produces a lot of them, indoors and in the neighbourhood. WHO lowered its guideline values sharply in 2021. Modern stoves also emit particles, especially when lighting up and when burning badly.

Rules of thumb

  • WHO guideline PM2.5: annual mean 5 µg/m³, daily mean 15 µg/m³. [SW-S17]
  • WHO guideline PM10: annual mean 15 µg/m³, daily mean 45 µg/m³. [SW-S17]
  • Burn only dry, untreated wood and have the chimney swept. [SW-S26]

Pitfalls

  • A stove used for atmosphere alongside other heating adds emissions without you really needing the heat. [SW-S26]

By region

Flanders
Wood burning: 85 % of particulate emissions from households (VMM). [SW-S26]
Netherlands
Burning alerts and rules via RIVM and the municipality; not covered in this version. [SW-S17]

Search terms

These search terms are in Dutch; only terms that also find a topic in English are links.

houtkachel fijnstof PM2,5 open haard stookalert

Read also

General information, not personal advice. Check the source and reference date.

For health complaints: see your GP.

Sources

  1. SW-S17 COMEAP statement: response to publication of the WHO Air quality guidelines 2021 — UK Government (COMEAP) (Reference date 2026-09-27)
  2. SW-S26 Uitstoot fijn stof naar lucht — huishoudens — Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (VMM) (Reference date 2026-09-27)

Reference date: 2026-09-27 · Translated with AI from the Dutch original.