Cookstoves in Washington State
Cookstoves in Washington state might not seem like a big deal, especially after the EPA ruled that wood cookstoves are exempt from emission regulations as part of the New Source Perfomance Standard for Wood Heat. Great news for all cookstove users, right?
Not quite.
The EPA’s emission limits are the minimum limits that a state is required to have, but any state can add onto those limits in order to control their air quality even more. Washington is one state that has stricter emission standards than most, and as a result, it can be confusing to sort out which cookstoves in Washington state are allowed and which are not. As the largest seller of wood cookstoves in North America with the largest product line, we at Obadiah’s wanted to try and clear things up for our neighbors who live over in the beautiful state of Washington.
The Washington Department of Ecology defines a wood-fired cookstove as “an appliance designed primarily for cooking food.” Under Washington law, a cookstove has to have the following characteristics to be exempt from emission testing:
- An oven with a volume of 1 cubic foot or greater and an oven rack
- A device for measuring oven temperatures
- A flame path that is routed around the oven
- An ash pan
- A soot clean-out door below the oven
- No fan or heat channels used to dissipate heat from the appliance
- A cooking surface measured in square inches or square feet that is 1.5 times greater than the firebox, which is measured in cubic inches or cubic feet (A firebox of 2 cubic feet would require a cooking surface of at least 3 square feet.)
- A portion of at least four sides of the oven will be exposed to the flame path during the oven heating cycle, while a flue gas bypass will be permitted for temperature control.
The following wood cookstoves provided by Obadiah’s are exempt from Washington state’s emission regulations:
- The Baker’s Oven
- Vermont Bun Baker
- Heckla cookstoves
- Sopka North Wood Cookstove
The Washington Department of Ecology also notes:
– All wood heaters (wood stoves, pellet stoves, etc.) made after 1939 or that fall outside the cook stove definition above must be emission tested.
– Devices designed or advertised as room heaters that also bake or cook do NOT qualify as wood-fired cook stoves and must meet the Washington emission standard of no more than 4.5 grams of fine particulate matter per hour.
– You should contact your local Air Agency to understand potential limits to cook stove use during burn bans. A list of air agencies is found here
– Contact Rod Tinnemore (360-407-6978) at the Washington State Department of Ecology for questions regarding qualifying stoves, sales or emission test facilities.
This information can be found online via the Washington DoE’s official website, here.
Looking to get a wood cook stove in Spokane, WA. Reading through your Washington help page (which is great by the way) I was only able to find the Vermont Bakers Oven as “legal” for Washington on your website. I could not find the others you listed below. Do you still carry them? Do you have any that “Meet” Washington standards and are not just exempted?
I really like the J. A. Roby Cuisiniere Cookstove and was wondering if it would meet WA standards possibly?
Not found on the website:
•deManincor cookstoves
•Heckla cookstoves
Sorry Jeff, there are no EPA cookstoves yet. No one wants to spend $30K getting something tested when it is not required, does not make sense. The Cuisinier is as close as you will get to a WA compliant cookstove. It would comply but again it does not have a EPA Cert as it is not required and WA does not require a EPA Cert so no one is going to spend the money for no reason.
Here are the products on my website you asked for, they are at the bottom of the page.
http://woodstoves.net/wittus/atmosfera-900-wood-burning-cookstove-by-demanincor.htm
I see the Heckla is missing and I am not sure why. It will be back up there in the morning.
They are also updating the website to reflect what is compliant as well.
Thanks.
Where does the Sopka North cookstove fit in with Washington regulations? It was recommended to me and seems to be ideal for my situation – auxiliary cooking, auxiliary heat (not essential as a primary heat source), small house, water heating capacity. I live in Washington. I don’t see it listed on any of the Washington state information or here as suitable for Washington.
Hi Camille,
*edited 11/2/16*
My apologies for the information I posted previously, I was mistaken about the status of the Sopka North in Washington. The Sopka North is indeed Washington State approved! You can read more about the stove here and over at Obadiah’s Woodstoves.
Please let us know if you have any other questions!
The Sopka Concept 2 Air Mini does not appear on this list of wood cookstoves provided by Obadiah’s which are exempt from Washington’s emission regulations. Is it because it does not meet the requirements for exemption, or could it qualify and be added?
I, too, am a Washington state resident and desiring clarification as to whether or not the Sopka Concept 2 Air Mini meets the Washington state exemption for emissions regulations.
Hi Tami, unfortunately Washington State does not have an exemption for the Sopka Concept 2 Air Mini. Under current Washington standards, no stacked stove (with an oven below or above the firebox) meets the definition of a cookstove.
Hi there,
I’m wondering if the Nordica wood cook stove meets Washington State standards, why or why not?
I bought a magnum wood cook stove , manufactured in Serbia, Is it legal to install in Washington State,
Thank You. Jerry