1. BImSchV replacement duty for wood-burning stoves
Short answer
The 1. BImSchV does not set a new replacement deadline for 2026. For stoves before 22 March 2010 the last deadline ended on 31 December 2024. Without proof of the limit values you may not keep operating the appliance.
You retrofit it, replace it, or take the stove out of service.
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Which appliances the duty covers
The duty applies to Einzelraumfeuerungsanlagen (single-room firing systems) for solid fuels such as log wood. This includes typical wood-burning stoves and many tiled stoves in a living room. The appliance mainly heats the room where it stands, not the whole house.
The date on the type plate sets the old retrofit or shutdown deadline.
Which limit values you must prove
The dust limit is 0,15 grams per cubic metre of flue gas. The carbon monoxide limit is 4 grams per cubic metre of flue gas. Proof is a manufacturer bench-test certificate for these limit values.
Or a chimney sweep measures the values on site. With this proof you may keep operating the appliance without a time limit.
Which deadlines have already ended
The deadlines follow the date on the type plate. For a type plate up to and including 31 December 1974 the deadline ended on 31 December 2014. For a type plate from 1 January 1975 to 31 December 1984 the deadline ended on 31 December 2017.
- For a type plate from 1 January 1985 to 31 December 1994 the deadline ended on 31 December 2020. For a type plate from 1 January 1995 to 21 March 2010 the deadline ended on 31 December 2024. If the date can no longer be established, the deadline is 31 December 2014.
What you do now
- Read the date on the type plate of your stove first. Ask at the Feuerstättenschau (hearth inspection) about the existing limit-value proof. Without proof you take the appliance out of service or retrofit it.
A retrofit needs a type-approved device that reduces dust emissions. Built-in fireplace or tiled-stove inserts need downstream dust reduction by the relevant deadline.
Who is exempt from the remediation duty
The 1. BImSchV exempts several types of appliance from this duty. Exempt are non-commercial cookers and baking ovens under 15 kilowatts. Exempt are open fireplaces as defined in the ordinance.
- Exempt are Grundöfen (masonry storage stoves) built on site from mineral storage materials. Exempt are appliances that alone supply the heat of a dwelling. Exempt are stoves manufactured or installed before 1 January 1950.
The Federal Environment Ministry also names bathroom stoves as exempt from the remediation duty.
Read the official rule
Open the 1. BImSchV transitional rules at the Federal Environment Ministry →
Wood-burning stove topic
Open wood-burning stove →
Find providers
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