Smokeless Coal
Approved Smokeless Coal & Briquettes Delivery | Your Family Merchant Since 1922
British-Manufactured Solid Fuels — Longer Burn Times & Powerful Heat Output
At Larkins Fuel Merchants, we bring you premium British smokeless coals and briquettes that keep your home warm for longer. Sourced from trusted British manufacturers, these high-performing fuels offer a long burn time and plenty of warmth while cutting smoke emissions by up to 25% compared to old traditional house coal.
- ✅ Ready to Burn Approved: Fully certified under UK Air Quality rules for legal domestic storage and burning.
- ✅ Ecodesign Ready: Selected ovoid and briquette shapes that promote a perfect air draw and cleaner burns in modern stoves.
- ✅ Versatile Heat Solutions: Expertly matched for your exact fireplace setup—whether it is a traditional open fire grate, a multi-fuel stove, a solid-fuel range cooker, or a central heating boiler.
🔍 Unsure Which Fuel Type Fits Your Stove?
Getting the absolute optimum heat output from your fire depends on whether you are running a traditional open fireplace, a raised multi-fuel grate, or a dedicated flat woodburner base. If you are not sure what setup you have, want to learn our traditional merchant tricks to prevent cast-iron bars from warping, or need to pick up some crisp hardwood to mix into your evening firebed, check out our options:
Browse Kiln-Dried Hardwood Logs Read Our Master Stove & Grate Guide
🔍 The Larkins Verdict: Choosing Your Fuel
We have tested every solid fuel option on the market. Based on four generations of family yard experience, these are our top choices for Norfolk and Suffolk homes:
🔥 Best-Sellers for Multi-Fuel Stoves & Open Fires
- Oxbow Newheat (Premium Option): Our top-rated premium smokeless coal. Perfect for long overnight burning, consistent heat output, and very little residual ash to clean out the next morning.
- Newburn (Economy Best-Seller): A true budget friendly customer favourite. Delivers a traditional flickering flame, familiar comforting crackle, and high heat output.
- Excel (High-Heat Powerhouse): High-heat smokeless fuel shaped as square pillow briquettes. Provides a fierce heat for 6–8 hours on traditional open fires and multi-fuel stoves.
- Homefire Ovals (The Gold Standard): The UK's most famous smokeless oval. Engineered for peak performance, burning up to 40% longer and 20% hotter than old traditional house coal.
- Homefire Ecoal (Eco-Friendly Choice): A clean-burning hexagonal briquette made with a 50% renewable natural mix including crushed olive stones for minimal smoke output.
🍳 Specialist Fuels for Room Heaters, Boilers & Cookers
- Phurnacite: The definitive standard for AGAs and Rayburn cookers. Hard olive-sized compact briquettes designed for precision temperature control and a massive 18-hour slow burn.
- Glow (Reliable Workhorse): Adaptable, steady-burning square pillow briquettes matching Excel's burn qualities at a lower price. Our recommended alternative for older solid fuel heating systems.
- Anthracite Small Nuts: Natural, deep-mined smokeless fuel. Highly efficient in older domestic boilers and room heaters, though unsuitable for Trianco gravity-fed boilers.
- Taybrite (Versatile Choice): A slow-burning multi-purpose fuel known for its steady, controllable heat release. A highly dependable choice for active daily room heaters.
⚠️ Please Note: In the rare event of temporary brand shortages, our family will always provide an alternative smokeless coal of completely equal or superior quality to ensure your household stays reliably warm.
The Larkins Stacking Service: Included as Standard
Our family handles all the heavy lifting for your household across our scheduled delivery rounds:
- 💪 Stacking Service: We shoulder every individual 25kg bag of smokeless fuel and neatly hand-stack them exactly where you need them stored away—inside your garage, outhouse, coal house, or utility room.
- 🚛 Bunker-Ready Service: We empty the bags directly into your outdoor storage bunker or fuel shed cleanly upon request, keeping your property tidy and your hands clean.
- 🚚 Access Specialists: We choose compact, specialised 3.5-tonne delivery trucks to navigate narrow country lanes, tucked-away garden bunkers, and tight residential driveways that block large national courier HGVs.
Firelighting Essentials: Ignite Your Coal Grate Instantly
Because manufactured smokeless fuels are highly dense, they require a powerful heat output to catch fire correctly. We recommend adding these chemical-free firestarters to your coal delivery to ensure an effortless, one-match start every time:
- 🪵 Kiln-Dried Kindling Boxes: Split softwood sticks screened below 12% moisture to build a rapid, intense bed of embers. Available in Standard (~118 sticks) or maximum value Bumper Boxes (~472 sticks).
- 🔥 Natural Woodwool Flamers: Odourless, wax-coated natural wood shavings that provide a powerful, clean 15-minute burn without any foul petroleum smells. Available in packs of 24, 50, or 200.
- ⚡ The KindleFlamer: Extra-long 17cm natural firelighters that emit a fierce flame. Perfect for packing between your coal to speed up grate ignition. Available in handy 18 or 50-pack boxes.
📊 How Much Coal Do I Need to Order?
Your exact seasonal burning volume depends directly on your heating needs:
- Weekend Fires & Social Ambience: Order a stock of 10 to 15 bags (250kg–375kg) to keep your hearth topped up.
- Daily Evening Heating (Oct–Apr): Stock 1 to 2 tonnes (40 to 80 bags) to secure the absolute lowest cost per bag.
- 💰 Wholesale Bulk Savings: Buy 40 or more bags in one go to instantly unlock our maximum multi-buy discounts at checkout!
☀️ Smart Planning Tip: Order your winter coal stock in May or June to secure our deepest out-of-season bulk discounts before the fixed autumn increases take effect. View our full Stock Up & Save Master Value Guide.
Smokeless Coal: Frequently Asked Questions
Is it fully legal for me to burn coal in my home?
The sale of traditional bituminous house coal is completely banned. However, it is 100% legal to burn the manufactured smokeless coals we supply. While Breckland, South Norfolk, and Suffolk districts are not currently restricted Smoke Control Areas, our authorized smokeless fuels are the cleaner, more efficient choice for every residential fireplace.
Can I burn standard smokeless ovoids in my AGA, Rayburn, cooker, or heating boiler?
It depends entirely on your appliance. While briquettes like Oxbow Newheat perform beautifully in multi-fuel stoves, specialised range cookers like AGAs or Rayburns require a hard, uniform fuel like Phurnacite for precise temperature control and an extended slow burn. For traditional closed room heaters and standard domestic central heating boilers, natural, deep-mined Anthracite Small Nuts are ideal, as they create the steady, intense firebed these appliances thrive on.
Can I reliably keep my stove or fire going all night?
Yes. All our premium manufactured smokeless coal range are specifically designed to maintain a steady burn. By clearing your ashpan grate and closing your appliance air controls down in the evening, you can comfortably maintain a low core glow that is easily recovered the following morning—saving you from rebuilding and lighting a fire from scratch.
Where is the best place to store my coal?
Ideally, store your coal loose in a coal bunker or a dry shed. If it’s kept in the bags, a garage, shed, or utility room is perfect. If you have to store bags outside, be sure to cover them with a weatherproof sheet to prevent sun damage.
Will my coal still light if it looks wet?
Yes! If your coal looks damp from condensation or rain, it will still burn perfectly. Manufactured smokeless briquettes are completely non-porous, meaning no water reaches the core. Any surface moisture will quickly burn off, leaving the heat and burn time unaffected.
💡 The Larkins Bucket Rotation Trick:
If you struggle to light your coal on freezing winter nights, it is usually because the fuel is cold and holding surface dampness from the outdoor air. To ensure a fast, first-time start, keep two metal buckets near your hearth. Fill Bucket A from your outdoor store and leave it indoors to dry out completely. While burning Bucket A, fill Bucket B and let it rest by the fireside. Rotating your buckets ensures you always have a bone-dry, pre-warmed fuel load ready to load into your fire.
🧂 Take the Weight Off: Water Softener Salt
Protect your home's plumbing and appliances from the region's notoriously hard water without any physical strain. Do not struggle lifting heavy, awkward packs from the supermarket car park.
Our traditional hand-stacking service applies to our entire salt range too. We will personally shoulder and carry your blocks or tablet bags straight into your utility room, kitchen cupboard, or garage store. It is the smartest way to clear your local delivery minimums in one go.
Browse Our Full Water Softener Salt Range
Ready to Secure Your Delivery Slot?
Whether you need 10 bags of Newburn to top up your grate or a full delivery of premium Oxbow Newheat, our office is ready to schedule your delivery slot.
📞 Call Office: 01953 861145
📱 Text / Call Martin: 07585 547289
🛒 Order online 24/7 for regular delivery rounds!