gracefruit Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 I am chomping at the bit for a woodburner for my lounge. The room is fairly large -- 11ft by 20ft -- and already has a working chimney. Unfortunately the current fireplace has a hideous gas insert which will have to be removed, so the cost of that will affect what I can spend on the stove. I've looked at Charnwood, and while they seem really nice, they're also quite pricey. Stovax seem more reasonable, but I don't have any clue about their quality. Could anyone recommend a good brand/model? Thanks so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 Well, as you'll have seen from my post, I've got a Charnwood! They are expensive, though. I didn't research a lot of brands as I fell in love with the design and the colour options, but have you tried the Wood Energy forum on It's not Easy Being Green? There's quite a few discussions of stove types on there, and I found it a really useful source of information. Link here. Stovax and Hunter are two brands that seem quite popular. edited to add: be warned, woodburners are becoming so popular that there can be quite a delay in getting them at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 9, 2008 Author Share Posted November 9, 2008 Olly, I am covetous of your stove. It's lovely! Is it one of the Cove models? I looked at the Country stove, and it's not quite as dear as I expected. And you really do get what you pay for. Thanks for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 I have a Euroheat multi-fuel burner. Not cheap and if I bought one again would go for the cheaper wood-only version as coal burns VERY hot indeed, however it is great; quite plain, but easy to use and very efficient - hardly use the central heating now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milly Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 We have got a Villager. We mainly bought it because it was cheap (we had very little money left after doing up our house). I would really like a Clearview so I could see the flames, but they are pricy. We have had our Villager for 14 years now and never had any problems. The only thing I would say is - don't buy one that is too big for the room. It's good to be able to open the doors and let it warm up the rest of the house, but if it's too big it makes the room too hot for comfort. Milly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helenarees Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 Hello, We got ours from here http://www.dowlingstoves.com/ they're handmade in Scotland but they deliver nationwide, it's brilliant and we've had it over 12 years and we'd definately choose this again, we did do loads of research before we got this and are really glad we did. Helena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 I was after a villager, but everywhere seems to have a 19week wait - so best you get ordering if you are after any sort of burner...... I went for something else in the end and its coming THIS WEEK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MadMitch Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 We had two Stovax Huntingdons in our old house and they were brilliant. Never had any problems with them at all. We will probably fit Stovax in this house as well once we get around to it. Whatever you choose the greatest cost seems to be, lining the chimney and the installation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 9, 2008 Author Share Posted November 9, 2008 Thanks so much for the recommendations. We have more research to do that I'd thought. I think finding someone to install the stove will be harder than the purchase. I bet my husband wishes he'd listened when I was harping on about this last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quickcluck Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 We got all the stuff for lining the chimney from the http://www.fluefactory.com and am getting a local builder to do it for us, complete with the stove we've done it for 50% of the original quote!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted November 9, 2008 Share Posted November 9, 2008 Olly, I am covetous of your stove. It's lovely! Is it one of the Cove models? I looked at the Country stove, and it's not quite as dear as I expected. And you really do get what you pay for. Thanks for your help! Yes, it's a Cove 1. I was originally going to have a Cove 2 but the fireplace was so small, this was the only one that would fit. I liked Charnwood's ethical policies and the fact you could have it in different colours. I'm only on the second day of burning it, but the airflow thing works as fast as a gas fire to speed things up/slow them down. Being new to wood-burners, I'm still getting to grips with how much wood to put on, and how fast it burns, didn't get it quite right today but last night it was really toasty. If you have one with more than 5kw output, you have to have an alternative source of ventilation in the room, they were going to just fit an air vent, but in the end I didn't need one with this stove. As Milly says, it's better to have a small stove and burn it hot, than a large one and burn it cold - not only will it be less efficient but you are more likely to get a build-up of tar in the flue. I don't have a lot of time to spare, and because I'm on my own I just found it easier to find a local supplier and pay them to organise the whole job. You probably can get it cheaper if you buy on the internet and project-manage it yourself, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted November 10, 2008 Share Posted November 10, 2008 We did a lot of research last year - started on the It's Not Easy Being Green forum - and were looking for a British made fire. We ended up with a Scan (now owned by Jotul) as we needed a large, tall, fire and we weren't able to buy a British one. We inherited an overly large, centre of the room, fireplace and the alternative would have been to remove this and build a new chimney. The repercussions of having to remove all that..........renew all the wooden flooring........renew the whole ceiling...........all in a house which was only built(not by us) 18 months before, didn't bear thinking about We are so pleased with the fire and it is so right for the fireplace. It is a 2kw - 8kw and the controls are very good. We have LPG fired underfloor heating as our main source of heating and we have to remember to turn that off as soon as we light the woodburner otherwise the heat has us pinned to the walls Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted November 10, 2008 Share Posted November 10, 2008 We have got a Stovax Stockton 5 which is quite small but is enough to warm our lounge which is a similar size to yours savonista. We have had no problems with it. It lights really easily, burns cleanly leaving very little ash and is easy to clean. We had the chimney properly lined and it was fitted by a specialist which I think is important if you want the best out of your woodburner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Becka Posted November 12, 2008 Share Posted November 12, 2008 I've a Nestor Martin Harmony 33 stove which is duel fuel although I only use the wood burning function. It's been in for a couple of years now and we haven't had any problems with it but it doesn't get heavily used. We paid a company from Croftamie, near Drymen, to strip out our old fireplace, reline the chimney and fit the stove so the whole process was completed within two days and was relatively pain free! If either my husband or myself were more DIY orientated we might've been able to do some of the work ourselves but this way worked out faster and tidier! Becka Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 13, 2008 Author Share Posted November 13, 2008 Thanks again, everyone, for taking time to reply. I'm leaning toward the Stovax, but am easily distracted by some of the other models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorkshire Pudding Posted November 14, 2008 Share Posted November 14, 2008 What style are you thinking of? There are some amazing contemporary models out there, although they do tend to be pricey. We've ordered a Harrie Leenders Fuga S. They're a Dutch company and the stoves have a very good reputation for quality and controllability. The one we have chosen rotates, so we will be able to have our fire in either the dining room or living room, with the stove placed between the two. It's costing a small fortune, but we plan to stay in this house for a long time and it will keep us toasty upstairs and down. We previously had a Firebelly, sort of a contemporary traditional design and a British made stove. It had a huge fire window that gave a lovely view of the fire and comes in a really good range of colours. The only drawback was that it wasn't very controllable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 14, 2008 Author Share Posted November 14, 2008 Helen, I think we'd have to go with something fairly traditional. Our house was built in 1830, and as much as I'd love to have a Danish modern decor, it just won't work. My thoughts have drifted towards a proper Aga for the kitchen, but since our kitchen is postage stamp size, we would have to look at knocking down a wall or moving the kitchen back to its original place in the house. I have no idea why the previous owners switched it with the lounge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted November 14, 2008 Share Posted November 14, 2008 Helen has made a very good point - don't know.can't remember if it was mentioned before....... Choose the largest window you can - you really need to be able to see the fire and the stoves work best when the door is closed. We were looking at the one which rotates - a different make though - and found it went so far in one direction and then so far in the other but not right round.......it just wasn't suitable for our fireplace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorkshire Pudding Posted November 14, 2008 Share Posted November 14, 2008 Helen, I think we'd have to go with something fairly traditional. Our house was built in 1830, and as much as I'd love to have a Danish modern decor, it just won't work. My thoughts have drifted towards a proper Aga for the kitchen, but since our kitchen is postage stamp size, we would have to look at knocking down a wall or moving the kitchen back to its original place in the house. I have no idea why the previous owners switched it with the lounge! You're right to stick with something that fits the house - we saw some beautiful traditional styled stoves but they wouldn't have looked right in our 1980s built house at all, we have no fireplace to put it in either. I'd love an Aga but sadly no room in my kitchen either - although that wall is only stud, and a few swings of the hammer would bring it down with no problem........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorkshire Pudding Posted November 14, 2008 Share Posted November 14, 2008 Helen has made a very good point - don't know.can't remember if it was mentioned before....... Choose the largest window you can - you really need to be able to see the fire and the stoves work best when the door is closed. We were looking at the one which rotates - a different make though - and found it went so far in one direction and then so far in the other but not right round.......it just wasn't suitable for our fireplace The big window is a 'must' as far as we are concerned - no point having a beautiful log fire if you can't see it! Our new stove will rotate through 270 degrees, which means that it will face where we need it and can be placed a couple of inches closer to the wall behind, saving a bit of space. We don't have a fireplace or chimney, we're installing a flue so in theory it could go anywhere, but the compromise on it turning means it will fit into our rooms once the stud wall between is removed. The stove isn't even in the country yet and I'm all excited! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 14, 2008 Author Share Posted November 14, 2008 Helen, Will definitely get one with a big window if we go that road. We're going to have a builder in sometime next week to get our options ironed out. Thanks again for your help and advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenanne Posted November 21, 2008 Share Posted November 21, 2008 Hi savonista, I live in Stirlingshire too, and got our stove from a place in Croftamie, which was really good. We bought a Clearview, which was great EXCEPT that it did take a while before it really heated up. But it could still be warm the following morning. We've since moved house, and have an Esse, which somehow feels flimsier but heats up more quickly - also cools downmorequickly, too, though! I think it just depends on how thick the box is, as to how long they take to really heat /how well they retain the heat. personally, I prefer the Esse as it's better for us getting home from work later. Both seem to ahve really good airwash systems, so the window bit stays really clear. My Dad has a Jotul, which is an older model; but the window soots up round the edges relatively quickly , though the cental part stays clear. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 24, 2008 Author Share Posted November 24, 2008 Thank you, Anne! I really appreciate the recommendations. I've been reading and reading and just can't make up my mind. I really wish pellet stoves were more popular here. They seem like the perfect solution. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lesley Posted November 25, 2008 Share Posted November 25, 2008 You can buy wood pellet stoves through Countrywide stores - they usually have at least on in store.......and you'll probably find them in their website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gracefruit Posted November 27, 2008 Author Share Posted November 27, 2008 Thanks, Lesley! I wish the technology would catch on a bit better here. The stoves and the pellets are much more cost effective in other parts of the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
