Eglu Cube Coop and Accessories

[abwsco]

Apologies as I know there's quite a few posts but for those of you that have them, what make do you have, how long have you had it, any problems and would you recommend it.

 

Thanks

Edited November 10, 2011 by Guest

[Olly]

There are some useful posts on that topic.

 

Answer: Charnwood Cove, three years and yes absolutely - one of the best things I've ever spent money on.

 

A few thoughts; it's better to run a small stove hot, than a big one half full, so don't buy one that's too big. Bear in mind the size of the firebox as that's the size of log you'll be able to fit on.

[Eggasperated]

2 Morso stoves for 2 years - wish we'd got them years ago.

Olly is definitely right about the size, we used lots of different on-line calculators to work out the correct size for the room and we kept saying NO that's far too small, but they're not too small the calculations were dead right.

[miffy]

we inherited a woodburner when we bought this house. Its a huge Villager, its not very efficient IMHO, and when OH has an attack of pyromania we have had to evacuate the room due to the heat!!!! Room is 28ft x 15ft. So just wanted to reiterate don't get one thats too big.

[Jools]

We have two Morso stoves and they're brilliant. We also had a Clearview at our last house and that was superb too.

[abwsco]

Thank you all Got a builder coming tomorrow to take a look and let us know cost so fingers crossed it will be affordable. Does seem to be a bit of a minefield in choosing one. If we do get one I want one that will last. Been told that some will only last around 3 years but can only assume they mean the cheap chinese ones that are around

 

Miffy, we were at my sisters on Christmas Day last year and they'd had one put in. She said it was the right size for the room etc but it was like a sauna

[Jools]

You don't have to burn them at full pelt. I get ours going well in the morning, then turn it right down and leave it to tick over all day (and sometimes all night). It's best to let them blaze madly for half an hour every day or so, just to keep them and the chimney cleaner.

 

One of our Morsos is 13yrs old (we brought it with us from our last house!) and it's as good as new. Every now and again you need to replace a fire brick or two and we've had to get a new glass panel for the door, but that was my fault for trying to shut it with a bit of wood that was too big inside ....

 

I love my open fire, but for practicality you really can't beat a good woodburner.

[CatieB]

Another fan of Morso here... Dh says it is the best money I have ever made him spend!

 

Not sure I agree about going small though, our fitter said the opposite as you can always just leave it just ticking over. We keep the lounge door open (the room it is in) once we have the room to temperature and are always amazed at how the heat does dissipate around the house.

 

If we only want to heat the lounge (as we will tonight - more as an ambience thing) we'll just use a log or two and keep the wood level low.

[Olly]

I think the point is that it's more efficient to burn hot than 'cool'; you're also liable to generate more tar and deposits when burning at lower temperatures as I understand it.

 

Definitely don't go for a cheap Chinese manufacture stove, but if you get a recognised model they should last for years and you can replace pretty much any part of them. Things like fire rope around the door, fire bricks etc are easy to replace.

[CatieB]

Oooo believe me mine regularly (if not nearly all the time) burns hot. I am the coldest person in the world and even when it goes on tonight, altough I tell hubby its an ambience thing it will be hot

 

Just haven't persuaded him yet that the Rayburn needs to go back on

[chickencam]

We have a Stovax Stockton 6 which has a 6kw maximum output, it is in a room that is 20ft x 15ft and it toasty and sometimes too toasty but not very often

 

Make sure that you get an expert stove installer to do the installation, they should also be able to do the minor building work too. We know a couple of people with cheap stoves that were put in by people who didn't know what they were doing and they were disappointed with the results, it is also vital to get good dry wood. In most cases the chimney needs to have a stainless steel liner put in, this helps the stove burn well and protects the chimney from damage, it also makes it a doddle to clean it.

 

Get a cast iron stove not steel and if looked after properly it will last for many years, we have had ours for 4 years and it still looks as good as new. We have the chimney swept once a year at a cost of £40 by a very hunky sweep and all that comes out of it is about half a bucket of black granular material which shows that the stove has been buring efficiently.

 

The stove cost us £500 and we paid and extra £70 for a multifuel grate incase the neighbours moaned about the smoke. We have not used the grate but I am glad that we bought it because it gives us the option if we can't get dry wood in January which is quite difficult (best to buy midsummer) to burn smokeless fuel which gives a greater heat output too, but does wear the stove out much more quickly than using wood because of the sulpher deposits that corrode the metal. We then paid about £2000 for the installation, which sounds a lot, but the liners are expensive and we had to have our fireplace taken out and the hole in the wall opened up. I can honestly say it is the best money that I have spent on my home.

 

I grew up with woodburners and once you get the hang of fire making you will never look back.

[The Dogmother]

I've had my Villager multi-fuel stove for about 10 years and (like Olly says) it's the best thing I've bought. I womble free wood so it's very cheap to run and I get through one or two sacks of stove nuggets a year to keep it burning hard. I save on gas for heating and it looks so cosy too.

 

Oh.... and the hens benefit from the wood ash which I put in their dust bath.

 

As The Boy's dad says; 'a tree warms you three times - once when you cut it down, again when you chop the logs and lastly when you burn them'.

[abwsco]

Thanks again

 

Good news is that the chimney doesn't need lining. Just waiting on the quote now.

[Aunty e]

We put one in eighteen months ago and it's paid for itself already. We have this one

 

http://www.castironfireplacecompany.com/shop/stoves/carron-cast-iron-woodburning-multifuel-stove-cream-enamel-4-7kw.html

 

It was a bit pricier than most as we are in a clean air area, so had to buy a clean air stove and I was absolutely determined to get a cream stove rather than a black one. I don't think I paid that much for it, I got it from some cheapo website like Stovesrus or something. I remember than in total, including the stove, the liner, the insulation, the slate hearth, the register plate, the flue (with sweeping hatch) and the installation it was £1500.

[abwsco]

Thanks Aunty e That's really helpful. Builders not in the office for the rest of the week as he's gone fishing (my DD works for his firm) so am still waiting for the quote and it's driving me mad-lol

 

Haven't seen any in real life yet but like the look of the Aarrow Acorn ones that a local place sell.

[abwsco]

Yay, ordered the Aarow Acorn 5 today Only downside is there could be a five week wait as Aarow are sooooooooo busy.

 

(spelt name wrong)

Edited September 24, 2011 by Guest

[Charlottechicken]

Ooh, I hope the time flies by for you!

 

I love mine (Lovenholm) and am sitting in front of it right now

[abwsco]

Thanks Claire Can't wait. The shop owner said she's already got an order in with them for some other models so she's going to ask them nicely if they can do a rush order for us. Even DH who wasn't 100% behind the idea can't wait for it now and has grenaded more wood today in readiness:)

[Charlottechicken]

Be warned, searching for wood is addictive

 

So is 'rubber necking' at skips

 

Soon, everything you look at will have a 'burn' value

 

Hope it comes real soon!

[Olly]

That's so true - I was on a train recently, miles from home, and found myself thinking 'Ooh, logs!' when I spotted a pile of wood.

 

It's amazing how much wood is around when you start looking, skips are a fertile source of kindling and other stuff. Pallets are a pain to break up but provide plenty of soft wood, it's worth getting hold of some logs if you can though as they will burn more slowly.

[The Dogmother]

you'd all laugh if you could see the amount of wood in my back garden

[chickencam]

And mine

[abwsco]

Bet you both think my piccy showing our wood and log store is pathetic

[The Dogmother]

OO, I haven't seen it yet.

 

Suffice to say that my woodpile extends across the bottom of my (narrow) garden I really need to chop up all the wood I've wombled recently.

[clucker1]

We have a HUUUUUGE pile of wood and loads of coal, but no logbruner has anyone had a charnwood stove....we looked at a charnwood stove at the weekend, one called "island 2"