Category: Stove Advice & Maintenance

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolAug 7, 20179:00 am

Wood-burning stoves, maximising heat output

What are the benefits of a soapstone wood stove?

The variety of wood-burning stove available today is immense and many people are slightly confused about what a soapstone wood stove has to offer. You will see from the images online that a soapstone wood stove is certainly more elegant, more well-defined and more often than not more expensive. Many automatically assume that the soapstone is purely and simply for decorative purposes but this is not the case. There are real benefits of a soapstone wood stove against the more traditional cast-iron body stove.

What is soapstone?

Soapstone is a material which is created deep under the earth where there is immense heat and pressure. This ensures that the soapstone material is extremely stable and able to withstand incredible heat after it has been mined. The material is made up of talc, chlorite, amphiboles and traces of iron chromium oxides and has been used for carvings and sculptures for hundreds of years. So, why is soapstone used in the manufacturing of wood-burning stoves?

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolAug 3, 20172:18 pm

Franco Belge stoves and spare parts

There are many different types of Franco Belge stove including the Limousin, Savoy Elegance, Monaco, Montfort Elegance and Belfort which continue to sell extremely well. If you have a budget of anywhere between £650 and £1500 you will find a number of stoves to consider. These are particularly high quality stoves which are stand-alone and perfect for the traditional fireplace or any other area of your room. So, what do you get with each different type of Franco Belge stove?

Franco Belge Limousin Stove

One of the larger models in the range, the Franco Belge Limousin Stove has an enlarged glass door so you can view the flickering flames and the burning embers to their very last spark. Thankfully this model has the latest airwash system which ensures that the glass door is clean at all times. There is also an additional loading door which will allow you to use logs of up to 50 cm in length. Ideal for larger rooms and areas that require a substantial heat output it is not difficult to see why this is one of the more popular ones for larger rooms.

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolAug 3, 20179:00 am

Four reasons to install a wood-burning stove

We all know that the wood-burning stove market has increased dramatically over the last 20 years. The technology associated with the industry has come on in leaps and bounds and the modern day wood-burning stove bears little resemblance to those of 20 years ago with regards to technology. We therefore thought it would be interesting to list four reasons to install a wood-burning stove in your house and the benefits it will bring.

Unique feature

Each room has a focal point whether this is a coal fire, television, an outstanding piece of furniture or a wood-burning stove. There are obviously other benefits to installing a wood-burning stove but such is the variety today that you can buy one to go perfectly with your interior decor. Inset stoves, stand-alone stoves, vertical stoves, horizontal stoves and many more are available on the market today.

Stove Advice & Maintenance by PeterJul 18, 20178:57 am

The history of wood burning stoves

Wood burning has been around for thousands of years as it was the only form of heat source that was available to keep warm and cook food. No electricity for them unfortunately. This blog will be dedicated to the history of wood burning and the invention of the wood burning stove.

When did it start?

In the 16th Century, fire burning changed from a standard fire place to venting it through a chimney (which is where the chimney sweepers came in to play). But before that, the earliest fireplace that is known and recorded was back in 3600 BC in Malta.

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolJun 21, 20174:56 pm

Choosing a stove to fit your decor

In years gone by there was very little in the way of choice in the UK stove market, it was literally traditional wood-burning stoves or nothing at all. Over the last 20 years or so the situation has changed dramatically and not only do we have an array of wood-burning and multifuel stoves but there are traditional and contemporary stoves as far as the eye can see. So, whatever type of decor, whatever style of room, there will be a stove for you.

Traditional stoves

While many contemporary styles come and go, the traditional wood-burning and multifuel stove continues to sell consistently. The beauty is that traditional stoves can fit in with a traditional decor or something a little more contemporary. The traditional stove slides in perfectly with traditional decor and with contemporary decor it can tone down the “brightness”. Stovax have an extremely attractive range of traditional stoves including the Dovre range amongst others. However, do not assume that a traditional stove does not include the latest stove technology under the lid!

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolJun 19, 201710:26 pm

Wood-burning stoves now appeal to all areas of the population

In years gone by it is fair to say that wood-burning stoves were seen as a “middle class” product which could be fairly expensive to acquire and required access to the correct would fuel. The situation has changed over the last 20 years and wood-burning stoves now appeal to the masses and the price range now appeals to all budgets. It is now possible to acquire stoves for as little as £400 or you can go up to the thousands of pounds for some of the more luxury products.

Traditional wood-burning stoves

While contemporary wood-burning stoves are gaining popularity there has been consistent demand for traditional style wood-burning stoves for many years. The stereotypical smaller wood-burning stove is now seen in many homes across the country offering more than enough heat to take the chill out of a room. Many people would say that until you have sampled the deep heat created by a wood-burning stove it is impossible to realise what you are missing!

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolJun 15, 201711:12 am

Cleaning the glass door of your wood burning stove

You might wonder why you need advice about cleaning the glass door of your wood-burning stove when it seems so simple. When cleaning the door of your wood-burning stove it is imperative that you do it correctly otherwise it will smudge and the acid in any soot could start to eat away at printed glass doors. We have put together a step-by-step guide to cleaning the glass door of your wood-burning stove in order to guarantee longevity and durability.

Never clean your stove when it is hot

Once you have decided that your wood-burning stove glass door needs cleaning it is tempting to simply jump in, there and then. It is imperative that you wait until the glass has cooled before you attempt to clean it for your own safety and to protect the glass. Many people assume that if they clean the glass when it is hot and the cleaning fluid is steaming then this is doing some good. This is not the case!

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolMay 30, 20178:43 am

Use your stove properly for greater efficiency

Regular maintenance of your stove delivers greater efficiencies

The wood-burning and multifuel stoves which we see today are extremely durable, built to last but from time to time they will experience general wear and tear and parts will need to be replaced. It is therefore vital that you carry out regular maintenance checks on your stove because even the smallest issue can have an impact upon efficiency and ultimately lead to increased fuel costs as you attempt to maintain the same level of heat output.

Simple checks

There are many simple checks which you can carry out at least annually to ensure that your stove is performing as it should do. These include: –

Fire bricks

Fire bricks are an important part of any stove because they line the inner body of the combustion chamber and ensure that as much heat as possible is reflected back into the body. Due to the thermal make-up of fire bricks they do not absorb heat therefore they also offer protection to the outer casing of the combustion chamber. It is easy to check your fire bricks to ensure there are no cracks or defects which might impact their performance.

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolMay 21, 20178:42 pm

Is there an argument for buying second-hand stoves?

We all know that the modern day wood-burning and multifuel stove is manufactured to last and is extremely durable. It is unlikely that you will have to replace any parts due to wear and tear in the early days and even further down the line the cost of maintenance will be minimal. However, more and more people are now looking towards second-hand stoves but do they really make sense from an economic standpoint? Is there better value towards the lower end of the new purchase market?

General wear and tear

It will obviously depend upon what type of stove you are looking to acquire but some second-hand stoves might not be in production anymore and it could be difficult to obtain spare parts. Stove companies will do their best to ensure a constant line of spare parts/replacement parts but if a particular stove is for example 10 to 15 years old it is difficult to justify manufacturing spare parts as the size of the market falls.

Stove Advice & Maintenance by CarolMay 17, 20174:04 pm

Do you need a chimney to install a wood-burning stove?

The vast majority of older properties already have a chimney therefore installing a wood-burning stove is made that much easier. The situation is a little different for more modern houses where there is no chimney, yet the occupants would like to install a wood-burning stove. At first glance you may automatically assume it is not possible, but it is, there are ways and means of installing a wood-burning stove in a property without a traditional chimney.

Installing an insulated steel flue

An insulated steel flue is also referred to as a twin wall flue which is to all intents and purposes a steel chimney. This is added to your property and where possible the most common installation process involves the flue passing through the nearest outside wall and up the outside of the building. This ensures that the gases are removed from the room as soon as possible and directed up into the atmosphere. Ideally there would be 4.5m of straight flue pipe (available in black as well as stainless steel) up the side of the building for the steel chimney to work at its best.