Woodburning stove decision - help!

[delilahbelle]

So, we think we have found a fitter, decided on the style of hearth, oak beam etc, but I don't know which stove to go for. We've narrowed it down to the Charnwood Country 4 (recommended by the fitter) or the Clearview Pioneer, which I have heard good things about and our fitter can also supply.

Does anyone have either of these stoves or have an opinion?

I'd avoid the one with the space underneath for wood. I think it is too near the stove to be safe and in any case would make a permanent mess/dust heap.

I also think the expensive ones are a waste of money. Buy a cheaper one from machine mart. How well they work depends on your wood and how dry it is. Get a wood moisture meter (about £12). The stoves are just a lump of cast iron to build the fire in and as long as the vents are decent all work on the same principle.

How well they work depends on your wood and how dry it is.

Don't agree with that at all, the cheap Chinese ones are terrible! Ask any independent fitter or sweep. The British made ones are great, not much at all between the Clearview or Charnwood apparently. Our ILs have the clearview and love it, we're getting the Charnwood because I prefer the look of it.

Agree about avoiding the cheaper models - false economy. Our fitter said he was having to replace them after a few years.

Hmmmm, I've heard the cheaper ones are a false economy so often, but I'm not sure why?

There are no working parts, the design is straightforward, lined box with vents, the material is cast iron. There are different grades of cast iron and I've read on t'internet they can crack, but that is what the British Standard is for.

My cheapo one works well if the wood is good - seasoned and hardwood - that would be the same is an expensive cast iron box or a cheap one.

I paid £99 for mine, and I've seen exactly the same model for £599 at mainstream outlets. TBH I think it's just random.

The british made ones are extremely well made and last forever. The burn, control and draw is so much better than the cheaper ones, the chinese ones all start breaking after a year or two. Any independent sweep will give their opinion for free - they all say avoid the cheap ones like the plague!

www.whatstove.co.uk/choosing-a-stove

Hi, I have the Clearview pioneer and I love it. Easy to control and kicks out lots of heat. As far as I recall both charnwood & clearview are steel rather than cast iron, we just preferred the clearview when we were shown it working, plus it's British made.
Oh, and mine has the kindle/wood store - there's some heat plate under the stove which means it's stone cold so perfectly safe. I checked one day as I couldn't believe the dog wasn't melting when she used to lie head underneath it

We have two Charnwood Country 4 stoves and they're brilliant. We had them fitted about 6 years ago.

Cast iron is generally regarded as higher quality than steel - it's supposed to last longer I believe.

If the wood storage area is stone cold is it very effective at doing the last dry/warm before you burn your wood?

I generally just fill a large basket with 2-3 days worth of wood on one side of the hearth and then stack another 2-3 days on the other side. The aim is not to have to go outside to get wood on a dark winter's eve during the week when I've come home from work so I try to stock up at the weekend.

I'm still actually lighting a fire at night for a couple of hours. Can't believe I'm still doing this in May!

ElectricSheep I assume that question is directed at me? We don't use it to dry/warm wood, we buy kiln dried wood so it's just an additional storage space for logs or kindling...I think both Clearview & Charnwood have a very good rep for longevity of their products, certainly reviews suggest users are more than happy. Personal choice I guess. From what I remember, one of the advantages of cast iron is that it retains heat, therefore still warming a room long after the fire goes out, however, the trade off being that cast iron takes much longer to heat up - my clearview will be at 400f in 20 mins after putting a match to it - so instant satisfaction when coming back in on a filthy wet dog walk in middle of winter!
I'm down south & have said dog to cling to on a chilly evening, so not had the burner going for a few weeks now

I'd agree re the cast iron. Mine takes a good 30 mins to get to 300 degrees (optimum burning window on the flue thermometer) but then, as you say, it does takes 2-3 hours to cool down. I often let it burn down after about 9.30-10pm when I'm going to bet 11ish because it still throws out heat.

Horses for courses, but I hate the thought that people are being bedazzled by very expensive stoves when they all do the same thing afaik. It'll probably fall apart now And tbh I've not had one of the very expensive ones to compare my cheapy one with.

I think when you've seen a really decent one you can see why people rave about them.

The clearview my ILs have heats up within about 15mins, then the control is so good you can get it to last all day with only a couple of big hardwood logs on coal. And easy to damp down so will last til morning when you go to bed at night. The glass is fab too.

I love my Aarrow Ecoburn

cheap ones are a false economy : likely to crack
OTT expensive ones are a design statement, not a stove