The Cold Weather Approaches

As your wood burning stove may have not been used for a few months, it is important to make sure that your chimney is swept before you start to use it again to ensure it is free from bird nests or other obstructions.

Now is a great time to have your chimney swept

With use, soot, deposits and tar can build up, reducing the chimney’s draw, make the stove run badly and can cause a chimney fire. Now is a great time to have your chimney swept, before the colder weather as more chimney sweeps will be available than when winter is in full swing.As well as making sure your chimney is safe and clear from blockages, it is also a good time to have your wood burning stove or open fireplace serviced to ensure the best performance, as HETAS installers are starting to enter their busiest period of the year.
In the mean time, here are some general safety tips for keeping your chimney in tip top condition;

• Ensure your wood burning stove is installed and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s Installation Instructions. 
• You should have your chimney swept at least once a year, depending on the fuel you use and how dry it is, how frequently your wood burning stove or fireplace is used, the type of chimney or flue and whether or not it is lined, as fewer deposits will build up in a lined chimney.
• When burning wood, use only dry, seasoned logs with a maximum moisture content of 20% in your wood burning stove. If you burn green or wet wood, a lot of the heat in the stove’s firebox is lost in burning off the excess water. This reduces the stove’s efficiency, gives you less heat in the room and causes tar to condense in the chimney, which is one of the biggest causes of chimney fires.
• Never burn cardboard boxes, waste paper or wood treated with preservatives and coatings containing heavy metals, or other toxic chemicals and contaminants in your wood burning stove.
• If you have recently opened up and plan to use a fireplace, make sure it is inspected by a HETAS qualified engineer before use. Inspect the chimney breast, particularly in the roof space. Make sure that it is sound and that the sparks or fumes cannot escape through cracks or broken bricks. If in doubt, have your chimney lined as there can be warranty and house insurance issues with not lining.

Charnwood SLX Stoves

Charnwood have a superb SLX range of stoves, similar to the Charnwood LA stoves (previously featured), but with added styling and features.
The Charnwood SLX range of stove comes in either the SLX 20, inset or freestanding (outset), or the SLX 45 inset or freestanding.

The SLX 20 is available as purely a room heater, it uses a mixture of multi-fuels and has the option to add a boiler if desired that is capable of heating domestic hot water. The inset stove allows the chimney to be swept through the stove and would be suited to most homes with a class one chimney or flue.
The SLX 45 only comes as a boiler stove and heats up the room, hot water, radiators and is also suitable floor underfloor heating and the chimney can be swept through the inset stove.

The stoves in the SLX range are constructed from steel, cast iron, fire brick and ceramic glass and they feature cool to the touch handles, which prove extremely effective when reloading the stove. Both inset and outset models feature the Charnwood converting grate to help ensure the fuel being burnt receives the correct air flow to burn properly and effectively.

*Click on the images view larger*
Superb design and phenomenal efficiency, certain to be extremely popular this season and into 2012, what do you think? Let us know and we'll publish your comments, (so keep them clean or they won't be seen!).

Charnwood and the LA range

Charnwood is a well established company that is based on the Isle of Wight. Charnwood aim to simplify the real fire process and bring an enduring sense of warmth and satisfaction to the very heart of your home.
Charnwood achieve this by designing and using the latest technology to create the highest heat output and efficiency whilst having the lowest output emissions and product prices available.
Charnwood is the leading suppliers of solid fuel and multifuel products to local authorities and housing associations in the UK. Through this history Charnwood have developed an excellent range of stoves for this sector, specifically for rural areas that do not have the benefit of mains natural gas.
This range is known as the LA Stove range and is available in a number of inset and outset models that are capable of heating boilers and providing heat to the room, radiators and domestic hot water too.
Another great benefit of the LA stoves is that they can burn a mixture of fuels, which is appropriate for most homes.With the LA range is the option to have an inset or outset stove which means they are more suited to more homes. The LA range from Charnwood have differing outputs depending on the model and may be used to heat the room alone, heat domestic hot water and the room or heat a boiler, hot water and the room all in one go.
If you have a Charnwood stove and would like to review it, or for  us to review it for you then please let us know. Look out for more Charnwood product reviews from fires,fireplaces,stoves in the near future.