Although I sweep many Contura Stoves, particularly as they are one of the ranges installed by Cut Maple Fires and Stoves from Sturmer: https://www.fireplacesetc.co.uk/ for whom I do a lot of sweeping work, I have not come across many of the Soapstone models. I recently came across this Contura 520T Style Soapstone Wood-Burning Stove at an address in Berden. As you can see from the photos, it is a very attractive contemporary appearance. Contura explain on their website what the advantages of a soapstone stove are and how they work: “Soapstone stoves produce and store heat at maximum output. The soapstone stoves have, as well as their natural good looks, the ability to retain heat over a long period and heat is produced at a comfortable and even level”. So, the advantage of a soapstone model is that they work more efficiently and effectively by storing heat in the soapstone and releasing it gradually. I should think that this not only saves on fuel use making the stove more environmentally friendly, but also makes any heat in the room more even and comfortable.

Contura Stoves are a Swedish company based in the town of Markaryd – Markaryd is a municipality in Kronoberg County at the southern tip of Sweden. Contura Stoves are known for their distinctive contemporary stove designs and the appliance of the most up to date stove technology.

Contura Stoves

Box 134

Skulptorvagen 10

285 23 Markaryd, Sweden

T: 046433275100

https://www.contura.eu/

I have previously written a blog about the number of old Parkray room hearters that I come across and sweep on quire a regular basis, but this week’s blog is an absolute first. I came across this Art Decco appearance/design Parkray in Great Canfield and was actually located in the office for this property. The main sitting room had an open fire and the property had an oil fired boiler to sweep in the utility room! As can be seen in the photograph, this Parkray appliance has a beautiful rich golden brown colour, it put me in find of the French enameled stoves of the 1920’s and 1930’s that I sometimes see in people’s houses and sun rooms. It always amazes me to find these Parkray room heaters in people’s homes, still working very efficiently after having been installed many, many years ago! They certainly are a testament to great British design and engineering of the past. Things were definitely made to last in those days!

Parkray have been the leading name in solid fuel stoves for more than a century, producing heating components since 1850. Originally known as ‘Park Foundry’, the company quickly became the leading name in solid fuel appliances. Today, Parkray is based near Exeter in Devon. Parkray room heaters have been in existence for over 40 years, some of the older applainces (some 20, 30, 40 years old or in some cases even older) are still in existence and used daily by households all over the UK.  This is a testament to the build quality of some of these earlier Parkray models. As there are so many models and sizes of the Parkray, they can look very similar, however, the parts inside of them are different.  Some parts fit many appliances and others are more specific.

This was an opportunity that was too good to miss, this customer had only just had her thatch renewed and had decided to put a thatched hare on the roof. Indeed, the thatch was so new the scaffolding was still up and the thatchers had only finished working the day before! I like this one as not only is the hare a very handsome fellow, it’s quite close to home the beautiful North West Essex village of Radwinter. The lady customer told me that she had decided to have a hare on the roof because she frequently saw them playing and boxing in the field immediately opposite the cottage. Radwinter End is rather out in the sticks if anyone knows it, one road in and the same road out and miles and miles of farmland with not much in between.

Hares are rather fascinating animals, so here are some interesting facts about hares: Hares form part of the genus Lepus, the same family group as rabbits. Young hares are known as Leverets and the collective noun for a group of hares is a ‘drove’. Although, characteristically hares are a solitary animal or live in pairs; they live in a den formed on the ground which is called a ‘form’. A male hare was once called a Jack and a female a Jill. Mother hares have between 1 to 4 litters, usually three, a year, with one to four leverets per litter, with the Leverets being born from February to October. A new litter is conceived before the previous one has been born. Hares can run very fast reaching speeds of 45mph which is how fast these two on the roof are probably going! They also tend to run in straight lines, and if they are seen to turn whilst running it will normally be a right-angle turn.

Hare is a hare poem I found on the internet which I think is quite fitting for this blog:

Hares at Play by John Clare

The birds are gone to bed, the cows are still,
And sheep lie panting on each old mole-hill;
And underneath the willow’s gray-green bough,
Like toil a-resting, lies the fallow plough.
The timid hares throw daylight fears away
On the lane’s road to dust and dance and play,
Then dabble in the grain by naught deterred
To lick the dew-fall from the barley’s beard;
Then out they sturt again and round the hill
Like happy thoughts dance, squat, and loiter still,
Till milking maidens in the early morn
Jingle their yokes and sturt them in the corn;
Through well-known beaten paths each nimbling hare
Sturts quick as fear, and seeks its hidden lair.

I sweep a number of these Stovax Studio Wood-Burning stoves across the area that I cover, and I think that you will admit that they definitely fall into the category of unusual stoves. They have a very contemporary appearance, so lend them selves to very modern contemporary homes, but the also make a nice juxtaposition when installed in an older property. I often joke with those customers who have studio stoves, that if the ever get fed up using it as a stove they could always use it as a fish tank and start keeping tropical fish! Seriously though, I actually like these stoves, they are very stylish and contemporary in appearance and they certainly show off the fire in the firebox once they are alight. The customers report that they are also very efficient and deliver a great deal of warmth when they are in operation.

Stovax make the Studio model as a freestanding stove or as a cassette stove and it comes in four sizes of the model, The Studio1, Studio 2, Studio 3 and Studio 500. Stovax state in their sales blurb: The Studio Freestanding range has been designed to create a striking feature in your living space with their enticing widescreen wood burning flame visuals complemented by an extensive array of frames and styling options. The pure, simplistic form of the Studio stove range belies the high levels of engineering and technical innovation that keeps this range not only at the forefront of twenty first century fire design, but also exceptional performance and controllability.

Stovax are a British company established in 1981, based in Exeter, and are the largest manufacturer of stoves and fireplaces in the UK. Stovax also manufacture a number of other stove brands including Yeoman, Dovre, Nordpeis, Lotus and Varde.

https://www.stovax.com/information/about-us/

To be honest I don’t get to see many Mendip stoves, and other than one example I sweep in Arkesden, those that I do see I find in and around the Royston area. I’m guessing that there is an installer in the area that supplies and fits Mendip Stoves. Whilst I do see a number of examples of the Mendip Loxton and Churchill stoves, this is the first time I have come across an example of the Mendip Woodland range of stoves. This one is the Woodland, but they also do the Woodland Large, the Woodland convector plus and variations with a log-store below the stove. The full range of Mendip Stoves includes: The Christon, Ashcott. Loxton, Churchill, double sided and Insets. Those that I have come across I have found to be rather complex with multiple baffles which are tricky to dismantle. Some the great has to be removed and components unbolted before the flue can be accessed. They obviously don’t think of the poor old sweep when designing their stoves, they are however very efficient at what they do.

Mendip’s internet blurb states: Mendip Stoves is a family business with our roots set firmly based in Somerset; we have been established since 2008 manufacturing quality wood and multi-fuel stoves. Our combined experience in the stove industry and knowledge of the European stove market enables us to manufacture exceptional appliances designed for the UK Market.

We only sell Mendip stoves through a specially selected group of retailers who are committed to wood burning, respected for their knowledge of freestanding and inset stoves. Each retailer can assess your requirements and recommend a stove that will suit your need and lifestyle. Most provide a complete supply and fit service for peace of mind.

Mendip Stoves is a family business with our roots set firmly based in Somerset; we have been established since 2008 manufacturing quality wood and multi-fuel stoves. Our combined experience in the stove industry and knowledge of the European stove market enables us to manufacture exceptional appliances designed for the UK Market.

We only sell Mendip stoves through a specially selected group of retailers who are committed to wood burning, respected for their knowledge of freestanding and inset stoves. Each retailer can assess your requirements and recommend a stove that will suit your need and lifestyle. Most provide a complete supply and fit service for peace of mind.

Unit H1
Mendip Industrial Estate
Mendip Road
Rooksbridge
Somerset
BS26 2UG

01173156207

info@eurostove.co.uk

https://www.mendipstoves.co.uk/

No not an unusual or rare kind of stove, so why have I included it in my weekly blog? The answer is simple and straight forward, it’s because it’s a stove I really like the look of. It has a large piece of glass in the door, so you can really see the fire when the stove is in operation and which I think gives it a very attractive, contemporary appearance. Parkray Aspect 5 Wood-Burning Stove has a 5Kw rating, so when fitted into a home built prior to 2008 it does not require any additional ventilation, making for an easier installation. I see a lot of these stoves in the area, primarily because it is one of the make/model of stoves fitted by Cut Maple Stoves who are based just down the road in New England, Sturma.

Parkray are now part of the Hunter group of stove manufactures. Hunter Stoves were founded in the West Country in 1970 and now manufacture their stoves at a site near Exeter. Hunter bought the Parkray company in 2003 and absorbed the brand into its product range. In 2008 Hunter Stoves bought a site a Camelford in Cornwall as a research and development department, but they now produce some stoves there as well. In 2015 the company rebranded as the Hunter Stoves Group and now produce such brands as; Herald, HS Gas, Di Lusso, Avalon, Cleanburn, Eco-ideal and Parkray.

Hunter Stoves Limited
8 Emperor Way, Exeter Business Park, Exeter, EX1 3QS

https://hunterstoves.co.uk/

Something light and different for the New Year in this week’s blog! Not a stove, unusual or otherwise this week for this week’s blog, but something of a change. I thought this week I would post a photo of one of my favourite sweeps an address at Farley Green in Suffolk. I love this location; the fantastic old farmhouse is set in beautiful rolling Suffolk countryside. The farmhouse, which was modernized in Georgian times, is consequently punctuated by a large number of beautiful sash windows. The house is therefore very light and airy inside as all these Georgian windows just let the light flood in. The house has a fantastic comfortable, warm and homely feel to it, a very happy place!

The house has two Dean Forge stoves to sweep that were fitted a while ago by Cut Maple Stoves and Fireplaces. Both the stoves are Dean Forge Croft Clearburn Silimline 5’s, so they are nice and easy to work on and service and can be effectively swept by using a large Viper. The customers were very pleased with the service they received from Cut Maple Stoves, they use both the stoves throughout the winter and believe that they had the best advice available in choosing them. They say that they would recommend Cut Maple Stoves and Fireplaces to anyone.

Cut Maple Stoves have a showroom at New England near Sturmer/Haverhill which is well worth a visit for anyone thinking of having a stove. The show room is also fantastic for ideas, for example they have some wonderfully modern metal log containers that are like artworks in themselves. They are also great for buying stove parts and accessories, these include heat resistant stove paint, ceramic rope of various dimensions and cement and fireboard for cutting bricks. As well as selling and installing stoves, they can install liners and cowls.

The show rooms are very attractive and well laid out and the staff are very helpful. There address and contact details are as follows:

Cut Maple Stove & Fire Company,

Sturmer Road,

New England,

Halstead CO9 4BB

Telephone: 01440 788788

Email: cutmaple@fireplacesetc.co.uk

Website: http://www.fireplacesetc.co.uk

Both Claire and I at Walden Sweeps wish all our friends and customers a very happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

I just had to include this stove in my blog, as it is just so unusual, as the customer put it, ‘it is always a real talking point’! The customer had recently moved to the address in Debden from the East Suffolk area. He said that one of the main selling points of the house had been this unusual stove. As you can see it is a Jotul NR-4 Wood-Burning Stove, and which has a very retro appearance, which I suppose is not to everyone’s taste. The customer told me that he had read somewhere that the Jotul NR-4 is modeled on the monolithic statues found on Easter Island. The statues that Eric Von Daniken thought that aliens had visited the earth in ancient times in his book ‘Chariots of the Gods’. Looking at the stove I can see the resemblance now that the customer had mentioned it, the large flat nose and heavy brow ridges! Can you see the likeness too?

I could not find much information about these Jotul NR-4 stoves on the internet and they do not feature in the current Jotul stove range, so I’m guessing that they are no longer in production. I did see one for sale on EBay for just £525, a bargain I would say for such an unusual retro stove.

Jotul are a Norweigan company and have been making stoves and fireplaces for over 160 years. Jotul are proud of their global status, selling their products in 43 different countries spread over six continents – Truly a global brand!

Jøtul was founded by Oluf Onsum as Kværner Jernstøberi (Kværner Foundry) in the outskirts of Christiania (now Oslo) in 1853. While stoves initially were the main products, the company had diversified by the beginning of the 20th century, when it produced turbines and lumber equipment.

As the heating appliance manufacture decreased in importance, the production was spun off in 1916 and sold to Herman Anker, one of Kværner’s managers. He founded Jøtul AS in 1920 as a sales organization for its products. The sales stagnated during the depression in the 1920s, and 36-year-old Herman Anker died in 1927, leaving it to his successor, 34-year-old Johannes Gahr to modernize and eventually salvage the company. By 1935, the turnaround had succeeded, and the firm acquired its modern name.

By the 1960s, stoves using liquid fuels, especially kerosene had supplanted wood-burning appliances, a trend that was only reversed in the 1970s, partly due to the 1973 oil crisis. Jøtul used this opportunity to gain a strong international foothold and drastically increased its exports to continental Europe and North America.

The Gahr family sold the business to Norcem in 1977, and a period of international expansion began, as Jøtul acquired a number of foundries and importers abroad. This period lasted for approximately ten years, but came to an end during the recession in the late 1980s, when Jøtul once again focussed on the domestic market. However, it has resumed its international diversification in the 21st century, and today its products are sold worldwide.

In March 2018, Jøtul was acquired by the global private equity firm OpenGate Capital. Along with management, OpenGate has crafted a plan to boost performance and eliminate inefficiencies in Jøtul’s operations. In addition, OpenGate Capital is actively searching for add-on targets to further drive Jøtul’s growth. In November 2018, OpenGate and Jøtul completed the add-on acquisition of AICO, an Italian and French based pellet-burning stove leader.

https://www.jotul.co.uk/

Not every stove installation is an easy and straightforward affair. Here is an example that I came across at an address in Cardinals Green recently. Here in order to match the fireplace opening to the chimney the installer has had to use anything but a vertical stove pipe. As you can see the stove pipe in this example has had to adopt a 45 degrees diagonal turn to access the chimney. I would not say that it is the most attractive of installations, but I suppose that its better this than no stove at all and I’m also thinking that once it’s had been installed a person would get used to it and not notice its strange appearance? Certainly, the customer was very pleased with the stove and reported using it every night of the winter.

I must admit that the Morso 06 is not a stove I come across frequently, in fact I only sweep one other example of this model in the area. Whilst I sweep many smaller Morso stoves, particularly the Squirrel, the Badger, and the 03 and 04. What is certain, whatever the size of the Morso stoves all my customers who have one really rate their performance and their appearance and would not swap them for a different stove. As in the case of this Morso 06, the customer told me that it warms the room fantastically well and is very efficient and economic in the fuel it uses.

Morso are a Danish stove company who have been making metal consumer goods since 1953. It was Neils Christensen who founded the Morson Foundry making all sorts of products including metal stable windows, tools, pots and pans and even grave crosses. Around the turn of the century Morso began to start making tiled stoves and room heaters for schools, churches, railways, government ministries and even to the Danish Royal Family. Indeed, so successful where they, that in 1915 they became the official purveyor of stoves to the Danish Royal Family. Its was in the 1950 when tiled stoves became obsolete that Morso began producing Wood-burning Stoves.

Morso Stoves UK

Unit 14B, Davy Court, Castle Mount Way, Rugby, Warwickshire CV23 0UZ

01788554410

https://morsoe.com/