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wood supply is running low so i thought i might try some smokeless coal stuff in my stove (its a multifuel one).
Are they all much of a muchness? Is it better to get the big lumps like ecoal 50, or the smaller stuff like phurnacite?
thanks
Low sulphur fuel as others use binding agents and waste oil which may make your stove/flue poorly - so anthracite ideally.
Homefire Ovals - £24 for 50kg
I've no experience but believe shark bait is wise. I've heard elsewhere smokeless fuels soot flues at a scary rate, it must be the binding agent, molasses in some. I'd use anthracite. Or actually, I'd seek to buy some wood. There are plenty of decent suppliers.
Aah - ok - I was wondering how you fill this with coal ...
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Don't use real coal though, it burns too hot.
If you have a home bargains nearby i'd recommend the verdo briquettes. They sell them in packs of six for £2.79, about the same as buying a palletload from the manufacturer. Cheap, convenient and drier than Noel Coward.
I've been using Homefire Ovals for five or six years now, firstly in my open fire and latterly in my multifuel stove (for two years). Swept it earlier this year (after a years use) and got hardly a small shovel full of soot out. They do produce a lot of ash though.
Ovals are great £16 for 50kg.
I get mixed ovoids from my fuel merchant, £6.40 for 20K. They are a mixture of all the different anthracite fuels they do, so some big, some small and some broken etc.
They are by far the best value they do.
We run the multi fuel on this all winter, keep it in overnight for about 5 months and when we get the chimney swept there's barely any soot. The sweep is always happy to do it as it a quick job for him.
where do you get Ovals for £15 per 50kg sack Drac?
We run the multi fuel on this all winter, keep it in overnight for about 5 months and when we get the chimney swept there's barely any soot.
It's not the soot that destroys your flue, it's the acids created by burning the binding agents, etc.
The couple of quid you save by using cheap manufactured fuel may seem like a false economy when your flue dies half way through it's expected lifetime.
We used house coal in our Multifuel stove, but it got so hot it cracked!
My flue is a concrete liner.
where do you get Ovals for £15 per 50kg sack Drac?
Local coal merchant free delivery and usually the same day if you ring, their ace.
Lots here:
http://www.sysons.com/solid-fuels/
I've found the cheaper ones don't burn for anywhere near as long as the pricier versions. They are often not as easy to light as well.