The Franco Belge Lorraine stove has a distinctive door with radiating sun rays running across the glass panel. It is fitted with either a multifuel grate or a woodburning grate.
Reviewed by christian January 15, 2012
Last updated: February 15, 2012
worth the effort
I bought this stove second hand. It has been discontinued and replaced with the Camargue. Its an 11-12kw stove and belts out a massive heat when it's properly fuelled. Parts are still readily available from several places and I replaced the ropes, firebricks and a few other parts that had warped over time.
The only problem that I have had is with the flue baffle. From the latest plans from Franco Belge the flue baffle has been changed from the original design to give a higher return on the top of the plate. The original design was flat and gave a gap of approximately an inch between the baffle and the heat shield on the inside of the top plate. However with the new design, that gap was reduced to about 5mm. The problem with that was that the gap would fill with soot and gradually close over 2-3weeks. To remedy it, I took the baffle out and ground off 1cm so the gap is wider and since then the draw has been great. The fire burns hot and clean and is like having a completely different fire.
Would I recommend buying this fire? If you are buying second hand and are happy with carrying out few tweaks then yes. If not then it is one to avoid.
Interestingly, the flue baffle that I have been left with is very similar to the one on the Camargue!
Stove Expert Replied: The changes to the baffle make the new models better. See later reviews.
