We bought an 11 year old second hand Huntington 35 in autumn last year to heat our unfinished (only just watertight) barn conversion with 2 foot thick walls.It was one of the best buys we made
. Having previously used cheaper, inferior design woodburners we fully expected to be huddled around the burner to keep warm....not the case. This beautiful (and everyone comments on it''s beauty) woodburner is so efficient I wish I had discovered one earlier! We only use wood, as we have an abundance of it ,although the option of using coal is still there. We just leave an inch bed of ash in the bottom at all times. I must admit it took a bit of time to understand how to optimise its efficiency, realising that it only likes seasoned, dry wood for a clean burn. There is no need to clean the glass as the airwash system is amazing! Tip for anyone buying second hand..make sure you hoover out the holes at the back of the burner before lighting, they are fundamental to the airwash system. Ours had become clogged on the journey home with the burner lying on its back in the vehicle. This woodburner never goes out unless we make an effort to let it go out to remove ash and it comfortably heats the whole 2 bedroom house. We are, as we speak, in T-shirts in an old cowshed and it is -5 and white with frost outside...love it
I'm not an expert. Although we wanted an efficient stove, we also wanted a decent looking one. We went for the Stovax Huntingdon 35 (7.5 output)with tracery windows and indeed it looks superb
. Really like the look of the concealed handle which is easy to use. We did all the calculations for the room (online) which is quite a large room and this burner was exactly the capacity we needed. The plan was to only burn wood, but the installer advised us to get the multifuel. Glad we did, as it's got an ash pan. Until recently we let a good bed of ash form as recommended by the manufacturer, but felt the heat output wasn't particularly that great. We also noticed the airwash didn't work that well. We now find it's much better to only leave a small amount of ash in the bottom allowing some air through the bottom grate. This means we now get much more heat output and the airwash works. As for glass cleaning, after following the various tips for vinegar, ash or whatever, I bought a cleaner (Vitcas)- I just spray it onto kitchen paper and wipe the glass clean. Easy! Overall pleased with the stove, but I think the price reflects the design to some extent. We also bought a second one for our dining room- a Franco Belge Savoy- which has a slightly larger output(8kw), and as the front dial acts as an airwash/vent, it means you can leave the layer of ash for the wood and it works really well. Cheaper and better value, gives out a bit more heat but doesn't look or feel quite as well made.
Stove expert replied:
Good feedback with two stoves being operated side by side, easier to compare differences.
Looked at all the stoves, previously had a vermont casting intrepid 2 for 16 years which looked great but was not the best design. The look of the burner being important and more so build
quality and efficiency led me to stovax. This machine has proved to be superb in every way, looks good, built with integrity, easy to replace baffles, air wash amazing burn technology, easy to light, very controllable all in all very happy with it...
