Charnwood C 5 stove
The Charnwood C series is a development of the Country range -
making for a more contemporary and simpler design.
You can have an optional store stand or rear flue adapter on this model.
- Height: 560mm
- Width: 485mm
- Depth: 398mm
Most Recent Review
-
Good Stove
Had this stove just over a year now. It replaced a two door stove which was lighter and much cheaper. During the winter months we use our wood burner every night as our main source of heating. My partner likes a clean glass, so with our old stove had to clean the glass almost daily. The downside to this was that as the sealing rope is right up to the glass, she would often knock it meaning I had to replace the rope at least once a year as the seal wouldn''t be a tight fit. With this stove it only has the one door, hence less rope and more importantly the rope is someway away from the glass so she doesn''t knock it when cleaning also in general the glass doesn''t get as dirty as our previous burner so less cleaning of it needed. It takes a bit of used to in lighting. You have to have the door ajar for a while, also when you sometimes put more logs on. However, once you suss this out it''s no problem. Takes a while to get hot, but when it does it stays hot for longer, especially in comparison to our last wood burner. We removed the bolt at the back of the burner (we don''t live in a controlled smoke area) after contacting a helpful person at Charnwoo'd''s technical department who explained about doing it. This means if we close it fully down at night, it''s still warm in the morning and if we wanted we could just add some wood and relight it. We do use two fans on top which helps to spread the heat. Well worth the money, not the cheapest on the market, but as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Reading some of the other reviews I would suggest that people are maybe using damp wood and maybe not having it fitted properly.
Most Popular Review
-
Charwood c5
Hi bought the Charwood c5 in november 2012.excellent little fire, heats the room fast. burns both wood and coal which is great.easy to operate. slightly smokey on the glass. only problem soStove expert replied: The smokey appearance on the glass may indicate the fleu draw is excessive and could be why you are using so much fuel. Check the door seal is doing its job by shutting a piece of paper between the body of the stove and the door, if you can pull it out then the door needs adjusting. If this is not the cause I would get the installer back as you may need to add some control onto the flue system so that full conbtrol of the stove is resumed. This will allow the heat generated to radiate into the room rather than being sucked up the flue and you will use less fuel.
More reviews for Charnwood C 5 stove (page 1 of 4)
-
Very please with Charnwood C5 so far.
This is our first woodburner, so I have no previous experience to compare it against. Nevertheless, having researched and seen other stoves at dealers, the Charnwood''s design features and -
Excellent stove. Shame about the constant clicking .
Very pleased with the C5.Lights easy, glass stays clean and keeps my lounge very warm.Fed from an external air supply and once lit burns happily on the minimum setting. The logs I burn I source -
Efficient
We burn logs of less than 15% moisture which throw out loads of heat but we cannot keep the stove in overnight. I would welcome commentsStove expert replied: As this stove is a Defra Approved model it will always have air passing through it so it is unlikely to stay in overnight, it is not recommended for wood to be burnt at a very low setting for prolonged periods even if the wood is dry and seasoned.
-
Heat plate
The best way to clean the glass is to tear a sheet of newspaper, scrunch it up, make it slightly damp and put some wood ash onto it and rub the glass. Take another slightly damp newspaper andStove expert replied: On lighting the stove you may need to leave the door ajar to aid the lift of the gases. Have you an airbirck in the room as there may not be enough free air for combustion to occur efficiently until the flue system is warm. Do refer to your manual for the correct position of the baffle plate and for trouble shooting as this may advise you a solution to the problems experienced.
-
Cleaning the window
Depending on how we use our C5 we do get the glass sooting up, we tried various ideas to clean it but by far the best and easiest is purchasing a propriety glass cleaning product, using a smallStove expert replied: Do take care that the green scourer does not scratch the service of the glass, the non stock option is better as it is less abrasive. A damp cloth dipped in woodash should do the trick and making sure you use dry seasoned wood (moisture content of less than 20%) and allowing plenty of air into the firebox should mean that the glass stays clean.
-
Nice looking stove, reasonable heat output
We bought the almond coloured stove - mainly because of its appearance and colour. It is easy to use and burns well. The glass stays very clean and I think we have only cleaned it once inStove expert replied: Modifying a stove should not be undertaken unless agreed with the manufacturer so leaving in the air control restriction is a wise move. Having two stoves in a property may mean that one flue has a better draw than the other and can affect how the stoves operate. This perhaps should be investigated further and you may find that the Charnwood's performance improves with further adjustments to the installation.
-
Charnwood 5 woodburner
Ever since start up the stove has burned too much wood, even with the single damper control pushed fully in. The bolt at the rear had to be screwed out on Charnwood recommendation and my seller / installer wasn't even aware of its existence! The glass is always badly fouled with sooty deposit every morning and is quite difficult to remove on occasions. The airways system only leaves a central triangle of clear glass by the morning. My wood is mature (2+year old ash and beech usually and I don't buy kiln dried wood because I have my own free wood. Heat output is pathetic really! So bad I'm seriously considering changing burner. Any advice would be greatly appreciatedStove expert replied: You say that you are burning too much wood - by this do you mean that the stove is working hard, with vigorous flames continuously but not producing much heat? This seems opposite to the dirty glass that is being experienced, one indicative of an over drawing flue the other being lack of air for complete combustion and or wet fuel. Received from the manufacturer the following information: The reasons why the glass is blackening up can be various. - The C-Five is a DEFRA exempted appliance, therefore it is designed to not shut down fully. But as not everybody live in a smokeless zone, we gave the option to unscrew the stopping device so that the rod could close a bit more. But pushing the rod fully in will shut down all air vents, and as a result no air feed for the combustion, the stove "suffocates", creates creosote and suits up the appliance. - logs been slightly too damp still. An easy test would be to buy a bag of compressed log briquettes (less that 10% humidity), and make a test. - A lack of draught in the chimney/flue will slow down the oxygen feed to the fuel, resulting in it to not burn correctly. - A house that is too airtight will reduce the feeding of oxygen too. You can fit an external air kit that will take the air from the outside world. The heat output of the stove will be affected, of course, by the lack of combustion of the fuel.
-
Charnwood C5
Initially, we were thinking of installing either a Clearview Pioneer 400 or a Contura 51L, but in the end we opted for a Charnwood C5. Here is our verdict! Glass Cleanliness : We have found that the glass stays very clean on the C5, provided that the single-damper (with three positions) is kept open during the lighting phase and remains so until the stove enters the optimum temperature range, as indicated on the stove pipe magnetic thermometer. (We bought this as an optional extra and, at under £20, I see it as a vital piece of kit, ensuring that the stove is refuelled at the right time and also burns at maximum efficiency.) Ease of Lighting - The C5 is very easy to light, especially on a bed of ash that builds up after a few fires. Screwed up newspaper, 12 sticks of criss-crossed kindling and three small logs on top, has resulted in an easy and quick start every time, especially with the door left cracked open until the fire is well-established. Build Quality - The C5 is mostly cast iron, with a single air control at the bottom. Charnwood stoves are British made on the Isle of Wight and I have been informed that they are manufactured to the highest standards by a traditional firm, many of whose employees have been with them for years. Also, the C5 comes in a variety of (eight) different colours and there is a rear flue installation adaptor. Handle and Door - The C5 has a handle on the front left hand side. What is really good is that handle has a wooden grip, which means that the door can be opened for refuelling/stoking without the use of a glove, although you do still need to be very careful! Installation - One of the reasons we eventually chose the Charnwood C5 is because it takes a 5"flue liner and we were advised that our chimney might prove problematic for a 6" liner. Having ˜googled" this issue, I found that stove installers have commented on problems associated with 6"liners. (Both the Pioneer 400 and the Contura 51L require 6" liners.) Multi Fuel - The Charnwood C5 comes in both formats, so a choice is available. However, we only wanted a log burner. There is no ash pan. The fire sits on its own bed of ash and every few days some of this needs to be scooped out, but I don't find this a chore; It's all part of the fun of having a real fire. Log Size - The C5 takes 25 cm (10") logs very comfortably, just like the Clearview Pioneer. Viewing - The C5 has a viewing window that is larger than the Clearview Pioneer 400, but smaller than the Contura 51L. Responsiveness - The C5 responds instantly to air flow adjustment. The three position lever enables the damper to be left closed, open and also pulled right out as a boost, which is also used when lighting. The other good thing is that the damper can also be left open just fractionally; this helps keep the glass perfectly clear. Cleaning out the ash - As above, the log burning version has no ash pan and therefore ash needs to be scooped out periodically. I would estimate it takes a maximum of maybe five minutes to prepare the stove for the next day's fire. Dimensions - The Charnwood is physically smaller than many stoves and therefore might sit more comfortably in a greater range of fireplaces. Width 485mm; Depth 292mm; Height 560mm. Price - We found that the Charnwood C5 is significantly cheaper than both the Clearview Pioneer 400 and the Contura 51L. Summary: In the end, we chose the Charnwood C5 because it provided a great compromise between the old-fashioned look of the Clearview and the ultra-modern look of the Contura. Also, the 5" flue ensured that the installation was straightforward. We also liked the large viewing window - quite a bit bigger that the Clearview and not a lot smaller than the Contura. Also, we were advised that it's much better to have a stove that works hard, rather than one that just ticks over because the room gets too hot otherwise and I was a bit concerned that the Contura 51L with its 3-7Kw range might be too powerful. Our room is quite large 5.5m x 4.5 m x 3m (18ft x 14ft and 9ft ceiling) but the Charnwood C5 keeps it very warm, even though we leave open the connecting door to the hall. In short, we have no regrets about our choice of stove and are very pleased with it so far. -
Good stove but smoke escapes on lighting
Once lit, the stove operates beautifully.We have a problem with lighting, especially when it is properly cold outside. During lighting, the door has to be ajar. The problem is that until thereStove expert replied: Cold, still conditions can and often will affect the draw on a cold flue system. Leaving the door ajar is often all that is required until the heat builds up a little. Check that there is enough free air in the room for the size of stove (is there an air vent in the room?), The height of the flue and type of cowl should also be checked. Sometimes putting a lit candle in the box before you try to light the stove provides enough heat to prevent this from happening.
