Review of Charnwood Country 4 stove
An exceptional good, controllable, simple little s
I've been using my Charnwood Country 4 (made in England on the Isle of Wight) for a couple of months now, almost daily, often twice daily. It's very simple to use, easy to light and more controllable than I expected - perfect for our small living room -- and I sometimes turn it up & leave the living room door open to help warm the dining room and/or upstairs; it's rarely overpowering though . One key feature is the 1/4" thick throat plate which can be easily be removed without tools (although one is provided, so it can even be done with a fire burning!) for cleaning the chimney & throat plate -- so no need for a door in the flue).
\n\n\n\nI have the woodburning-only version, which gives me more space for logs & ash than would the more expensive & more complicated multi-fuel option (which basically just adds a riddling grate for burning coal). Even the wood-only version is not cheap but the design & build quality it very good, with thick, strong sheet steel used throughout with a nice even finish (the most expensive part, the chassis warranted for 10 years I believe - although Dorset-made Aarrow Acorns are warranted even longer, for life I believe). The Country 4 is wider inside than most 4kW stoves (the only wider one I found was the Bohemia 40 which is significantly wider although very thin) & its use of ceramic liners rather than fire bricks also provides more room (as does my lack of multifuel option), in practice it takes all but the biggest bulkiest logs. You can even burn logs with the door open, if you have odd shaped logs for example - which I do occasionally when I don't feel like re-sawing/splitting a particularly big log.\n\n\n\nI found that after daily use for about a week, the ash builds up (you barely notice this happening) and need to remove some to keep the fire lighting easily, so it doesn't block the rectangular slot at the front, which sits behind the lower rotarty control. Often I run this with all controls full on. It produces a lovely, bright yellow flame light as the wood gas burns, thanks to the clean burn warmed air inlets that come from low down behind the stove & up behind the throat plate, and are controlled by the top pull-out brass level (I think). If I think the flames are get too high/vigorous, I just throttle back the top control, otherwise I use the lower control to manage the burn rate. Neither control is particularly smooth & both can get hot but I figure that is normal. The front handle is, surprisingly wooden, and so can be opened without additional protection (good). All parts can be ordered on-line, so I hope to be using this for many years to come.\n\n\n\nPhysical size was not an issue for us, we have a huge inglenook fireplace and were more worried that this compact little stove might look too small. We need not have worried, it looks great, especially when lit. I light it most nights & some mornings, as it is very quick and easy to get going. I tend not to stack it up for overnight burning, not wanting to creosote up the chimney on my thatched cottage, unless it is particularly cold out (we have oil-fired central heating too but it goes off during the night). It tends to burn out overnight, although I have on occasion found glowing coals in the morning. I'd probably need more practice to get that right - probably stack up chunky logs & turn the controls down low (they recommend that you don't totally close the top control, to avoid creating tar).\n\n\n\nRe. clear burn & airwash, both work well but if you slip a newer log or wet log in, the glass quickly blackens. Sometimes you can just burn it off by opening up the top clean burn control but occasionally you'll need to clean the glass (when cool), they recommend using a non-abrasive glass cleaner. The stuff I used gets the most but by no means all off (seems to be vinegar based - I suspect an ammonia based cleaner would work better). Well seasoned, dry wood is no problem though - super clean burning. The throat plate, clean burn & airwash features make this very energy efficient, with wood gas usually being burnt above the main fire with a very attractive light show (better than most TV!).\n\n\n\nWhat could be improved? Yes of course, although I suspect it is as good or better than most. I'm perfectly happy with it as is. If pushed, I would say make it a tad wider (as space is not an issue for me -- it might be for others though), make the controls a bit smoother & cooler to the touch. Reduce the price (but not at the expense of quality) -- it was twice the price of my initial budget and some competitors but in the end I am glad I purchased this model. The design and quality give me confidence in the purchase.\n\n\n\nThe previous owner of my cottage had a larger less expensive woodburner and told me it was too hot to stay in the living room when it was on. That's rarely the case with this stove - you can turn it down. Several others told me similar stories, so I was keen not to get too big of a stove; especially as my living room is only 4m x 4m x 2.1m & well insulated (although with a double glazed french window). My eldery neighbour who likes the heating well up is now thinking of getting a similar stove for similar room, albeit less well insulated. I said to them that I think this would be perfect but that a larger stove, if as controllable as this one, of say 5kW (or perhaps even 6kW) might also be fine provided it is as controllable as this one.\n\n\n\nIt arrives securely bolted to a mini pallet, attached to a slightly larger pallet. It looks surprisingly small and feels surprisingly heavy on arrival. It fits right in though.\n\n\n\nHighly recommended. *****