Category Archives: Alpine Stoves

Cast Iron or Steel?

If you’re speaking of great quality steel stove versus quality cast iron stoves then, giving that the stove is used directly with the manufacturer’s intended instructions, it shouldn’t really matter. Poor quality cast iron stoves have well known reputation for cracking under high temperature exposure, that as well as poor quality steel wood burning stoves have a reputation for warping when at high temperatures. The difference between the two types of stoves are that steel wood burning stoves heat up quicker and expel more heat to the room it is in much faster than cast iron. In which is the traditional material for wood burning stove building, since it is much heavier than steel and provides a greater mass of the metal, it tends to take longer to build up heat and expel it to the room.

In history steel was regarded once as a poor material for wood burning stove manufacturing, this would result in warped steel stoves. Steel quality however has now greatly improved so there really is not that much difference between cast iron anymore. In some cases cast iron wood burning stoves are built more heavily and more sturdy than their counterparts steel stoves, and in some cases may have the quality edge.

Cast iron stoves, which are known to be generally heavier than steel bodied stoves, they have the advantage that the mass of the metal in the body of the stove acts like a heat storage radiator dispensing the heat stored into the room for few hours after the fire been expelled. A steel bodied stove will do this too but it won’t retain its heat for quite as long. So, essentially it’s a lifestyle choice – if you need fast heat then chooses steel and if you want longer lasting heat, say overnight, then choose cast iron.

What size of stove do I need?

Here at alpine stove we will help you in choosing a wood burning stove, the task of buying one in itself is difficult, to know what size stove to buy for your home. An important thing to note is that people buy stoves that is often really too big for the room they are placing it in, whilst it may seem simpler to just buy the biggest stove possible, this however isn’t the best option. One of the first thing anyone should know is any stove over 5kw needs an air brick or ventilation kit for the room that the wood burning stove is installed in to ensure good air flow, but it is recommended altogether for any burning appliance.

An important factor to consider and one that Alpine stove recommend researching is when buying what is the physical size of the wood burning stove?, you need to have enough room for the stove as well as allowing 6 inches of clearance to the sides and rear as well as 9 inches to the front of the hearth to comply with the necessary building regulations. Your wood burning stove should also be 40 inches away from any combustible materials.

All alpine stove wood burning stoves have optimal performance efficiency, they achieve this by running at their nominal heat output. If they run at less or more than the output they of course become less efficient, meaning the cost of fuel goes up as well as the exhaust is more damaging to the environment. Getting a wood burning stove with a nominal heat output that matches the room it is installed in is what you should be aiming for, to get a better idea of what heat output you will need from a wood burning stove you can use our heat output calculator. You should remember that this is only a guide as factors such as how well insulated your room is.

Savings and Costs of Using a Wood Burning Stove

Stove prices

According to the National Energy Foundation of the United Kingdom. The price varies according to which size stove you require for your room. Growing sales and popularity are helping to drive down prices, with smaller wood and multi fuel stoves starting at around £500. Installing a full wood-heated system can be costly, with prices running into several thousand pounds.

You’ll also need to factor in installation costs, as well as the on-going cost of using wood as fuel. The cost of a pellet stove, including installation, would be around £4,300 and a log stove should be cheaper, at about £2,000.

Costs and savings

Installation can be the main source of the cost; using wood for multifuel stoves could save you hundreds of pounds over electricity or gas however. Wood burners and multifuel stoves are usually standalone features used as a centrepiece in a living room to keep that or more rooms warms, certain models can be attached to a back boiler to heat the water for the home. Also you can buy wood boilers as part of a wood central heating system.

Wood fuel traditionally comes in the form of logs or, for multi-fuel stoves a special type of fuel is needed, wood pellets. Before you buy, check with the manufacturer of the multi fuel which fuels are usable to burn on your chosen stove. If you live in a city area, Wood prices can be higher for these areas, so some people choose multifuel stoves, which burn wood and fossil fuels. Supplementing wood with smokeless fuel while not as environmentally friendly it can keep costs down. In addition, find out if you live in a smoke control area as your stove will need to be approved for use by DEFRA.

The Olympus Range

The Olympus wood burners and boilers from Alpine stoves are a stylish, sleek, contemporary cast iron stoves and boilers. They boast a great list of features from their designer styling; to the chrome finishing to the large loading door with crystal clear glass viewing panels and the large heat output for their size make them a greatly popular stove range. An amazing design and finished to a high standard.

The physical size of these stoves will make them an impressive addition to any living space and the heat output it produces makes it very usable in large rooms, a great all round stove collection and great prices to go with it.

The Olympus from Alpine stoves is a multi-fuel stove from Alpine, it has an air control below the multi fuel grate which is great for the use of coal and smokeless fuels, this however can be closed as well and the air wash system can be used as the primary air source when you want to traditional logs or other wood.

The Olympus Boiler Stove from Alpine offers the same features and same design as the Olympus Wood Burning Stove. Coming with back boiler so that this stove can also run your hot water system or your central heating, the boiler option gives you the ability to make more use of your Olympus stove from Alpine as a heating device for your house and maximize its heat output. You can use this either as a replacement appliance, or for your existing boiler use alongside it, ask your plumber for further installation details if you can’t find the required information here at Alpine. The Olympus boiler stove from Alpine is a small to medium sized boiler, the offering of heat output to the room its in and to your hot water or heating system.

Welcome to Alpinestoves.co.uk!

Hello and welcome to the home of Alpine stoves here at Alpinestoves.co.uk! We are the official retailer of the Alpine stove collection in the UK.

Here at Alpinestoves.co.uk we will provide you with up to date information about the products and the business of Alpine stoves, we will also provide you with a list of trusted and expert retailers for Alpine stoves that we ourselves personally recommend to you the buyer by our experts here.

We hope to give you all the information and more you could possibly need to help you purchase your perfect Alpine stove and get it to you, help install it and enjoy the natural warmth of a wood burning in your home as soon as possible.