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9:23 am
Sunday,13 November, 2011
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I am in the process of buying an ex hire narrowboat (62ft) and the list of renovations / adjustments to convert it from an eight-birth floating caravan to a practical live-aboard boat includes (in my opinion), installing a multi-fuel stove in the aft section (our new living area). I was looking at the usual “narrowboat stoves” on line and they (mostly the Squirrel-type/style) are almost twice the cost of a ‘normal’ stove without the narrowboat tag… I found a Snug Stove from ‘Stoves on line’ for 325GBP for example (compact size, made in UK, 4Kw output)… Am I missing something here?
Also, I have downloaded the pdf for the regulations on installation (all quite straight forward – I am a construction engineer by trade), but it states the flue should extend 600mm above the roof line – is this a practical height for a permanent fixture (negotiating tunnels / bridges) or do I have to investigate a removable option??
Any help would be gratefully accepted.
5:07 pm
Thursday,12 January, 2012
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We have a Boatman stove. See here http://boatmanstove.co.uk/ Standard stove is £299.
The advantage of a stove made for boats is the ability to get spare glass and fire bricks from chandlers.
600mm flue height being too high depends on where you plan to cruise. You would be OK on the North East waterways but on the narrow canals you would soon loose it. Even a 300mm chimney can be too high at times. Stainless steel chimneys last a lot longer than mild steel but do cost more. Make sure any ‘coolie hat’ is securely fixed to the chimney – mines riveted – or it will get dragged off by the first tree you get forced into.
Regards
Pete
Living retirement in the slow lane.
20 years hiring, 6 years of shared ownership and a Continuous Cruiser since 2007 but still learning!
6:00 pm
Friday,19 February, 2010
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I can’t comment about the effectiveness of domestic stoves on boats, but I do know that the Morso Squirrel is worth it’s weight in gold to many liveaboard boaters. It is a very good stove. I know many boat owners who have one, and there’s not one of them who will hear a bad word said about it. Compare it with mine for example. My stove doesn’t produce enough heat to make me want to throw open all the doors and riip off my clothes. The Squirrel does. A bag of coal lasts me for two to three days with my stove. Squirrel owners, using the same brand of coal briquettes, tell me that a bag will last them three to four days. My stove will only stay alight for a maximum of twelve hours when it’s on “tickover”. I’m reliably informed that the Squirrel will last as long as two days.
With regard to your flu height, are you sure that the part that’s above roof height needs to be permanent? I’ve not heard of that before and we do fit them here at Calcutt boats. Many boats have a 600mm chimney attached to the flu collar on the roof which can be removed easily when travelling. In effect this is an extension to the flu. Isn’t that what is meant in the instructions?
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5:20 pm
Thursday,11 August, 2011
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I have a Villager Puffin stove. If I sold the boat I would want to take it with me.
I find that a 25kg bag of coal briquettes lasts for about 5 days. On a single filling the fire will give off good heat for 20/24 hours. It depends on the strength of the wind. I know that some stoves have a back boiler fitted and that this can require the fire be set to a higher temperature.
I always where possible moor with the back of the boat (stove end) nearest to the wind direction. Then any ventilation drafts through the boat will transfer the heat along.
Remember that there are coal briquettes and there are coal briquettes! If your coal briquettes leave a lot of dust they are mostly cement. If the coal briquettes leave minimal dust then they are mostly coal. Cement is used as the binding agent. We usually go two-three days between needing to empty the ash pan with good quality coal briquettes.
Change the door seals every year if you want to be able to control the stove effectively.
If you want to see a good selection of stoves to compare, call in at Botany Bay near Chorley on the Leeds Liverpool Canal.
Regards
Mick n Mags
Nb Rose of Arden
5:27 pm
Friday,19 February, 2010
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MandM said
Remember that there are coal briquettes and there are coal briquettes!
So what briquettes do you use? I use Pureheat which provides pretty good heat and not an awful amount of dust (inside the ash pan that is; there always seems to be a fair amount on every surface in the boat in the winter when we use the stove!)
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7:02 pm
Thursday,11 August, 2011
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We are using a solid fuel called Excel which is a very good one. You have to be wary of pre-packaged coal bought from petrol stations which can often be low quality fuel that burns quickly and at a low temperature. However, we have noticed that briquettes we have purchased from different places often with the same sounding name but in different bags actually seem to vary in quality. The one difference is in the dust the better quality briquettes have larger granular bits in the dust. The poor quality briquettes seem to leave a very fine powder dust.
I wish I could give you a name of a good product you can find anywhere, but Excel is proving to be good.
Regards
Mick n Mags
Nb Rose of Arden
7:05 pm
Thursday,11 August, 2011
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admin said
There always seems to be a fair amount on every surface in the boat in the winter when we use the stove!
Quentin Crisp in the Naked Civil Servant said “After the third year, the dust doesn’t get any worse. “
Regards
Mick n Mags
Nb Rose of Arden
7:24 pm
Friday,19 February, 2010
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I’ve tended to steer clear of Quentin Crisp. Now I know he doesn’t dust, I’m afraid it’ll stay that way!
Click here to get a FREE copy of “Living On A Narrowboat:101 Essential Narrowboat Articles”
8:44 am
Friday,24 June, 2011
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Sorry I’m a bit late with a reply .We have heard that squirrel’s are great.We have 2 boatman stoves – one each end of our 45 foot boat, and they are great. We use mostly wood and a bit of coal and they heat up from cold in about 20 minutes.We do not live aboard but spend lots of weekends on the boat in the winter.
I do freely admit that if the weather forecast says minus 5 we do stay at home, but that is mainly because in the first year of owning the boat we didn’t drain down the water system when we left the boat for a couple of weeks during freezing weather and the system froze and broke the water heater. So now we always drain it down if bad weather is forecast.
12:55 pm
Saturday,31 August, 2013
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My Squirrel has just been condemned; it’s about 21 years old and when having the flue replaced the installer noticed 3 cracks down the back and a rotten back plate – none of which are repairable. I guess I can’t moan that it lasted 21 years but the cost of replacement is high – around £1200 all in I reckon. Still, if it lasts another 21 years I’ll be happy 
3:08 pm
Thursday,12 January, 2012
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MandM said
We are using a solid fuel called Excel which is a very good one. You have to be wary of pre-packaged coal bought from petrol stations which can often be low quality fuel that burns quickly and at a low temperature. However, we have noticed that briquettes we have purchased from different places often with the same sounding name but in different bags actually seem to vary in quality. The one difference is in the dust the better quality briquettes have larger granular bits in the dust. The poor quality briquettes seem to leave a very fine powder dust.I wish I could give you a name of a good product you can find anywhere, but Excel is proving to be good.
I can echo what Mick says. We like Excel when we can find it (tomorrow hopefully) and we also find that fuels with the same names can vary greatly. Pureheat, according to my notes, is one of them as is Burnwell. Buying always from the same supplier as Paul does, gives some guarantee of quality.
Regards
Pete
Living retirement in the slow lane.
20 years hiring, 6 years of shared ownership and a Continuous Cruiser since 2007 but still learning!
3:42 pm
Friday,19 February, 2010
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Lady Isoult Tibby-Cattistock said
My Squirrel has just been condemned; it’s about 21 years old and when having the flue replaced the installer noticed 3 cracks down the back and a rotten back plate – none of which are repairable. I guess I can’t moan that it lasted 21 years but the cost of replacement is high – around £1200 all in I reckon. Still, if it lasts another 21 years I’ll be happy
Buy another Squirrel. I would. I keep kicking myself. Just after I moved onto James I was offered a six month old Squirrel for £200. I could have had it fitted for next to nothing. Instead, I had the original 36 year old boat stove repaired. It’s OK, but it’s not a patch on a Squirrel.
If you can get a new Squirrel fitted for £1,200 and if it lasts you for another 21 years, an ultra reliable stove for your boat is going to cost you just £57.14 a year. That sounds like a bargain to me.
Click here to get a FREE copy of “Living On A Narrowboat:101 Essential Narrowboat Articles”
1:09 am
Tuesday,18 September, 2012
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pearley said
MandM said
We are using a solid fuel called Excel which is a very good one. You have to be wary of pre-packaged coal bought from petrol stations which can often be low quality fuel that burns quickly and at a low temperature. However, we have noticed that briquettes we have purchased from different places often with the same sounding name but in different bags actually seem to vary in quality. The one difference is in the dust the better quality briquettes have larger granular bits in the dust. The poor quality briquettes seem to leave a very fine powder dust.I wish I could give you a name of a good product you can find anywhere, but Excel is proving to be good.
I can echo what Mick says. We like Excel when we can find it (tomorrow hopefully) and we also find that fuels with the same names can vary greatly. Pureheat, according to my notes, is one of them as is Burnwell. Buying always from the same supplier as Paul does, gives some guarantee of quality.
Regards
Pete
Yes, I like XL. Stay clear of Taybrite – horrible stuff. But it does depend on your stove.
Retired; Somerset/Dorset border when not out and about on Lucy Lowther
Days without name and hours without number
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