Rayburn Royal SF cooker with boiler

[peterboat]

Hi all,

 

i bought a Rayburn today from fleabay. It was a struggle as all the ones I had viewed went for way more than I wanted to pay and the more modern versions of it seemed to be much more fuel hungry. Anyway the deed is done and my living kitchen is about to be started. As I have a widebeam it will fit in easy and I hope most of the old kitchen units will be reused with a new work surface even though the old stuff was really expensive and looks lovely to anyone but me. I will start collecting the stuff I will need ie large calorifier, table and chairs etc. And with luck once spring is here should be able to get the job done, or I might put the stove in asap depends on the weather really. Does anyone else use one of these for space heating, cooking and hot water if so any info would be welcome.

 

Peter

[John V]

Hi Peter, I have a solid fuel Royal on Sabina H It runs calorifiers (x2) and radiators in the bedrooms (x2) and corridor (1) and the wheelhouse (x2). The system is part convection and part pumped. The stove itself is the heating for the open plan galley/saloon

I love it but it is not free of problems. The system is fuel hungry and also if damped down in order to burn through the night,(not easy to achieve) is barely more than an antifrost system. This is because I am trying to run way too many bits from it. I find cooking brilliant but timings and position in oven take quite a while to get used to especially for pies. For a confirmed tea addict the permanently warm kettle on the end is a great boon!!!

I find I get through a riddle a year and the fire bricks about 3 years (mind where you buy them because the price can be eye watering)

If you want to burn wood you can get a special riddle for that (Incidentally I have been getting my spares from Anystove.co in Launceston Cornwall the range of bits is huge and I have been pleased with the service and the price .... no connection other than satisfied customer)

 

cheers John

[peterboat]

Thanks John,

 

I have less rads than you the hot water will be by gravity the rest will be pumped I am looking at an escape rad on gravity, the bathroom is behind the rayburn so shouldnt be to hard.

What fuel do you use anthracite seems to be the fuel of choice. I will use wood in the evenings and to get it to cook heat but for day to day running I am not sure.

 

Peter

[John V]

My fuel order is "4 bags of the big moulded lump stuff and a bag of house coal" from the coal merchant and it comes in lovely big woven sacks that he makes me give back........sorry I have no idea what it's called. over the years it has probably had every type fed to it but when you can get hard coal or anthracite from memory that seems to give the best heat (although it's a while since I bought any)

[wrigglefingers]

I have a love/hate relationship with the Rayburn on Cobbett. She heats the boat and water splendidly and the oven works well when I'm organised. That said, she's fuel hungry beyond belief, eats logs like Twiglets and chomps through Taybrite with ease - 25kg every two days and masses of ash. She's far better on anthracite and brilliant on Welsh steam coal. Start her from the top down with firelighters and kindling and a smattering of Taybrite on top, anthracite underneath, and make sure you are using the vent the correct way round. Small lump anthracite is best, if you get a choice.

 

If you're burning through the riddle once a year you need to empty the ashpan more often, because the ash is corrosive especially when hot.

 

I've got an old oil potburner Rayburn in the cottage. Exactly the same problem, hungry beyond belief, drinks oil like bitter, still nothing better to warm you up on a cold day, if you can dislodge the cat.

[John V]

Thanks for that tip about the ash Wrigglefingers.......must admit I'm inclined to let the ash build up until it chokes.....I'll give it a try changing more frequently.

[peterboat]

MMM the forums advise against taybite which is why I asked the questions. On the firebrick side my current stove has a soft type firebrick its not vermiculite its one or two up from that which is lasting very well and I wondered if that would be a better job? they use it in refractories I believe so might see if I can get some as one of my customers does just this stuff

 

Peter

[John V]

I wouldn't know about vermiculite.....does it cut and shape easily? the firebricks in a Rayburn are odd shapes !!!

[wrigglefingers]

MMM the forums advise against taybite which is why I asked the questions. On the firebrick side my current stove has a soft type firebrick its not vermiculite its one or two up from that which is lasting very well and I wondered if that would be a better job? they use it in refractories I believe so might see if I can get some as one of my customers does just this stuff

 

Peter

 

Yes, they do but it lights very easily which is why I use a few lumps to start the firebox. In general, it's a really bad idea to use petcoke. i can't see any problem with using a generic firebrick though, I haven't changed firebricks in five years either. Anthracite tends to produce far less ash than re-formed fuel and Welsh steam coal even less. the langer the flue you can achieve the harder the fuel burns. Rayburns seem to benefit from being driven hard.

Edited January 26, 2015 by wrigglefingers

[peterboat]

 

Yes, they do but it lights very easily which is why I use a few lumps to start the firebox. In general, it's a really bad idea to use petcoke. i can't see any problem with using a generic firebrick though, I haven't changed firebricks in five years either. Anthracite tends to produce far less ash than re-formed fuel and Welsh steam coal even less. the langer the flue you can achieve the harder the fuel burns. Rayburns seem to benefit from being driven hard.

Now on a hunt for Welsh steam coal I use blueflame which is a local anthracite petcoke mix it burns well in my stove and stays in overnight with no hassle I use wood in the evening and weekends I havnt swept the flue this year and a quick gander on the roof showed their was still no need, I hope I have the same results with the Rayburn when I install it. I will have a go with the sheet firebrick as I have to fit a new boiler so it seems the ideal time

 

Peter

[smileypete]

If ash builds up too much it can surround the grate, leading to a risk of overheating and warping or burning out.

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited January 26, 2015 by smileypete

[wrigglefingers]

We order from here ….

 

The Coalman

 

They cheerfully deliver to Coventry although you'd need to check delivery costs to where you are - are you South Yorks, still?

[peterboat]

I have a price of just under £18 per 50 kilos for anthracite large lumps or something like that So next its a coal bunker I think

Will check out the site

 

Peter

[wrigglefingers]

Ask for small lumps if you can. Large lumps can be enormous and difficult to get lit.

[peterboat]

Will inspect the size of those lumps ha ha My friends AGA only uses coke it costs 1000 squid per year to run it 24/7 there very large farm kitchen is always toasie

 

Peter

[John V]

found out that my (fairly local) coal merchant does anthracite both in 50 Kilo bags and 25 Kilo prepacks I'll have to pop along and get a couple of bags

 

anthracite terminology and sizes....link

 

http://www.coalmerchantsfederation.co.uk/products/anthracite

[Athy]

My friends AGA only uses coke

Can coke still be bought? I thought that its production had been discontinued years ago.

 

Wriggly, regarding your oil-burning Rayburn you might care to investigate a Snugburner, produced and installed by Barry Charman of Snughomes (they have an informative web site). We had one in our house for some years, and it was fairly economical on oil though I can't give you exact figures.

[peterboat]

You must be able to buy it because I saw it in there kitchen I have read all the blogs on the snugburner it expensive but it really does cut the bills I did think of buying an oil rayburn and converting it but this solid fuel one came up at the right price and the flue is on the left where I need it so that did it for me

 

Peter

[Athy]

You must be able to buy it because I saw it in there kitchen I have read all the blogs on the snugburner it expensive but it really does cut the bills I did think of buying an oil rayburn and converting it but this solid fuel one came up at the right price and the flue is on the left where I need it so that did it for me

 

Peter

Good info - I haven't knowingly seen coke for ages.

We bought our Rayburn Royal reconditioned and complete with its Snugburner so I am not sure how mych the burner unit itself cost. I am not sure that Barry sells entire Rayburns and Agas any more or if he just supplies the innards for other people to install. When I went to his premises circa 2007 he had a warehouse full of elderly Rayburns and I just picked the one I wanted, which he and his staff then converted, delivered and installed.

[wrigglefingers]

Good info - I haven't knowingly seen coke for ages.

We bought our Rayburn Royal reconditioned and complete with its Snugburner so I am not sure how mych the burner unit itself cost. I am not sure that Barry sells entire Rayburns and Agas any more or if he just supplies the innards for other people to install. When I went to his premises circa 2007 he had a warehouse full of elderly Rayburns and I just picked the one I wanted, which he and his staff then converted, delivered and installed.

 

Barry sold the Snugburner business and the price went through the roof. I asked the local oil engineer about retro-fitting one and although he could, he said not to bother, he has serious concerns about reliability at the moment. He reckoned that with installation costs it would come in at between £2,500 to 2,800, which buys an awful lot of oil. In fact, he's been installing drip feed Rayburns this year for the first time in years - as he pointed out there's very little to go wrong, it's utterly silent and has shown me how to service the pot, check the chimney and relight the beast. He'll come and service the beast once a year for £60, checking the flue and seals. Nice man too.

 

I've just shoved in 1000lt of oil for £347 delivered and will join the village oil cooperative next year. Whilst I can't pretend that it's the most cost-effective method of heating, it does also cook my tea, heat my water, dry my clothes and yarn and fibre and provide Viola and me with a comfortable place to sleep and drink tea.

[Athy]

 

Barry sold the Snugburner business

Really? I have just checked and he is still on their web site.

[madcat]

I think you could split the cost of the oil between you and Viola , does the oil man accept dead rodents

[wrigglefingers]

Really? I have just checked and he is still on their web site.

 

That's interesting - when I spoke to him a couple of years ago about doing the Rayburn on Cobbett - he said he'd sold the business and was off to France where people were happy to pay .... It wouldn't surprise me if he'd bought it back though - Rayburn refurbishment seems to be like Wild West Country at times.

I think you could split the cost of the oil between you and Viola , does the oil man accept dead rodents

 

Don't think so but I can ask.

 

Viola has her work cut out at the moment. There is another cat in her garden to sort out and she's planning to carry her campaign with extreme prejudice. The Other Cat tried to sneak in to sample the cat food this morning and was met by six kilos of flailing long-haired feline. It isn't going to be pretty.

[peterboat]

Well I collect the beast this weekend and my coal bunker will be delivered on tuesday, it holds 300 hundred kilos so wonder how long that will last I will know soon enough I suppose

 

Peter

[Liam]

Petcoke, or sometimes known as Calco is still widely available.