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Pither Stove

simonipa

By simonipa
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simonipa Gongoozler

simonipa

Posted
Posted

Hi, has anyone got a Pither stove. These things seem quite unique in operation, I can get it to light now using a blow torch! But I'm not sure on the correct use of the tool that slides into the grooves of the cheek plates and how to remove the ash without removing a lot of unburnt coal with it? There's a butterfly valve on the stove exhaust which is seized open, is this used to control the rate of burn? I would imagine that if I could close it, the stove would just emit loads of fumes? Definitely not a stove to use without a CO alarm!! Thanks for any tips on its operation.

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Athy Veteran II

AthyDonate to Canal World

Posted
Posted (edited)

. Replace the words "women' and "female" with Black and maybe you'll start to see how completely ignorant your comments sound.

 

To be fair, Pud, you may be slightly misinformed. There have been many great black composers, from W.C. Handy through Duke Ellington to William "Smokey" Robinson and beyond. (Come to think of it, in your present mood you may need to have a W.C. Handy).

 

Don't you feel that George's comments were tongue-in-cheek and not intended to be taken seriously?

Edited by Athy
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magnetman Veteran II

magnetman

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My old man used to have a couple of pithers stoves in houses I lived in when I was a lad. I like them but they aren't really suited to a boat.

 

As mentioned they run on anthracite beans. There is a sort of 'blade' thing which you use to control the descent of ash from the fire into the ash pan. And I remember it being lit with a gas operated blowtorch.

 

Nice looking item but total waste of time IMO :lol:

 

Would look good in a minimalist retro vintage industrial loft conversion with cast iron light switches. And gas central heating.

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smileypete Veteran II

smileypete

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My neighbours have a Pither on their pontoon houseboat...

 

The flat blade thing is pushed in the grooves all the way, the neighbours say usually the second set of grooves up from the bottom. Then the bent rod hooks into the eyelet at the bottom and allows the 'tipper thing' to be pulled out, but only pull it out part way ie just enough to allow it to pivot and drop the ash down into the pan, then pivot it back up and push it back in.

 

Best to then pull the blade thing out gently so the coals don't drop too suddenly, don't worry if a small amount of glowing coals drop with the ash they won't do any harm. With theirs on low they find the ash needs to be dropped about every 12hrs.

 

I'm told by the neighbours that if the ash isn't dropped often enough the fire burns too near the bottom of the hopper and it can allow some fumes to escape (and the poor stove gets blamed I s'pose.)

 

I think it might be toooo big for a narrowboat but fine for a decent sized houseboat or barge. If you have any more questions do let us know, will email them a linky to the thread and ask about the butterfly valve thing.

 

Found a piccie of the blade thing on Gumtree of all places:

 

$_86.JPG

 

https://www.gumtree.com/p/other-miscellaneous-goods/pithers-stove/1155806873

 

Looks like a good price for one if anyone wants one!

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited by smileypete
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smileypete Veteran II

smileypete

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Got my neighbour to have a look at this topic, here's his reply:

 

Hi Pete

 

'The damper is an absolute must ours spends most of its life closed without it the stove will run full bore all the time and basically be very hot and expensive to run
A fire guard is an absolute must or it is a potential fire hazard the idea of going off and leaving that going full bore and no guard is pretty scary. It is also a smaller version that ours only being about 3 foot high as to dropping Ash it is designed to have Ash build up as to which slot you put the slice in that is down to how much Ash you want to drop
The hopper and the lid should be sitting in sand which helps seal it. Bill Tierney is the Pither man ***** *******. And is the source of parts bricks which are also a must have as they form louvres similar to the bars at the front if he doesn't have those it won't burn correctly and will drop the coals out when you drop the ash.

 

Also of course it only burns anthracite beans. Nothing else.'

 

ETA: Bill's number is listed here:

 

http://www.stoveland.co.uk/Manufactures.html#Pither%20Stoves

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited by smileypete
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simonipa Gongoozler

simonipa

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Posted (edited)

Thanks for the very helpful information. I can now see how to drop the ash. Although it does never seem to burn completely down to the grate, so I drop a mixture of coal and ash, which seems a waste. Maybe I've got the wrong bricks? I'm also missing the guard and funnel, so will contact Bill Tierney if he's still trading? I read an article from the Independant on the web dated 1997 which gave his age as 58 so that would make him 77 now! Thanks Simon

Edited by simonipa
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smileypete Veteran II

smileypete

Posted
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Spoke to neighbour again the other day.

 

He said the stove MUST have the special oval section firebricks in at the back, as these form a louvre to retain the fuel and allow the combustion fumes to rise up the back and out of the flue. If they're missing it'll explain why it's dropping fuel as well as ash. Best to buy 2 or 3 extra spare firebricks I'd have thought in case of breakages.

 

Says Bill is still around and a nice guy to deal with, but not that quick at sending out bits. If you know someone near him it might be better to get them to collect.

 

Also he says there are different sizes of Pither stove, he has a larger one and a whole bag of anthracite beans will fit in the hopper and last about 3 days, which works out about 2 bags a week I guess - but it does keeps their boat very nice and toasty. smile.png

 

The smaller one might be OK for a large narrowboat or widebeam I s'pose, he says one way to tell is the number of louvres at the front otherwise they look quite similar in a photo.

 

cheers, Pete.

~smpt~

Edited by smileypete
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  • 2 years later...
Boater Sam Influencer

Boater Sam

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Posted

The butterfly valve in the flue is most likely a draught diverter, if so it should turn freely and be weighted to just close with the fire out.

When the fire is drawing hard, the reduced pressure in the flue allows the valve to open and admit air reducing the draw on the coals and saving fuel so it self balances.

With it stuck open you will have troubles with fumes from the fire on low and stuck closed it will draw too hard and waste fuel.

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simonipa Gongoozler

simonipa

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Hi, not sure if Bill Tierney is still trading? I know he does own the rights to the Pither brand (for what it's worth) and had a relationship with Grenadier Firelighters https://grenadier.co.uk/spares  authorising them to sell the bricks. They may be able to source other parts? When I spoke to Bill 3 years ago he did say he'd had a large part of his stock stolen! 

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richard@gibsons.org.uk Gongoozler

richard@gibsons.org.uk

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We Used to have Pither Stoves in two houses when living in London but regetfully couldnt get the fuel in Shetland where we have lived for 40+ years.  However, in the face of Climate Change, with the need to move away from fossil fuels, I wondered whetehr any Pither Stove users have experimented with using a wood pellet fuel, which is a renewable, and can be hopper fed?

 

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neilq Gongoozler

neilq

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Hi everyone, I've just bought a Pither Stove and would appreciate any assistance/tips with operating / restoring / installation. 

 

Having admired them for many years from afar for their modernist appearance, I now also wonder if their green credentials could be improved using biomass pelleted fuel.  Scanning t'internet briefly what I can gather is that anthracite (like other coals) needs to be burned in a grate so air from underneath assists the combustion whereas wood burns best on an a flat ash bed.  Wood also ignites at a lower temperature than mineral fuel so most wood pellet burners are auger fed in order to separate and prevent the un-burnt fuel in the hopper also from igniting.  I assume that the anthracite beads gradually disintegrate as they burn falling down over/through the horizontal elements in the grate somehow and into ash pan creating more room at the top in a controlled burn/feed cycle.  Websites seem to indicate that if wood pellets were to be used in the grate (as opposed to a flat ash bed), the additional air would cause the biomass to burn too quickly in an uncontrolled way.  I understand that you need the fire bricks from Grenadier set into the grate to prevent beads that have not yet fully combusted falling into the ash pan.  All this would indicate that its unlikely that the wood pellets will work effectively but I will give it a go when the stove arrives and I have had a look at it in action - but this will definitely be outside and with a fire extinguisher at the ready!  

 

If anyone can tell me how to contact Bill Tierney I would appreciate that.  Previous posts indicate he was around in 2016 but then in his late seventies.  I was unable to access the information in the link previously listed that he had fwdd to a contributor then.    I may try to see if Genadier can put me in contact with him.

 

If anyone has any experience of renovating/maintaining a Pither I would be grateful for any advice.

 

My email is neilgquinton@gmail.com

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Farmer Gongoozler

Farmer

Posted
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On 07/04/2016 at 10:33, simonipa said:

Hi, yes Bill Tierney is still around and he kindly sent me some instructions on the installation and use of the Pither stove.

 

http://home.btconnect.com/club41/Pither.pdf

 

On 07/04/2016 at 10:33, simonipa said:

Hi, yes Bill Tierney is still around and he kindly sent me some instructions on the installation and use of the Pither stove.

 

http://home.btconnect.com/club41/Pither.pdf

Hi 

I’ve just acquired one of these stoves but it needs some tlc. Do you still have the pdf you mentioned? I’ve tried to contact Bill but no joy. Would you be able to let me have the pdf if you still have it please? Many thanks

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