Help!!! I hate my Stovax Stockton 5 MF

beat_the_utilities

To echo the last post, in defence of the Stockton 5 MF, I've had one for 3 years and it's fine. It's got a 5" flue pipe into an unlined chimney fitted with a rain/animal cowl and I've never had a problem with draw or blowback or anything else performance wise. I burn mainly smokeless fuel, but also quite a bit of wood and the only issue I do have is the level of blackening of the door glass when burning smokeless fuel overnight. This is a common problem with overnight slumbering, but I find the glass doesn't clear in the way promised in the handbook once the stove is up to full operating temperature again. However, this is a small gripe and I really like the stove. I can only recommend that the possible underlying causes of any problems are investigated systematically as advised by earlier posters.

poddlethaite

we've had a stockton 5 fitted for about 3 weeks now. there seems to be many variables to how well the stove works.

one night was cold and misty. what ever i did couldn;t prevent the glass from blackening.

one evening the wood we burnt seem to cause the glass to blacken really quickly.

i wanted a stove that would heat up the room and provide a clear glass to watch the fire.

it has taken three weeks and we might have achieved it by accident.

we see the logs burn incredibly fast - at first. we were advised by our fitters to "get the stove as hot a possible as quick as possible".

the by accident incident was to do with the air controls. there are 3 controls on the stockton 5. our fitters told us about 2. so as well as the top front and door, there's a third on the very bottom of the stove (found when reading the manual).

by accident we found that closing the top and bottom and having the door vent open about a third gave good flames, no blackening and good time for a log to burn.

when the glass did blacken a little, i took some dry newspaper and wipe the bloackening off the glass.

i think getting to know the stockton 5 will take us some time and we're doing alright for now.

xx

ericonabike

Perhaps to redress the balance, we have a Stockton 6 which for the past three years has been one of our best ever buys. Chucks out prodigious heat, glass remains clear 9 times out of 10 and looks good. We had a problem with down draught when wind strong/in wrong direction, but having a cowl fitted cured it. We wanted a relatively shallow stove with smoke-free approval and the Stockton was about the only one suitable. Very pleased indeed.

Goatmasterfunk

I'm on my second year of a Stovax Stockton 5 wood burning only.
I have a smoke control unit (SCU) fitted as I am in London.
I've had some issues with the stove but I think mostly it is getting to know the stove and experimenting with the 3 vents and most important of all, getting good seasoned wood. There are loads of cowboys out there selling alleged seasoned wood that is not seasoned at all. In my experience, it needs to be seasoned for 2 years. 1 year is very borderline.

I will list my findings below in case it's helpful for others and maybe you can comment on what I say.

The control on the front at the bottom (primary air) should only be opened when lighting the stove. Once you have a decent burn on your kindling, look to close this fully.
The control on the front at the top (airwash) controls the ferocity of the flame. With a SCU fitted, this control is restricted so that it will not fully open (to the left) and will not fully close (to the right). Restricting full closure prevents the stove from smoking by allowing air in to keep the ash glowing. I am not sure why Stovax prevent you fully opening it. I have asked them and they said it is by design but their response was a bit flakey. By restricting the full opening, they are effectively disabling your ability to use airwash.
The third control is secondary air which is underneath the stove. Pulling towards you opens, pushing away closes.
When lighting, this should be open about half way and then gradually look to close it. What this control does is allow air in through the holes at the back and will combust smoke via "cleanburn" technology. You will see flames shooting forwards when this is open. As per the instructions, you don't want these too fierce and hitting the glass so close it until you get a good flicker. Depending on the wood and the weather, you can burn with this fully closed.

My main issue is with the SCU.
I seem to get very good draw on my flue and with the good wood I use, get excellent burn to the extent where most of the time, I want to shut the airwash as far as the SCU will allow.
My problem here is that I then get uneven burn with the right hand side of the firebox burning/glowing much less than the left and despite the quality of the wood I use, I get misting/dulling of the glass on the right hand side only. The left is fine as the SCU seems to allow air into the left hand side of the chamber (via the airwash control).

Stovax have told me this is by design......moving to the right closes the right hand side more than the left. But the more I think about it, this sounds crazy. I would expect the vents to open and close evenly on the left, right and centre. I would not expect that when I close the vent, it closes the right more than the left and centre. What do you all think?

Minute adjustments to the airwash control (like a millimetre to the left/open) can sometimes allow just enough air into the left hand side of the chamber to restore the glow. I have also found opening the secondary air (underneath) about a third to a half can assist with even burning - even when airwash is shut.

FInally, I have seen other larger burners in operation and I think that maybe because the Stockton 5 is fairly small, it is more sensitive to wet wood, air controls etc
I do think though that the SCU needs a redesign to facilitate even burning within the chamber - and to allow you to use the airwash. After all, the stove is sold as one with airwash yet the SCU prevents airwash from being used.