BRAND SPOTLIGHT 01 - Charnwood Stoves: British-Made Woodburners Built for Real Homes

There are some stove brands that need very little introduction, and Charnwood is certainly one of them.

For us at Southwest Woodburners, Charnwood Stoves has long been an important part of our showroom. They're British made, beautifully engineered and, perhaps most importantly, there is enough variety within the range to find a stove for almost every type of home.

From a small cottage fireplace to a large open-plan room, Charnwood manages to combine traditional stove-making with increasingly clever combustion technology.

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More than 50 years of British stove making

Charnwood is made by A.J. Wells & Sons, a family-owned British company founded in 1972 and based on the Isle of Wight. More than 50 years later, the company is still family controlled, with second and third generations involved in the business.

That heritage is one of the things we like about the brand. These aren't stoves designed simply to follow a trend. There's a very recognisable Charnwood style and, underneath it, decades of development.

But Charnwood hasn't stood still either.

Its current range spans everything from traditional-looking models to contemporary landscape stoves and its latest intelligent woodburners, which can automatically manage the combustion air for you.

One to watch: the Charnwood Aire 4

One of the newest additions to our showroom is the Charnwood Aire 4, and it's a stove we think will appeal to a lot of Dorset homes.

Rather than being tall and narrow, the Aire 4 has a wider, shallower body and a lovely landscape view of the fire. It has a nominal 4.9kW output with a 2–5kW operating range, making it particularly interesting for modern, well-insulated rooms where you want a generous flame picture without installing an unnecessarily powerful stove.

It is available on a low base or store stand and in Charnwood's choice of eight colours.

We have an Aire 4 burning live in our showroom, which makes a huge difference if you're trying to decide whether a stove is right for you. You can actually see the flame picture, feel the heat and get an idea of how controllable it is rather than choosing from a brochure.

Prefer something more traditional?

Meet the Cranmore

At the other end of the design spectrum is the Charnwood Cranmore.

This is one of those stoves that looks completely at home in a Dorset cottage. The styling is more traditional, but behind that exterior is modern clean-burning technology.

The Cranmore range is particularly good when somebody tells us, "I want a proper-looking woodburner."

It has the character people associate with a classic stove without feeling old-fashioned.

And then there's the Skye

Sitting somewhere between traditional and contemporary is the Charnwood Skye.

We particularly like the larger Skye 7 for rooms that require more heat. Charnwood describes its styling as "classically minimal with a soft modern edge", which is actually a pretty good description.

It's simple to operate, with one push/pull control, but there's a considerable amount of combustion technology working behind the scenes.

Charnwood has now taken that idea even further with its intelligent ranges. Its I-Blu technology monitors the fire and adjusts the airflow automatically, with the aim of maintaining efficient combustion and reducing emissions.

Why do we like Charnwood?

For us, it's the breadth of the range.

We can put a Charnwood into a chocolate-box cottage, a modern extension, a farmhouse or a contemporary new build without feeling that we're trying to force the wrong stove into the room.

There's also something reassuring about dealing with a long-established British manufacturer where replacement parts, technical information and support are considered throughout the life of the appliance.

And that's important.

A woodburner shouldn't be a short-term purchase. Installed correctly and looked after properly, it's something you'll hopefully live with for many years.

Come and see Charnwood burning

We have a large selection of Charnwood models at our Dorset showroom, including live appliances, so if you're considering one, we'd always recommend seeing them in person.

Sometimes the stove you love online isn't the one you ultimately choose.

And sometimes you walk into the showroom, see one burning and immediately know: that's the one.

Southwest Woodburners | Woodburning Stove Showroom & HETAS Installation Specialists | Dorset