Michelle and Lorcan O'Brien and their Stanley Aura Pellet Stove
Michelle and Lorcan O’Brien from Wexford had the Aura pellet stove installed over 6 months ago. “My brother recommended getting a pellet stove for convenience, so we looked around and we visited Kyle Cookers and dealt with James who has the Aura on display and working. We were worried about the flame picture compared to a solid fuel stove, but we really liked the flame. It’s something we didn’t want to compromise on. It’s a cosy flame.”
What do they love about the Aura pellet stove? "Convenience at the press of a button or with the app on our phone. If we are away, we can turn on the stove and have it working and the living room/kitchen warm when we get home. Our children who are 10 and 12, can light the stove also which isn’t something they would have done with the solid fuel stove we had previously. Cleanliness is another big thing for us. There would always have been a layer of dust on everything with the solid fuel stove. The area around the stove is much cleaner and the stove itself is very easy to clean.’
So, have you noticed a change in your home heating bills? " We wondered if the cost of electricity would go up as our solid fuel stove didn’t use it. We haven’t seen any increase. It’s also a much more controllable temperature. We were influenced by a pellet stove being more environmentally friendly as well but wondered if the price of fuel would make it more expensive to run. As it turns out, it's nearly half the cost of running a solid fuel stove. We will spend around €380 between September and April on pellets. We buy them in 10 bag lots for €55 and have the heating on typically 5pm to 11pm. We can turn it off earlier if we want. In comparison, the same period would have cost us €700-€800 on coal and sticks so we have spent half of that on pellets. As we said, cleanliness is a big thing. We only have to clean out the stove every 2-3 times after use. Sometimes we leave it up to 5 days before cleaning it. Even the glass is very easy to keep clean.
When prompted about their favourite moment. "We like it in the evenings when it's cold and wet outside and the flicking flame keeps us cosy and warm.’
