Rayburn efficiency?

[Mary Fisher]

That's why there are so many dead owners.

Mary

[Mary Fisher]

What would you suggest?

I'm assuming that you're a cook and know what you're talking about ...

[Chris Bacon]

That's what I do. I wouldn't want the thing sitting there eating fuel up all the time.

Yup. I use an "ordinary" cooker in the winter too, when the range isn't ready for the job.

This is so - however, some people actually like having them (some people like to be seen to have them, it must be said!).

I've an electric kettle, and a microwave as well as a "normal" cooker. I think that's it. Oh, no, I've a "breadmaker", too.

I've been thinking about a nice range cooker and a gas boiler, it must be said. There are considerable attractions to that!

[usenet]

Not very much it won't, I have one in my headers and it gets very little junk mail indeed, less than one a day at the moment.

[owdman]

Its a gas New World Debut 500 - cost =A325 second hand about 15 years ago - perfectly adequate for all cooking requirements of a small family. I'd suggest something similar. Cook quite a lot. Am fan of Marcella Hazan's italian stuff, and E David, Jane Grigson and the very wondeful Delia. Got Nigel Slaters "Kitchen diaries" for christmas - looks good. Do a lot of preserving and have just finished the last of the damsons. Looking forward to marmalade making - I use Delia's simple process. Have a microwave (bought between house moves) but don't use it much except for reheating. Gas bill about =A39 per month (cooking only - rest of house electric or solid fuel).

cheers

Jacob

[Mary Fisher]

ago - perfectly adequate for all cooking requirements of a small family. I'd suggest something similar. Cook quite a lot. Am fan of Marcella Hazan's italian stuff, and E David, Jane Grigson and the very wondeful Delia. Got Nigel Slaters "Kitchen diaries" for christmas - looks good. Do a lot of preserving and have just finished the last of the damsons. Looking forward to marmalade making - I use Delia's simple process. Have a microwave (bought between house moves) but don't use it much except for reheating.

All that says a lot.

Sounds high to me, for just cooking. Mine's not much more including hot water, central heating and two fires. I cook ALL our meals and preserves of all kinds. We don't have a microwave from choice, no electric kettle ...

Perhaps a 25 yo cooker needs replacing with a more fuel efficient one.

Mary

[owdman]

Ooops no its =A39 per quarter - I just checked, last bill was =A38.64. Thats more like it!=20 What do you cook on Mary?

cheers

Jacob

[Chris Bacon]

Hot air, I should think, and lashings of it.

Rec.cooking, uk.f+d.m, etc. are elsewhere...

[Helen]

Our tank doesn't have any form of reading on it - do you mean just marking the tank, turn the Rayburn off and see how much has been used? I thought of doing this and didn't think it was a particularly accurate way of going about things (am more than likely wrong on this count) - have looked into oil usage meters but they seem quite costly as we don't want to monitor the usage long term

Financially we can cope with the current costs - however we don't have money to burn so would like to make what we have as efficient as possible. Not sure what you mean about filling in the blanks - we have double glazing in all bar two of our windows - the front of the house has three largish windows (about 3ft x 6ft each) which are double glazed. The loft is inaccessible - and is something we need to do something about.

[owdman]

Useful tip for Aga owners: keep the ovens filled with kindling and firewood to dry it out nicely. Then if you need a cup of tea in a hurry, or a fry-up, you can whip out into the garden and light a cooking fire between 2 stones, with lovely dry fuel. Much quicker than waiting for the stove to warm up, and more fun! Toast is better this way too.

cheers

Jacob

[Mary Fisher]

It depends where I am.

At home in the kitchen I cook on a 90cm Rangemaster, I think it's called. Five gas hobs in four sizes (one fierce wok type), electric fan assisted oven, electric slow oven, electric grill (which I don't use much). It's the best cooker I've ever had. And believe me I've had a lot.

The best one I've USED was a solid fuel Stanley. That belongs to a daughter.

In the caravans I cook on two small bottled gas hobs and sometimes on a charcoal firepot. In a tent I have three bottled gas hobs (two sizes) and the charcoal firepot and sometimes I use a very small mediaeval clay firepot. When in one of the caravans I also sometimes use a gas fired barbecue - in which I make bread, meringues , cakes etc as well as the more commonly barbecued foods. I have one of those at home too but don't use it much because I have the indoor cooker. In another tent I have cooked for both of us for eleven days in Iceland on a larger clay firepot. They're so controllable and versatile ... and don't use as much fuel as an open hearth fire butI have used those.

[Mary Fisher]

Oh don't bedaft!

[Ophelia]

Have you had your kitchen extended mary??? It was very small when I visited:)

[Andy Hall]

Mary, I've always thought of you as an Aga type of person because of all of the additional creative and inventive things that one can do with one.

[Andy Hall]

Helen, the main heat loss elements of a house are the loft and the walls normally.

If the loft is inaccessible (has always been inaccessible?) then there will be no insulation and that represents a fairly substantial heat loss. It would be very sensible for you to fix that with some insulation of 200-250mm thickness.

How about the walls? What material are they? Are they solid or with a cavity? If there is a cavity, then putting in cavity insulation would also make quite a difference.

If the house is in an exposed position, then this increases heat loss further.

I would suggest focussing on these areas first because I think that you can potetnially make a bigger difference there than with the cooker.

[Mary Fisher]

There's no room in our tiny kitchen :-(

Mary

[Mary Fisher]

It makes a huge difference.

Draught proofing is vital.

Mary

[Ophelia]

That was why I was so surprised when you mentioned what cooker you have now. I was surprised it would fit

[Donwill]

Approx 50% I understand. Don

[Mary Fisher]

What does that refer to?

Mary