Vermont Bun Baker a.k.a. Nectre Big Baker's Oven

[Dan Freeman]

Just curious if anyone else has a Vermont Bun Baker (name in USA) made by Nectre of Australia?

We installed one in our kitchen last January, so this will be the first full season using it. So far, we are pleased with how it is able to heat our 1600+/- square foot house. We own an old farmhouse with 4 rooms on the first floor that open to each other, a central staircase, and 4 rooms on the second floor that open to each other, so the warmth circulates well. We also cut a floor vent in the kitchen ceiling up to the landing on the 2nd floor to aid in heat distribution. We are estimating we will burn 3.5 full cords over the heating season, but this is just an estimate based on last year's shortened season.

Cooking on/in it has been an adventure. We can see it is more an art than science, and maybe it's our imaginations (?), but food tastes better.

Any other owners here?

 

[3650]

How do you like it now? Did it heat your house well enough. How often did you have to tend? We’re you actually able to use it as a cooker?

 

[Matttc]

Just curious if anyone else has a Vermont Bun Baker (name in USA) made by Nectre of Australia?

We installed one in our kitchen last January, so this will be the first full season using it. So far, we are pleased with how it is able to heat our 1600+/- square foot house. We own an old farmhouse with 4 rooms on the first floor that open to each other, a central staircase, and 4 rooms on the second floor that open to each other, so the warmth circulates well. We also cut a floor vent in the kitchen ceiling up to the landing on the 2nd floor to aid in heat distribution. We are estimating we will burn 3.5 full cords over the heating season, but this is just an estimate based on last year's shortened season.

Cooking on/in it has been an adventure. We can see it is more an art than science, and maybe it's our imaginations (?), but food tastes better.

Any other owners here?

View attachment 286943View attachment 286944

hi - I'm interested in this too: how is it going for you?

 

[TomMcDonald]

Many people use them over here.

I have a good friend who uses his small one to exclusively heat his house. It's around 1500sqf and we'll insulated but has 15ft ceilings in the living room. He has no electricity.

He cooks on it a lot. His only complaint is that the top of the cook stove gets way hotter than the bottom but you can cope with that.

He also cooks a lot on the top which has removable plates for heat regulation.

They are a well built stove and can be useful.

The fire box is very shallow so take into account the type and length of wood you have.

 

[Matttc]

Many people use them over here.

I have a good friend who uses his small one to exclusively heat his house. It's around 1500sqf and we'll insulated but has 15ft ceilings in the living room. He has no electricity.

He cooks on it a lot. His only complaint is that the top of the cook stove gets way hotter than the bottom but you can cope with that.

He also cooks a lot on the top which has removable plates for heat regulation.

They are a well built stove and can be useful.

The fire box is very shallow so take into account the type and length of wood you have.

Thank you for the information!

 

[Dan Freeman]

I see a few folks posted here since I wrote the original post. Sorry, I missed you all.

@3650 We like the stove a lot, but it does have its drawbacks.

It does heat the house well, but it will not hold an entire night's burn since it is a cookstove. That means the house heat kicks on at 62 degrees in the wee hours on colder nights, or it is above 62, but usually below 66, when we get up in the morning.

We tend to it many times throughout the day. 1. Because we are retired. 2. We spend a good amount of the day in or close to the kitchen, so we don't burn hot fires except first thing in the morning and after dinner.

We're still learning how to cook in and on it, but we are getting better with each try.

@Matttc I guess most of what you might be interested, I already wrote above.

BTW...the firebox is also smaller than I thought it would be. Maximum width about 16" to 18" logs. Maximum depth about 8". But this baby can throw some awesome heat. I have measured the top at 700+ and the stove at well over 400. (That's one of the keys of learning how to cook....to be able to "regulate" the fire for the temperatures you need for the food you are cooking.)

@TomMcDonald Can't agree more. The stove is built like a tank! The shallow fire box was a disappointment to me at first, but I have adjusted to the measurements.

 

[Matttc]

I see a few folks posted here since I wrote the original post. Sorry, I missed you all.

@3650 We like the stove a lot, but it does have its drawbacks.

It does heat the house well, but it will not hold an entire night's burn since it is a cookstove. That means the house heat kicks on at 62 degrees in the wee hours on colder nights, or it is above 62, but usually below 66, when we get up in the morning.

We tend to it many times throughout the day. 1. Because we are retired. 2. We spend a good amount of the day in or close to the kitchen, so we don't burn hot fires except first thing in the morning and after dinner.

We're still learning how to cook in and on it, but we are getting better with each try.

@Matttc I guess most of what you might be interested, I already wrote above.

BTW...the firebox is also smaller than I thought it would be. Maximum width about 16" to 18" logs. Maximum depth about 8". But this baby can throw some awesome heat. I have measured the top at 700+ and the stove at well over 400. (That's one of the keys of learning how to cook....to be able to "regulate" the fire for the temperatures you need for the food you are cooking.)

@TomMcDonald Can't agree more. The stove is built like a tank! The shallow fire box was a disappointment to me at first, but I have adjusted to the measurements.

Great information. Thank you!