More NautiBuoys

OK… so the NautiBuoys have been quite popular. The issue is that they are made from trawl net ‘bobbins’ which are only available when they turn up on beaches after having come detached at some point or when people offer them to me (after having found them washed up on a beach) and portholes. Nice portholes are also hard to come by and nice portholes which are the right size for the variably sized trawl net bobbins are even harder to find.

Having said all that, my NautiBuoy portfolio has steadily been growing and the last few have all been multi-fuel models with both primary and secondary (airwash) air.

I have a short waiting list for NautiBuoys now but my stock of ‘bobbins’ is improving as a good friend with an epic reclaim yard has started spotting them for me. That has helped a lot! Thanks Joe

 

 

NautiBuoy number 2

Off the back of the NautiBuoy built for TV’s ‘My Floating Home’ I was commissioned to make Number 2 for a narrowboat build. I have to say I really like this design and have an idea to make Number 3 multifuel. This one is just a woodburner (no grate) but with double glazing and a new airwash design so hopefully a permanently clear view of the fire.

Arctic number 1

Last year I shipped my first Hotpod to the Arctic circle which I was very happy about. Firstly because it’s nice to be noticed from that far away, secondly, the Hotpod to be the heater of choice in an Arctic home is quite a stoke and thirdly because I have an Arctic obsession since snowboarding in the far North of Sweden 10 years ago. It is really beautiful wilderness which is still tugging at my soul.

This week I was sent the first photos of the Hotpod in its place in the newly completed house in the far North of Norway.

I shall say no more except a big thank you to the owners for choosing a Hotpod and, obviously, for the photos.

Replacement Hotpod stove glass for all models except the Nautipod

Hotpod stove glass replacement

How to fit Hotpod door glass.

For some reason, this summer I have had a lot of orders for new Hotpod door glass. Maybe they are all just getting to a certain age? After all, the first production Hotpods went out in 2006.

Whatever the reason, I though it was time to put the fitting information in one place, and this seemed like a good one.

Years ago, Phoebe filmed me fitting a Hotpod glass for a new stove and we stuck it on YouTube. I had to re find it every time i sent out new glass which up until this year has been quite rarely. Its not very good but it does show how I do it myself so may be helpful for DIYers.

 

If you prefer to read about it…

Around the same time we also made a step by step PDF which I also had to dig out occasionally but now I can just direct people here instead. It’s not very pretty, but it is functional 🙂

Hotpod door glass fitting instructions PDF

Hotpod door glass fitting instructions PDF

 

As usual, if you have any trouble fitting or any questions, then please give me a call at the workshop, or alternatively, you can always post your Hotpod door to me and I will get it straight back to you with new glass and ropes.

NOTE:
These steps are applicable to Hotpod Limited and Unlimited stoves. The Nautipod is very similar to do but only has rope underneath the glass.

Finally, I send all glass out with the door rope also, which goes on the stove side of the door and is glued into place. You can use rope glue from a stove shop, or, as I do, high temperature silicone sealant. First remove the old rope and any old glue or silicone, then apply a thin (2-3mm ish) bead of glue or silicone to the clean groove and then press the rope in firmly ensuring that the ends meet ( the rope can be stretched or compressed a little whilst fitting). If your Hotpod is an early Limited Edition Hotpod, then there may not be a rope groove to put it in. It was a later development.

Custom Stove project

My Floating Home on More 4

Last April, I got a call from an old friend asking if I could help a young couple make a stove for their Dutch Barge.
They were being filmed for a Channel 4 programme called ‘My Floating Home’ which was following their conversion of a Dutch Barge into their London Home.

Charles and Ani are a very hands on couple who really wanted to do as much as possible themselves and had some radical ideas. They wanted to make their own stove and were pointed in my direction for advice and workshop facilities. And who wouldn’t want an excuse to come and stay in a VW camper van in St Ives for a weekend?
They stayed on the garden in a spare camper and came with Matt the camera man who was also van camping at the other end of town.

In one weekend we designed and built the stove which we Christened the NautiBuoy as it was made from a trawl net roller which Dan Snr had found washed up on a beach about 30 years ago ( so not strictly a buoy but we thought the name was good) and a splendid Brass porthole which Charles and Ani had found in a marine salvage yard in Exeter.

The pedestal that the Pod stands on was the tube we cut out of the center to start with. These trawl net rollers are made from 10mm thick steel so they are absolutely perfect for a stove which will outlive all of us.
We replaced the glass of the porthole with Heat resistant ceramic glass and made an air wash air control in a Hotpod style.

I wasn’t sure how it would work so when it worked beautifully on the test firing on camera we were all understandable stoked. Its a very lovely thing and is a perfect fit on the barge especially with the Cor-ten steel surround Charles and Ani made for it.

The programme is being aired on More4 on Tuesday the 17th April at 9pm and you can see the series trailer here: