[Stoves] advice for chimney wood stove for rural Burkina Faso

[Anand Karve]

Dear Crispin,
the Government of India started in 1984 a programme called National
Programme on Improved Cookstoves. At that time, the emphasis was on saving
wood through high efficiency. One ensured clean indoor air by providing a
chimney to the stove. In fact all the stove models approved under this
programme had a chimney. The world-wide emphasis on cleaner burning of the
fuel came after the year 2000, but by that time, the programme started by
the Government of India was no longer in existence. The agencies created
for stove testing and stove approval died a natural death after the end of
this programme. However, there are still some Government programmes, such
as free housing for the rural poor, clean village programme etc. in which
it is mandatory to install the so called improved cookstoves in every
house. But the implementing agencies only install models that were approved
under the National Programme on Improved Cookstoves, and even in the case
of privately funded stoves programmes, the funding agencies insist
on certified models (i.e.older models with chimney). The more mordern
stoves based on the principle of Rocket stove, TLUD stove and fan stove get
neither sponsors nor government's approval. As a result, the modern
stoves, do not get widely propagated. In the case of a typical rural
householder, a cleanly burning, modern stove is the last item he would
spend his money on. He would rather spend it on a mobile phone, television
or a motor cycle.
Yours
A.D.Karve

On Tue, Feb 7, 2012 at 1:14 PM, Crispin Pemberton-Pigott <
crispinpigott at gmail.com> wrote:

>  Dear AD****
>
> ** **
>
> Your story is not very unusual. It is unfortunate that people produce
> stoves that have chimneys, but are not actually clean-burning. My point is
> that just because one produces a chimney stove is no excuse not to use that
> additional expense to create the draft needed to completely burn the fuel.
> Astonishing really. ****
>
> ** **
>
> I wonder if there is too much emphasis on ‘clean indoor air’ without
> enough emphasis on ‘not needing to worry about clean indoor air’ in the
> first place. ****
>
> ** **
>
> That level of deposition is depressing. I heard about a stove being
> produced in the tea country high in Kenya which is used for space heating
> and cooking, According to the designer the 3 inch chimney would clog after
> three months. That is ridiculous! What kind of crummy combustion is that?*
> ***
>
> ** **
>
> A chimney is as good as a fan – especially 3.5 metres. Fan stoves are
> supposed to be really clean or you have not done a good job. Shoving bad
> combustion outside does not solve much. The situation in Ulaanbaatar is
> exactly like that. No one has a stove without a chimney. The air outside is
> so polluted that it is contaminating the air drawn into the homes. So the
> chimney solved nothing – the problem is the stove.****
>
> ** **
>
> Your grate price is good! I think we should be  jealous! It would be so
> nice to be able to get good parts in cast iron.****
>
> ** **
>
> Thanks****
>
> Crispin****
>
> ** **
>
> ** **
>
> Dear Crispin,****
>
> the grate costs about a dollar each, whereas a 3.5 m long chimney having a
> diameter of about 8 cm costs about US$6. Formerly, these chimneys were mass
> produced as water pipes, but nowadays people use plastic pipes for water.
> There is only one manufacturer in our state who makes the cement chimneys,
> and about 15% of them are found to be broken on arrival. Fixing the
> chimneys is a tricky business, because one has to make a hole into the
> ceiling or the roof of the house. If this hole is not properly sealed,
> rainwater drips through it. After using it for about 3 months, the chimney
> generally gets choked with tar, which is very difficult to remove. Once
> that happens, the stove produces more smoke than the traditional stove used
> to produce, and disgusted, the housewife removes the improved stove along
> with the chimney. We have recently installed our chimneyless stoves in
> about 1000 households under a special programme funded by Cummins (India)
> Ltd. These stoves are now in operation for almost a year and there are no
> complaints.****
>
> Yours****
>
> A.D.Karve****
>
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-- 
***
Dr. A.D. Karve
Trustee & Founder President, Appropriate Rural Technology Institute (ARTI)
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