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Gondwana Green Heat — home

A Property in West Linton

They knew one thing for certain: the smelly oil boiler had to go.

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Masonry stove, thermal store & solar thermal

Working out what actually fits

Our clients had just bought a home in West Linton after deciding it was time to leave Auld Reekie behind and head for the countryside with their dogs. Like many of our customers they had done plenty of online research but were unsure which green heating system was right for them.

We spent time talking through all the options — pellet stoves, boiler stoves, solar thermal, outside pellet boilers — and then worked through the practical considerations.

As often happens, the choice narrowed naturally once we considered the compact living accommodation and the limited outside space. Three realistic options remained: a small pellet boiler stove, a boiler stove, or a masonry stove with a back boiler for hot water.

Initially a pellet stove seemed the most convenient — efficient, clean, easy to run. But they wanted something simpler, something that could work with no electricity, and ideally something they could cook on. That left a boiler stove or a masonry stove.

The practical questions

What narrowed it down

  • How big is the equipment?

  • How efficient is it?

  • Will it fit in that cupboard?

  • Where is it made?

  • Can we service it, or does it need specialist support?

  • How long will it last?

The answer

A masonry stove, and a panel for the summer

In the end the masonry stove was the perfect fit. It offered:

  • Simple, reliable operation
  • Whole‑home heating with no radiators or electricity
  • Enough hot water via the back boiler
  • Long, even heat release
  • A timeless, natural aesthetic

To complement it we installed a solar thermal panel to provide hot water through the sunnier months, so the masonry stove would not need lighting in summer.

The flexible chimney liner being fed into the opened chimney breast
The flexible chimney liner being fed into the opened chimney breast

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The custom copper thermal store, plumbed in on the first floor

The thermal store

Built to our specification

A compact, high‑performance store built for this house by MacDonald Engineering of Fife.

  • Copper construction
  • 180‑litre capacity with vented header tank
  • 100mm insulation, full case
  • Solar thermal coil
  • Overheat “scorch” coil
  • 240V / 3kW immersion
  • Dedicated ports for the masonry stove and towel rail
  • Further ports for future‑proofing — heat pump, more solar

The stove itself is an E678 by Ecco Stove, with an additional masonry layer carrying a stainless‑steel heat exchanger, on a bespoke flamed hearth designed to suit the interior.

The fireplace opened back to its original builder’s opening, before the liner went in

Ten days on site

And one near‑disaster

We opened the fireplace back to its original builder’s opening, re‑lined the chimney with a multi‑fuel flexible liner and back‑filled with LECA insulation. A new basalt stone hearth was laid, the stove built and commissioned, and the 180‑litre copper store installed on the first floor with a towel rail added in the bathroom. Then to the roof for the Kingspan evacuated tube collector.

During the lining stage we found the liner would not pass a section of flue. Opening the wall upstairs revealed a tight bend with years of tar build‑up that had reduced the flue to half its size. We removed the blockage, rebuilt the section and plastered the wall — apart from a coat of paint, you would never know.

They also asked for a small wood‑burning stove in the bedroom.

Performance

In the owners’ words: “Fab.”

  • Heats the home without electricity
  • Provides domestic hot water year‑round
  • Uses solar thermal in summer
  • Requires minimal maintenance
  • Is ready for additional renewable inputs

All major components are made in the UK.

We have used Gondwana Green Heat for a number of projects to convert our home to renewable fuels and we could not be happier with the work. From our first meeting we were impressed by the very non‑sales and down to earth approach, and really appreciated that our needs had been listened to carefully. The attention to detail and desire to give us the best advice and results was second to none.

The owners, West Linton

Thinking about a similar system?

If you are exploring options or simply do not know where to start, we are always happy to work through ideas and compare technologies.

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