Range Cookers in the Sustainable Home

Aga is possibly the ‘Hoover’ of the range cooker world. The company started making them in 1948 and has been producing solid cast iron cookers for the country home ever since. It now manufactures the Rayburn and Rangemaster ranges as well and, together with Heritage and Lacanche, their attractiveness is unarguable. Ranges have a size and scale that few other cookers can deliver; they demonstrate a certain status and their price alone puts them firmly in the luxury bracket. They can provide cooking, heating and hot water in a single package and are the warm beating heart of a country home.

But are they sustainable? What are the issues for the eco-conscious self-builder? The answer has to come in two parts — the machine itself and its fuel efficiency.

CAST IRON TECHNOLOGY

Range cookers, by which we include Aga, Rayburn, Heritage, Lacanche and the like, are all made principally from cast iron, which is a highly sustainable material. Apart from there being a lot of iron in the world, it requires relatively little energy to process and is highly recyclable. Rayburn advertises that its products contain 70% recycled material — which sounds a lot but is far from uncommon for cast iron products. In most cases this type of appliance is 100% recyclable.

Cast iron technology also offers a long life. These cookers are advertised as “lasting a lifetime” and it is quite easy to think of examples of ranges that Grandma had installed. Long-life, low-maintenance, low-energy materials are exactly what sustainability is all about.

UNSUSTAINABLE FUELS

Range stoves can run on the full range of available fuels: electricity, natural gas, propane, butane, gas-oil, coal, wood, and even bio-diesel. The electrically powered models look very convenient but have a truly horrific CO2 output. Grid electricity is about 23% efficient (that is, only 23% of the energy entering the power station is delivered to the home). The appliance itself can range from about 64% efficient, rising to 82% or even 90%, but at best just 20% of the energy entering the power station is actually used by the cooker — though the user is responsible for 100% of the CO2 emissions. ‘Green’ electricity suppliers and clever controls like Aga’s Intelligent Management System can go some way to addressing this but doubts must remain over using electricity in this way.

Just staying on the efficiency issue, the Rayburn Cookmaster 400K runs on oil and is a cooker only. It takes some two hours (according to Rayburn’s figures) to cook a meal, and consumes 2.8 litres of fuel in that time. Aga also manufactures the Rangemaster range of contemporary cookers and the Classic 90 model, as a comparator, runs on gas and will consume the equivalent of around one litre of oil to cook the same meal. The cost difference will be something like £1.26 to 40p.

The reason is that the Cookmaster needs to heat the whole cooker (and the kitchen come to that) before it is ready to cook the food. With the Classic 90, like all conventional cookers, light the flame and you are ready to cook. It can be said that the Cookmaster removes the need for kettles, toasters and even tumble dryers, if you are happy to have laundry hanging in the kitchen. And maybe that is exactly the attraction of an Aga — that it is warm all day. People buying a range cooker are not usually penny-pinching. They are not bothered that it costs three times as much to cook a meal, but increasingly they are bothered about the environmental impact.

IS THERE A SUSTAINABLE OPTION?

Rayburn offers a small range of solid fuel-fired cookers. Specifically, the 345W model runs only on wood and as such qualifies as a renewable fuel appliance and attracts VAT at only 5% — for the machine and installation. Apart from the obvious issues around stoking the fire and emptying the ash can, this is a carbon-neutral and cheap fuel that is truly renewable. Similarly, Heritage suggests that its oil-fired cookers can run on bio-diesel, which can be as much as twice the price of standard heating oil but again is a carbon-neutral fuel.

Aga says, and has for some time, that it is developing a unit to run on vegetable oil, but as yet it is not available. Apparently the reason is that there is no national standard for the quality of the oil and no national supply network. Which, given the current state of the bio-diesel industry in the UK, implies we will be waiting a long time.

WE NEED SUSTAINABLE RANGES

The evidence seems overwhelming. Self-builders are increasingly aware of the need for sustainability: it is they that turn up to the seminars; it is they that buy the books on green building; and it is they that are leading the way with domestic-scale renewable energy. It is also they that want to buy Agas, Rayburns, Heritage and Lacanche etc. stoves. Is it too much to ask these large, international companies to organise themselves to deliver their high-quality, recyclable products to run on sustainable fuels?

MORE THAN A COOKER

Range cookers not only cook, but are also able to provide hot water and central heating. There are three main types: stored heat cookers, which are left on at all times, ready for cooking at any moment; singleburners, which produce large amounts of instant heat (they do not need to be on constantly though you won’t benefit from year-round heat); and twinburners which let you run the hot water and central heating without heating the cooker.

Comment from Aga Rayburn
H&R asked leading range cooker manufacturer Aga Rayburn for an industry perspective on our findings. Their response is below:

Agas and Rayburns have been central to the plans of thousands of customers undertaking homebuilding and renovation projects for over 80 years and we’re committed to continuing to innovate and develop our products to make use of all suitable forms of energy as they become available at affordable levels. We’ve already made huge progress, but will never rest on our laurels.

Further reading:

• A Buyer's Guide to Range Cookers
• A Buyer's Guide to Cooker Hoods
• How to Remodel Your Kitchen