Home &Lifestyle | PAGE 43 Four decades of knowledge at Bairnsdale Stoves Heaters & BBQs Established in 1977, Ray and Lily Collins and the team at Bairnsdale Stoves Heaters & BBQs have four decades of knowledge behind them and expertise superior to any other in regards to wood heating and cooking. Servicing Victoria through to New South Wales, they are the experts in helping you choose the right wood heater and cooking options for your home. Ray, Lily and the team boast the largest range of cookers, wood heaters and gas log fires in Gippsland, with more than 70 different models on display. But they don't just sell wood heaters and barbecues. A big part of the business is installation, servicing, reconditioning and manufacturing. Their full cooker and heater reconditioning service takes place in their Bairnsdale factory including sandblasting; heater door repairs service – new glass, seals, handles, glass channels and painting; and fan repairs or replacement. Need a spare part? They have that covered, too. "We are known to stock the largest range of quality spare parts in Victoria and get requests Australia wide," Ray and Lily said. Spare parts range from firebricks, grates, tops, flue boxes, water boilers and hot plates to baffles, liners for hundreds of old cookers, heaters and current models. And if they don't have it, they can probably make it. "We have been making up a vast range of patterns and moulds to make parts that no longer exist that are cast in Victorian foundries," Ray said. With 40 years in the industry, Ray and Lily have seen trends come and go, and the cost of energy appears to be influencing current tendencies. "We find people are turning back to wood cooking," Lily said. "The trend on some of the wood heaters is to have the option to cook on and to heat hot water to help with their energy needs." Their best advice for getting the most out of your wood heater or barbecue is "use dry wood". If your wood is wet, or green, it will burn cooler and potential heat energy will be used up in the evaporation of the moisture in the wet wood. There's also the added danger of creosote build up from the unburned gases of the wet wood, which has the capacity to develop into a dangerous chimney fire as the creosote is highly combustible. Not only that, its corrosive properties will seriously shorten the life span of your chimney or flue. Use your heater correctly and you'll have years of enjoyment out of it. "We know of products that go back over 50 years and are still in use," Lily said. For all your wood heater and cooking needs, head to Bairnsdale Wood Heaters and BBQs in the knowledge that you're dealing with a team that prides itself on honesty, integrity, and top quality products and workmanship, all backed by decades of knowledge and experience in the trade. You'll Find the family business at 257 Great Alpine Road, Bairnsdale, at the top of the hill, next door to Bairnsdale Windscreens on the Bruthen side of town.
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