Esse 990 CH User manual

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS
MODEL: 990 CH

Your Esse 990 is a combination appliance
provi ing a hot plate, 2 ovens of ifferent
temperature, room heat an a high output boiler.
The hinge hob covers are referre to as bolster
li s an finishe in stainless steel. They are
esigne to re uce heat losses an therefore fuel
use from the appliance when not cooking, an
buil up or conserve higher hotplate temperatures
for when cooking is require .
A amper is fitte to the flue connector.
Safety Notes Page 2
Before Using Your Cooker Page 3
Controls Page 3
Lighting an Controlling the Cooker Page 4
Cooking On The Hotplate Page 4
General A vice Page 4
Important Notice Page 4
Cooking in the Ovens Page 5
Ash Removal Page 5
Types of Fuel Page 6
The Woo Burning Process Page 6
Operating Tips Page 7
What Type of Woo is Best Page 7
The Importance of a Healthy Flue Page 8
Cleaning the Flue Ways Page 9-11
Cleaning the Exit Flue Page 11
INTRODUCTION
Please refer to Installation Instructions manual to ensure appliance has been correctly installe an is
connecte to a suitable flue. Failure to o so will seriously inhibit the cooker’s performance an coul be
potentially fatal.
Properly installe , operate an maintaine , this appliance will not emit fumes into the welling. However
occasional fumes from eashing an re-fuelling may occur. Persistent fume emission is potentially
angerous an must not be tolerate . If fume emission persists, open oors an win ows to ventilate the
room. Let the fire burn out or eject an safely ispose of fuel from the appliance. Once the fire is col ,
check the flue an chimney for blockages an clean if require . Do not attempt to relight the fire until the
cause of the fume emission has been i entifie an correcte . Seek expert a vice if necessary.
An a equate air supply for combustion an ventilation is essential. Air openings provi e for this purpose
must not be restricte . Also if simultaneous operation of other heating appliances is require within the
kitchen ensure that there is sufficient ventilation. Shoul it be likely that chil ren, age or infirm people
approach the appliance whilst the fire oor is open then a fireguar manufacture in accor ance with BS
6539 shoul be use . Also warn chil ren not to sit or stan on the appliance or use it as a stool or step to
access cupboar s or shelves above the appliance.
Avoi the use of aerosol sprays in the vicinity of the cooker when it is in operation an o not heat any
unopene airtight con-tainers.
Ensure that precautions are taken when eep fat frying, never leave the appliance unatten e an ensure
you have fire safety equipment available such as a fire blanket in case of emergency.
When operating the ESSE 990 CH use the tools provi e an follow these instructions carefully.
SAFETY NOTES
CONTENTS
2
Flue damper closed Flue damper open
Fig.1

OVEN/BOILER DAMPER
When in the ‘oven’ position (fully clockwise) the heat is irecte to the hotplates an ovens, enabling fast
heat up of these areas an re uce hot water.
When in the ‘boiler’ position (fully anti-clockwise) the heat is irecte through the boiler heat exchanger
for maximum hot water output.
Consequently, oven an hotplate temperatures will be slower to heat up when in boiler mo e.
BOILER THERMOSTAT
The thermostat controls the burning rate of the fire an hence the boiler output. The minimum setting is
60°c when turne fully anticlockwise, an the maximum water temperature is 90°c when fully clockwise.
Water temperature between the minimum an maximum can be chosen by turning the ial accor ingly.
When the thermostat senses that the boiler is at the correct temperature, it will close the air intake an
re uce the burning rate of the fire.
FLUE DAMPER (fig. 1)
Open the amper (push away from you) when lighting or refuelling the fire. Only close the amper once
the fire is warm.
SHAKING GRATE
To e-ash the grate, open the ash oor an using the tool supplie , push an pull the ri ling grate
vigorously several times, causing loose ash to fall into the ash pan.
FLUE BOX DOOR SCREW CONTROL
Fully or partially opening the flue box oor by win ing the screw in will re uce the flue pull on the fire
an thus exten burning times. Its effect is epen ant upon prevailing flue con itions which may vary
accor ing to win an weather. If there is any sign of smoke leakage from this control, ensure it is close .
3
Ensure that any plastic film use to protect surfaces has been remove from the bolster li s an from
the insi e of oven oors. The hotplate has been coate with oil at the factory to prevent rusting an
therefore will require wiping with a amp cloth an rying with a tea towel or kitchen roll.
CHIMNEY AND FLUE INFORMATIONYOUR COOKERCHIMNEY AND FLUE INFORMATION
BEFORE USING YOUR COOKER
CONTROLS
IMPORTANT NOTE
The boiler thermostat is the primary evice for controlling the burning rate of the cooker
an must be turne to maximum to achieve high oven temperatures, with the oven/boiler
amper control in the ‘oven’ position.

Reloa the fire with small logs or smokeless soli fuel. You may experience smoke back out of the firebox
when reloa ing as the chimney may still be in the process of warming up.
Allow the fuel to start to burn an when appropriate continue to refuel, buil ing up the size of firebe .
When refuelling is require , open the oor slowly to minimise the risk of smoke an flames escaping.
Once the fire is well establishe , close the flue amper by moving the lever towar s you.
Your cooker shoul not be use as an incinerator an only recommen e fuels are to be use .
Open flue amper by moving the lever away from you.
Open the fire oor an using either rolle up paper or a firelighter on top of which small sticks of ry
kin ling woo has been place , light the fire. Depen ing on how well the chimney is pulling, close or
partially close the oor until the kin ling is well alight.
The hotplate is a heavy iron casting, machine flat on the cooking surface. Heat up from col or low
temperature can be achieve quite quickly with a fast burning fire. Leave the bolster li s own to allow
the hotplate to warm up. Once hot, the hotplate will retain temperature for long perio s even as the fire
burns own.
Machine base pans are essential, as heat transfers by con uction. Wipe the hotplate regularly to remove
anything that might interfere with the contact between the hotplate an the base of the pan.
The hotplate is hottest to the left, over the fire, the temperature ecreasing towar s the right.
Always keep the bolster li s own when not using the hotplate.
Foo may be cooke irectly on the hotplate, for example gri le scones, burgers, steaks an Welsh
Rarebit. Eggs can be cooke on the hotplate with the li close to cook evenly, similarly brea may be
toaste un er the bolster li . Bake-o-lite paper is useful to ensure the hotplate remains clean in such
instances.
COOKING ON THE HOTPLATE
It is important to un erstan how a woo or soli fuel heating system works an its limitations. Before
specifying your cooker you will have assesse your heating requirements an calculate the heating loa for
your system, or how much heat is require to heat the hot water an ra iators to which you are connecting
the cooker. The plumbing must ensure a minimum return water temperature of 56 c, otherwise the boiler
face will become covere in tar. If the water in the boiler is not above this temperature, the boiler over cools
the fire which prevents effective combustion. This is inefficient as not all the available heat is release from
the fuel an furthermore the tar (the unburne fuel) clogs the flue ways in the cooker an insulates the
boiler, resulting in less effective heat transfer. I eally, a Boiler Control Unit will have been installe , which is
the most effective solution to maintaining a correct return water temperature.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
LIGHTING AND CONTROLLING THE COOKER
Always use a heat proof glove when opening an closing oors, as han les an surfaces will be hot.
Take care when hanging towels etc from the rail, particularly in front of the firebox. The oors shoul
generally remain close for safety.
GENERAL ADVICE
4

Choice of fue
Shoul you burn smokeless fuel or woo ? If you are locate in a smoke control zone, then you have to burn
an approve smokeless fuel. The boiler output will be higher with soli fuel than woo . Soli fuel is a more
concentrate energy source, therefore it is possible to loa the firebox with more potential energy in the form
of soli fuel than woo . It will also burn a longer perio without refuelling for the same reason.
When burning soli fuel it is important to e-ash the grate prior to refuelling, to ensure maximum airflow
through the be of coals, whereas with woo it is preferable to leave the firebox un isturbe an allow ash to
buil up on the grate. To minimise the chance of the cooker smoking back when you refuel, before opening
the fire oor open the flue amper an set the oven/boiler control to the oven mo e. Allow a minute or two
for the airflow within the appliance to stabilise, then slowly open the fire oor an refuel. If you encounter
frequent smoking back, have the chimney raught checke to ensure it is a minimum of 0.6”wg. check the
flueways in the cooker have not become blocke with soot or tar, similarly the flue an chimney.
COOKING IN THE OVENS
The cooker has 2 ovens. Please refer to the table for comparable temperature gui es in egrees Centigra e.
Temperatures given are approximate an base on refuelling soli fuel at approximately 1.4kg hour, with
cooker set to ‘oven’ mo e, flue raught 0.07” w.g.
Opening the flue amper will allow heat to pass irectly to the chimney via the left si e of the hotplate,
useful for boosting the hotplate temperature without increasing the main oven temperature if require .
The temperature ial on the main oven oor provi es an in ication of the oven temperature (See Fig.2) an
by comparison the temperature of the a jacent oven. Since the ial is in the oor, the thermometer will
register a lower temperature when the oor is opene although the oven itself will not loose temperature
so quickly. The ial can take a short time to register the correct temperature once the oor is again close .
The ovens are all of equal epth an each is equippe with wire shelves which can be set to the esire
height. The shelves have anti-pull out stops on their en s to prevent them from being pulle out
ina vertently; to remove a shelf, pull forwar until the stop is reache , then lift at the front an pull out
of the oven. Use reverse proce ure to refit. If the shelves pull straight out then they are in back to front!
Main Lower Hotp ate Hotp ate
oven oven (hottest) (coo est)
80 mins from lighting 190 120 400 140
Normal running 200 140 320 220
5
ASH REMOVAL
When burning woo , only remove small
amounts of ash from the grate, leaving i eally
30mm epth of ash in the bottom for best
performance.
When burning soli fuel, e-ash regularly.
Fig.2

TYPES OF FUEL
SEASONING AND STORING FIREWOOD
Woo , which has recently been cut an is still full of sap an water is known as "green" woo .
Greenwoo will generally burn poorly an inefficiently, because it can have over 50% water in its cells.
It may be har to light, smoul er, not put out any heat an cause more than the usual amount of
creosote to buil up in your chimney.
So your aim shoul be to ry the woo out to below 25% moisture content, this process is calle
seasoning. As the name im-plies, you shoul store your woo for a season or so, while it ries, but there
are things you can o to spee up seasoning by cutting the woo now rather than just before you use it.
Woo is compose of bun les of microscopic tubes that were use to transport water from the roots of
the tree to the leaves. These tubes will stay full of water for years even after a tree is ea . This is why it
is so important to have your firewoo cut to length for 6 months or more before you burn it, it gives this
water a chance to evaporate since the tube en s are finally open an the water only has to migrate a
foot or two to escape. Splitting the woo helps too by exposing more surface area to the sun an win ,
but cutting the woo to shorter lengths is of primary importance.
Here’s how you can tell whether your woo is rea y or not: Well seasone firewoo generally has
arkene en s with cracks or splits visible, it is relatively lightweight, an makes a clear "clunk" when
two pieces are beat together. Green woo on the other han is very heavy, the en s look fresher, an it
ten s to make a ull "thu " when struck.
Another thing you can o to help is store your woo properly. Store if off the groun by buil ing the pile on
some longer logs (or whatever metho you can evise). A she or shelter with an open si e makes an i eal
storage place, as the air can circulate aroun the logs an help to ry them out. Unventilate spaces or
plastic tarps, which never get taken off will prevent the rying an evaporation process an cause moul s
an rot. So, if a tarp is your only option, take it off frequently to air the woo on fine ays. An remember to
put it back on again. Seasone firewoo will reabsorb large amounts of water if expose to rain, snow an
excessive ew, which is liable to make it rot an be unfit for making a goo fire.
When you buil up a store of firewoo , remember that the woo may start to eteriorate after 4 to 5
years, although this is of course variable an epen ing on storage con itions an species involve .
6
THE WOOD BURNING PROCESS
Un erstan ing what happens when woo is burnt will enable you to burn woo in a more environmentally
frien ly way, re uce the maintenance require for your chimney an get more out of your woo . There are
3 stages in the woo -burning process:
Evaporation
When you light the cooker a lot of energy will be nee e at first to boil away any moisture, which is left
in the woo . Using energy to rive off excess water in firewoo robs the cooker of energy nee e for an
efficient an clean burn. Also, much of the energy waste in evaporating water is energy that coul have
heate the hot-plate an ovens. This is a waste of woo , money an effort. The presence of all that
moisture ten s to keep "putting out" the fire, an therefore making it burn very poorly, which ten s to
pro uce a lot of creosote an pollution.
Emissions
As the heat of the fire intensifies, waste-gases (smoke) are release from the woo .
Unburne smoke is emitte into the air either as pollution, or con ense in the chimney causing
creosote buil -up. It takes time for the air in your chimney to heat up. When it is still col you get an
effect similar to the con ensation of hot breath on a col er win ow or mirror. So when the by-pro ucts
of combustion (smoke in the form of gases) exit the cooker, an flow up into the relatively cooler
chimney, con ensation occurs.

7
OPERATING TIPS
By taking time to get to know your cooker, following our maintenance gui elines an using goo quality
fire-woo you shoul enjoy trouble free operation of your Woo fire cooker but it is also worth bearing
in min these useful operating tips:
• Don’t leave the cooker lit for long perio s in slumbere own mo e (as you woul for overnight
burning), open the air control an bank up the fire perio ically to heat up the cooker an flue
to prevent soot buil up.
The resulting resi ue that sticks to the inner walls of the chimney is calle creosote. Creosote is forme
by unburne , flammable particulates present in the smoke. It is black or brown in appearance. It can be
crusty an flaky, tar-like, rippy an sticky or shiny an har ene . Quite often, all forms will occur in one
chimney system.
If the woo you are using is water logge , or green, the fire will ten to smoul er an not warm the
chimney sufficiently. Wet woo causes the whole system to be cool, an inefficient. In contrast: ry
woo means a hot fire, which results in a hot flue, an a hot flue means much less creosote clogging up
your chimney.
Charcoa
When most of the tar an gasses have burne the remaining substance is charcoal (ash in it’s finer
form). A hot be of charcoals an ash can enhance the combustion process when burning larger
pieces of woo . Start with a small fire to evelop a be of glowing embers. As the charcoal be
evelops an the cooker heats up, slowly a larger an larger pieces of woo . It takes time to buil
a goo charcoal be , but it is well worth the effort. only empty excess ash perio ically an always
leave a be of ash on which to light the next fire.
WHAT TYPE OF WOOD IS BEST
The ifference between 'har ' an 'soft' woo s is the ensity of their cells or fibres.
As a general rule, the eci uous trees (those that lose their leaves in the autumn) are usually thought of
as har woo s an the evergreen trees (such as pines, firs an larches) as the softwoo s. But
generalisations are of course always subject to many exceptions. Some evergreens may well be har er
than some eci uous trees. Birch, for example, is not very har at all. So we shoul un erstan that
there is a whole range of ensi-ties amongst our tree species, inclu ing me ium ense woo s, which
cannot be satisfactorily classe as har or soft.
Firewoo ten s to be sol by volume rather than weight. Assuming that the woo is reasonably ry, the
weight of a square foot of goo har woo may be ouble of that of a square foot of softwoo . This
means that the same volume of har woo will provi e you with more fuel to burn than an equal
amount of softwoo , simply because it contains more substance.
(N.B. The price of har woo will normally not be ouble that of softwoo , because it took the same
amount of labour to prepare. So, if a trailer full of har woo costs more than the same size trailer full of
softwoo , the more expensive option may well be the most economical.)
The other a vantage of goo har firewoo s are that the cooker oes not nee to be fe as often an
the charcoal-be s ma e by the glowing woo may burn more easily overnight.
However, the i eal situation woul be to have a store of both har an soft woo s, because the softer
woo s also have istinct a vantages. They light more easily than the slower burning har woo s an if
the softwoo s are ry, they create a hotter, more intense fire. The raught create by the hotter fire
moves the air up the chimney faster.

8
After rea ing the notes opposite about the burning process, you will un erstan that means less
pollution in the form of smoke an less creosote con ensation in your chimney.
The enser har woo s ten to smoul er more easily when the fire is lit first, so their flue gas
temperature will be much cooler.
Because softwoo s like pine an larch contain a lot of resins an pitch, a popular misconception is that
they will fur up the chimney with creosote more easily than a har woo like oak. This is not necessarily
true at all. It is not the pitch that is the problem, it's the water IN the pitch. Once the water in the woo
has evapo-rate , that pitch becomes high octane fuel! When ry, softwoo s burn extremely hot!
There is also the matter of seasoning to be consi ere . When you buy woo , it will usually have been cut
in the winter of the year you buy it. Har woo s ten to take longer than softwoo s to fully ry out.
Softwoo s cut in the previous winter shoul , with proper storage, be rea y to burn the next autumn,
where-as many har woo s may take a bit longer than that. Oak, for example, is very slow to ry out an
i eally left for two years. It is also possible to purchase pre seasone woo .
Summarising we can say that it is always sensible to buy this year for next years fuel supply an that it is
very han y to have both soft an har woo s. You can use the softwoo s to start a goo fire an you
will have a itional control over the fire (in a ition to the cookers controls) by a ing slower burning
woo to fast ones if you want to leave the cooker without ten ing it for a while. Alternatively you can
a some fast burning softwoo logs to the slower har woo logs to instantly revive a fire, which has
been neglecte .
THE IMPORTANCE OF A HEALTHY FLUE
The successful operation of your range cooker is entirely epen ent on the a equate performance (pull) of
the chimney or flue to which it is connecte . The following maintenance gui elines will be pointless unless
the flue is also maintaine an cleane regularly. How often it nee s cleaning will epen on the quality
an moisture content of the woo you burn but an annual clean is recommen e . A partially blocke or
irty flue can have isastrous implications for an otherwise perfectly installe cooker as can be seen below.
Cooker A has been use regularly for over a year following these maintenance gui elines an with a clean
flue rawing correctly. Cooker B was just 6 weeks ol when the picture was taken an shows how quickly
tar eposits will buil up if the flue performance is poor an clogge with ol soot as it was in this case.
(N.B. Cooker shown for illustration is not a 990 CH)
Fig.3

9
Goo raft & clean flue = efficient woo burning,
clear flue ways, minimal soot an no tar eposits.
Poor raft & irty flue = inefficient woo burning,
blocke flue ways, lots of soot an tar eposits.
Cooker A Cooker B
CLEANING THE FLUE WAYS - Every 3 months
Always carry out cleaning proce ures when the cooker is out an has been allowe to cool sufficiently to
avoi burns. With time an experience you will be able to gauge the intervals between flue way cleaning
more accurately. It will vary epen ing on the quality of your firewoo an performance of your flue.
Take time to get to know your cooker an inspect it at regular intervals for the first 6 months. We
recommen that a flue brush of the type shown below (Fig 5) is use to clean the flue ways. Its flexible
wire han le is i eal for pushing the brush hea roun ben s an into narrow spaces.
HOT PLATE AND PRIMARY FLUE WAY
Remove the hotplate securing screws an use the hotplate lifting tools (Fig 4) that came with your
cooker to remove the hotplate an if require give the surfaces un er the hotplate an above the
firebox an top oven a light scrub with a wire brush an vacuum out any ebris.
Fig.4 Fig.5

10
Fig.6
Lightly brush surfaces with
a wire brush an vacuum
up ebris. Lift hotplate
with care an place on
newspaper or an ol sheet.
Fig.7
Fig.8
Fig.9
FLUE BOX AND REAR FLUE WAY
Remove the front of the flue connector
box an insert the flue brush from left to
right, angling the brush own at 45°.
Once you fin the flue way entrance push
the brush own until it stops then gently
but firmly pull back an forth 3 or 4 times
then remove the brush. Dislo ge soot
will fall into the tray between the ovens.
RIGHT SIDE FLUE WAY
Next insert the brush at a shallow angle as shown above. The brush will nee to turn 90° into the
flueway so stea y pressure will be nee e to help the brush hea roun the ben . Once in, work the
brush up an own an front to back as the flue way runs along the entire epth of the ovens. Again,
soot will fall into the trap between the ovens.