Namibian comes up with winning design

PARAFFIN stoves are a cheap and effective solution for campers and people living without electricity, but they have always been a dangerous option.

Not any more. A new and completely safe paraffin stove, called Parasave, is now available in Namibia.The stove is apparently the brainchild of a Namibian, but one who does not want any publicity.According to the local distributor of the stoves, Cheryl Ilgmann-Frost, the Namibian inventor designed the stove in response to President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s call for a safe stove to prevent the loss of lives caused by shack fires.The inventor sold the patent rights, however, as he could not find a manufacturer locally.A company in Vietnam is now making the Parasave stoves.The stove takes 2,8 litres of paraffin and is 40 per cent more fuel-efficient than other paraffin stoves.It can cook for 70 hours before needing a refill – thus making it unnecessary to keep a bottle of paraffin handy where it could be accidentally ingested by children.The stove can boil a litre of water in less than seven minutes and also burns cleanly, reducing carbon-monoxide emissions which can be dangerous in a confined space such as a small shack.The Parasave is a pressure stove – it has to be “pumped up” like the Primus stove of old.The safety aspect is provided by three pressure-sensitive feet, which extinguish the flame immediately if the stove is tilted or lifted.The stove has to stand on a perfectly level surface, or else it will not burn.In South Africa’s Western Cape province, municipalities are distributing Parasave stoves to people living in shacks to reduce shack fires.The stoves also proved popular among more affluent households in the Cape this winter, when power outages were frequent due to an overloaded power grid.People interested in buying a Parasave stove can phone her at 081 301 1089.The stoves cost N$300.A new and completely safe paraffin stove, called Parasave, is now available in Namibia.The stove is apparently the brainchild of a Namibian, but one who does not want any publicity.According to the local distributor of the stoves, Cheryl Ilgmann-Frost, the Namibian inventor designed the stove in response to President Hifikepunye Pohamba’s call for a safe stove to prevent the loss of lives caused by shack fires.The inventor sold the patent rights, however, as he could not find a manufacturer locally.A company in Vietnam is now making the Parasave stoves.The stove takes 2,8 litres of paraffin and is 40 per cent more fuel-efficient than other paraffin stoves.It can cook for 70 hours before needing a refill – thus making it unnecessary to keep a bottle of paraffin handy where it could be accidentally ingested by children.The stove can boil a litre of water in less than seven minutes and also burns cleanly, reducing carbon-monoxide emissions which can be dangerous in a confined space such as a small shack.The Parasave is a pressure stove – it has to be “pumped up” like the Primus stove of old.The safety aspect is provided by three pressure-sensitive feet, which extinguish the flame immediately if the stove is tilted or lifted.The stove has to stand on a perfectly level surface, or else it will not burn.In South Africa’s Western Cape province, municipalities are distributing Parasave stoves to people living in shacks to reduce shack fires.The stoves also proved popular among more affluent households in the Cape this winter, when power outages were frequent due to an overloaded power grid.People interested in buying a Parasave stove can phone her at 081 301 1089.The stoves cost N$300.