Saey Altum: Tall, Slender and Powered by Snorkel Tech

Elegant, slim, and mesmerising, the Saey Altum woodburner transforms living spaces with its vertical fire vortex and panoramic glass, bringing warmth and architectural style to modern homes.

June 12, 2014
By Reece Toscani
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Stove Spotlights

Contemporary Design with Presence

When it comes to modern woodburning stoves, few manage to blend striking design with technical innovation as seamlessly as the Saey Altum. This tall, cylindrical woodburner is as much a design statement as it is a functional heat source, and its clever Snorkel Technology sets it apart from more conventional designs. Whether you’re looking for efficiency, clean combustion, or simply a beautiful flame view, the Saey Altum stove ticks all the boxes.

At first glance, the Saey Altum woodburner stands out for its slender, cylindrical silhouette. Measuring just over 1.1 metres in height and with a footprint of around 36 cm in diameter, it is designed to fit neatly into modern interiors without dominating the room. Its large panoramic glass door, curved to match the cylindrical body, delivers a 180-degree view of the flames — perfect for homeowners who value both warmth and ambience.

Unlike box-shaped stoves, the vertical form of the Saey Altum stove draws the eye upward, making it ideal for smaller living spaces where floor area is at a premium, but visual impact is still important. It is a woodburner that looks just as good in a minimalist apartment as it does in a larger open-plan family home.

Slenderness Beyond Comparison

One of the key USPs of the Saey Altum is its remarkably slender body. With a diameter of just 362 mm, it sits firmly in the sub-400 mm category — a rare feat in wood stove design. While there are a handful of compact stoves with similar widths, few if any reach the same height as the Altum. At over 1.1 m tall, the Altum is the only stove of its scale that combines such vertical presence with such a narrow diameter.

This makes it not just a heater, but an architectural feature. Other cylindrical stoves like the Austroflamm Stila, for example, stretch taller but carry a diameter of 444 mm — noticeably wider. That extra slenderness gives the Altum a unique, almost sculptural feel, allowing it to stand tall and elegant even in tight spaces.

The Vertical Fire Vortex

The second USP is found in the way the Saey Altum stove handles its fuel. Unlike most woodburners, which are designed for logs laid horizontally, the Altum was designed to accept logs vertically in its base. The slender diameter makes this possible, with logs stacked upright rather than flat.

Here’s where the magic happens: primary air is introduced evenly from all sides at the bottom, feeding oxygen directly into the log ends. As the flames rise, this creates a swirling fire vortex effect. Instead of staring at a piece of wood slowly burning, the flames dance upward in a spiral, wrapping the log in fire.

In practice, this means you often saw only the flame, not the log. The result is one of the most mesmerising flame patterns of any stove in its class — a feature that owners often describe as hypnotic and unlike anything they’ve experienced with more conventional designs.

Snorkel Technology Explained

One of the most innovative features of the Saey Altum woodburner is its Snorkel Technology. Unlike traditional stoves that draw combustion air from inside the room, the Altum takes its air supply directly from outside.

This has several key advantages:

Improved efficiency — your heated indoor air isn’t being pulled into the firebox and lost up the chimney.
Better indoor air quality — by drawing in outside air, the stove doesn’t reduce the oxygen in your living space.
Future-proof design — modern, airtight homes benefit hugely from this system, as it ensures consistent combustion without draughts.

The result is a stove that feels more comfortable to use day-to-day, particularly in modern energy-efficient homes where air circulation is carefully balanced.

Performance and Efficiency

Beyond its unique design, the Saey Altum woodburner offers a highly capable performance. With a nominal heat output of 5 kW and a range between 3–6 kW, it comfortably heats medium-sized living rooms and snug open-plan areas. Its efficiency rating exceeds 80%, which means you’ll get more heat from every log compared to older non-Ecodesign appliances.

The Saey Altum stove has been engineered to deliver steady, controllable heat. For day-to-day use, it’s easy to light, simple to refuel, and designed to burn cleanly when paired with properly seasoned wood. That combination of efficiency and ease of use makes it as practical as it is stylish.

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Clean Burning and Easy Maintenance

The Saey Altum stove comes equipped with an airwash system, which helps keep the large glass panel clear of soot and deposits. This means you’ll enjoy an unobstructed view of the flames for longer, provided you burn dry wood with a moisture content below 20%.

Daily operation is straightforward: use kindling and the start-up air control to light, then add a log once the fire is established. For best results, running the stove at full power for around 10 minutes each day helps to clear residues from the firebox and chimney, ensuring safe and efficient performance.

Thanks to its Snorkel Technology, ash and residue are minimised, and users report that the Saey Altum woodburner is far less demanding on maintenance than older designs.

Technical Specifications

Here are the key details that make the Saey Altum stove a standout performer:

Heat output: 3–6 kW (nominal 5 kW)
Efficiency: ~81%
Dimensions: Height 1167 mm × Diameter 362 mm
Weight: Approx. 130 kg
Flue outlet: 120 mm
Fresh air inlet: 80 mm
Fuel: Seasoned logs or briquettes (max. 25–30 cm length)
Combustion air consumption: ~25 m³/h at nominal power
Warranty: 6 years

A Stove for Modern Living

The Saey Altum woodburner is more than just a heat source. It is a design statement that reflects contemporary living: energy-efficient, environmentally conscious, and architecturally stylish. Its tall, slim body makes it particularly appealing for those who want a stove that complements rather than crowds their room layout.

For families, the large glass window means the stove becomes a natural focal point — a place to gather, relax, and enjoy the spectacle of real flames. For eco-conscious homeowners, the Saey Altum stove offers the reassurance of clean combustion, external air supply, and high efficiency.

The Saey Altum combines elegance, performance, and forward-thinking technology. Its slim cylindrical body ensures it can fit into a wide range of modern interiors, while its Snorkel Technology makes it a smart choice for energy-efficient homes. Most importantly, its slender diameter and vertical fire vortex effect are features that truly set it apart in the crowded stove market. With high efficiency, a comfortable 5 kW output, and a panoramic flame view, this is a woodburner that proves you don’t have to compromise between looks and performance.

If you are in the market for a stove that blends cutting-edge functionality with contemporary design, the Saey Altum woodburner deserves a closer look.

About This Spotlight

This Stove Spotlight was originally published on the Fireplace Products blog back in 2014. As part of our acquisition of the Fireplace Products YouTube Channel, we also gained access to these historic posts, which were written by myself and my team. To preserve the archive and maintain continuity with the videos, we’ve re-formatted and re-uploaded them here using their original post dates.

If you’d like to explore our latest reviews and features, you can find all of our most recent Stove Spotlights here.

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Old Woodburners

Reece Toscani

Reece has over two decades in the fireplace and stove world — testing, reviewing, and occasionally getting covered in soot, all in the name of wood-fired home heating. He cuts through the nonsense, busts the myths, and shares straight-talking advice to help you enjoy your stove without the confusion. From Fireplace Products to Redefining Woodburners, if it burns wood, he’s probably tested it, fixed it, or argued about it. Now, through Woodburner Insights, he shares that experience with the world — both here and on YouTube.