M.Tech. / The majority of low income households in South Africa are based in either informal settlements or low cost housing. These households use paraffin as their primary fuel source for cooking and heating. The objective of this study was to identify design factors that should inform paraffin stove design. These factors include the design process, the problem context, the problem identification, the understanding of stove safety and interface issues through laboratory testing, understanding the user through user testing and developing recommendations from the research of these factors. The four main problems associated with paraffin usage as identified in this research are unsafe stoves, fires caused by these appliances, the high levels of emissions given off by these appliances in small enclosed households and issues related to the storage of paraffin that leads to the accidental ingestion of paraffin. The outcome of this research includes a set of findings and recommendations which were compiled to inform the design of future paraffin stoves. Finally, this study reflects on a commercial design process that was used to develop a series of design solutions for the Paraffin Safety Association of South Africa’s paraffin stove design competition in 2005.

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