During the winter months in regions where constant electric power supply cannot be relied upon, power may be derived parasitically from heating stoves. A proportion of heat from these 20-50 kW wood or diesel-heated stoves may be utilized to drive a thermoelectric generator (TEG) consisting of several commercially available low-cost modules. These are Peltier modules operating in a power generating mode and adapted to the low-flux regime coupled with hot side temperatures of 100-300 degreesC. Two commercially available modules are considered. The generator is then theoretically re-evaluated with the Peltier modules re-designed in order to produce maximum power in a simple and cheap manner allowing easy commercial production using existing technology. A current power target is set at 100 W for a minimum domestic use. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.