Looking to buy a 7Kw Multifuel stove. I have seen them range from £400 to £1200 the ones I like. I know you get what you pay for but are the dearer ones really that much better or are some just good value and others not so good value. Are there any good makes I should aim at looking for. I don't mind paying more if what I'm buying really is worth the price. Not really sure what to look out for? Defra approved etc
Depends were you & whether your in an area ie town/city which is Smoke Controlled Zone, if it was me, then I wouldn't go Defra if not in a zone. Your council can telly you if it's a controlled area. https://www.thestoveyard.com/resource-centre-home/what-is-a-defra-approved-stove
Just fitted a Little Thurlow from Town and Country Fires, Pickering. Abolutely awesome. Tertiary air - controls as though its gas! Better than Clearview and cheaper. Had multifuels for years and didn't know what I was missing! Get yer checkbook out!
How much are they? Ideally something a little bigger than 5KW but will look on their web. British Made Nice. Have taken a fancy to the Flavel range
They do very nice steel stoves & british made & buy through approved stockist & Qualified Installer, you get your 10 year guarantee. Popped into their showroom when I was in Pickering a couple of years ago.
Little Thurlow is apparently actually rated at 6kw but flagged 5kw so no secondary ventilation needed. The showroom and factory are adjacent on same site. Not cheap but superb quality and steel. Fallen out with cast iron as it needs bolting together. These are robot welded. Superb product and the performance is astronomical!
And another problem with cast iron is thermal shock, & a stove can crack when they heat up too quickly, whereas with steel it can't happen. Steel heat up instantly whereas cast iron is slow, but it does hold the heat.
Sis in law bought a 5kW Ottawa ('Coseyfire' I think) a wee while back. Cost around £300 and I can confirm it's a beaut - lovely finish, solid as a solid thing, great controls, very neat styling. Superb value. There's a larger model too - might have a different name.
Does the fire being DEFRA approved make that much difference to its performance? The FLAVEL NO 2 SQ07 is Defra approved yet states can have a 10 hour burn time?
I'm only DIY but as I understand it, the need to get DEFRA approval compromises the sheer efficiency of stoves i.e. they don't burn as well! The whole experience of buying from Town and Country AND the availability of all spares was very positive. I understand that to get anything like 10 hrs burn time you will have to use an approved solid fuel i.e. not wood in a multi fuel stove - you cannot burn solid fuel in a wood burner. Do try to see stoves in action as controllability is paramount. Accept the fact that if you are burning wood, you will have to tend your stove fairly often. Also DONT burn wood at anything more than 20% moisture content as it will kn...er your liner very quickly. Buy a moisture meter and check your wood store. The Log Book (from Amazon) is a useful read for all you stove geeks out there. Finally, I have had multifuels for 30 years and this Little Thurlow is truly amazing! - and I don't work for T and C! Have fun!
Got this back from them re KW. the nominal output of the Little Thurlow is 5 KW so it does not require an air vent to the room in a pre 2008 house. The output range is around 2- 6 kw hence the confusion. So my Room will be 7.8m x 5.5m x 2.3m ( 5Kw) which suggests this could be fine for me Good Reviews https://www.whatstove.co.uk/little-thurlow-stove-reviews
We got the Little Thurlow with the integral log store which gives it extra height - great for our high(ish) builder's opening - 1.05 m. Could put a pic on - its in a 17th cent. Gd II listed building. Do you have secondary i.e. central heating? i.e. 5kw would be fine. Quite frankly, my Dove is dreadful, and the Vermont Intrepid is 'good' but the Thurlow is remarkable. Decide for yourself! Best of luck!