WhatStove?

Review of Charnwood Country 4 stove

A cut above

Bob O'Brian 9 years ago

This is the second stove I have owned, and was chosen after fairly extensive research.

I was looking for a well engineered stove to heat a living room, and now that I've had it installed for about a year, I can say I am very happy indeed with it.

Firstly, I wanted as big a firebox as I could get in this class of stove. Thanks to the wide and shallow shape, coupled with the use of ceramic liners rather than firebricks, the Charnwood has a huge firebox able to swallow surprisingly large lengths of wood. I opted for the woodburner version which further increases the available space. This has reduced the need for me to cut wood down into small lengths as I used to do for my previous stove (an Acorn 5).

Secondly, the window is massive- this was also on my 'must have' list. It keeps really clean as well as the airwash draws air in from the back of the stove, pre-heating it above the fire before it hits the top of the glass. Compared to the simpler Acorn, this is a much better arrangement.

Thirdly, the stove has a rotary air control at the bottom rather than a slider, so is more airtight. Living in an exposed location subject to high winds, I found that my previous stove could not always be shut right down when a gale was blowing. The Charnwood can, and this allows me to control it better.

Whilst not the cheapest stove, I think this is very good value for money as a lot of care has gone into the design and it works brilliantly.

Overall rating:

5 flames

Build Quality 5 flames (avg 4.3)
Quality of finish 5 flames (avg 4.6)
Value for money 5 flames (avg 4.3)
Ease of use 5 flames (avg 4.5)
Ease of lighting 5 flames (avg 4.6)
Firebox size 5 flames (avg 4.1)
How well does the airwash work 5 flames (avg 4.1)
Controllability 5 flames (avg 4.4)
Handle operation 5 flames (avg 4.4)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 4.3)
What is your overall satisfaction? 5 flames (avg 4.3)