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Dru 78 stove

Overall Rating:

4 flames

based on 9 reviews    (View rating breakdown)
Dru 78 stove
The Dru 78 is available as a wood or multi fuel model.

It has 1 plain glass door and also a side loading door.

The multi fuel option is available with a coal funnel which means you can leave the stove to load the coal for a longer time guided by a thermostat.

This cast iron stove has primary, secondary and tertiary air control.

 

 

Technical Data
  • Height: 790mm
  • Width: 765mm
  • Depth: 590mm
  • Flue Diameter: 150mm
  • Fuel: Woodburning
  • Nominal Heat Output: 11kW
  • Efficiency: 75%

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Review Ratings Breakdown

Build Quality 4.5 flames
Quality of finish 4 flames
Value for money 4 flames
Ease of use 4 flames
Ease of lighting 4 flames
Firebox size 4.5 flames
How well does the airwash work 4 flames
Controllability 4 flames
Handle operation 4 flames
How likely are you to buy it again? 4 flames
What is your overall satisfaction? 4 flames

Most Recent Review

  • Awful stove and diabolical customer service from DRU - do not buy!

    Mr D G 3 years ago

    Purchased a DRU78MF which in my opinion is not fit for purpose, poorly designed and massively inefficient. More importantly I do not consider it safe to use. There are "riddling"slots at the
    front of the appliance with a metal flap that constantly lets air into the burn chamber (tested with a flow meter) meaning you cannot control the burn rate of the fire as there is a constant supply of oxygen even if you close all supposed control vents. Fire burns uncontrollably with in my opinion a risk of chimney fires and unbelievably inefficient as it eats logs. DRU engineer acknowledged the problem on his first two visits but after escalating the issue to their "couldn''t give a dam" UK managing director, on the third visit the engineers story changed to "operating as normal" - now there''s a surprise! Luckily the dealer delivered on their duty of care and safety to the customer and at their own cost had to change the fire to a DRU78 which has solved the problem as there are no riddle vents. I would not recommend the DRU78MF under any circumstances and DRU''s customer services is non existent. Awful company with the UK lead being totally useless and not committed to customer care. Would never buy a DRU again. Oh and to add insult to injury, the initial fire that was installed filled our living room with smoke as there were gaps around the appliance with missing fire seal/cement that had fallen out. If anyone is interested I am sure you can contact me via the website as I have videos of the fire in action demonstrating this major issue.

    Stove expert replied: It would appear that you are burning only wood and therefore the CB version is the correct stove for this purpose. The MF option would require an under draught to allow for the solid fuel to burn correctly and would not provide you with the best control that burning only wood requires (this being an over draught). The original stove would therefore have been operating as expected. It is good to hear that the dealer has changed the stove for you and that this CB version has resolved the issue that you had experienced when using only wood, perhaps the incorrect version of the Dru 78 stove was purchased initially.

    Overall rating:

    2 flames

Most Popular Review

  • The Beast.

    Anon 13 years ago

    This stove is awesome weighing in at 235kg, i've owned a few stoves over the years and this one is the daddy, up to 13kw output it will heat a huge space it is in my opinion the best value for
    money stove on the market, easy to light and keep in overnight, with smokeless fuel it can be kept in for 18hrs+. For such a big stove it consumes a modest amount of fuel, i have another make of stove which is smaller and that eats up twice as much fuel.The quality of the castings on this stove are top notch, side loading door is a a great touch,riddling grate and you can "poke" the fire without opening the door there are two slots in the front with flaps that close; brilliant. This is a well designed stove which you can light at the onset of winter and keep stoking until the spring. The next best thing to a blast furnace.
    Overall rating:

    5 flames

More reviews for Dru 78 stove

  • DRU 78 so very poor

    Tony Pateman 6 years ago

    Before I give my comments I would like you to know that I have had many years experience with both conventional wood burners and inserts.I have lived in France for 17 years and have had stoves
    made by Supra, Invicta, Villager and several other makes, in all I have owned 8 stoves.I recently bought a DRU78 from an on line company who have been most efficient in both pre and post sales advice and helpful advice, however I am most unimpressed with the DRU78 I purchased.Unless the side door is kept ajar there is simply insufficient draft to make the wood burn fiercely and this is not the fault of the flue as the Invicta that your machine replaced burned perfectly. In fact the only reason I changed it was that there was very little in the way of control so we were unable to reduce the temperature quickly but instead had to let the fire die down naturally and the brochure indicated that control was a main function of this stove. In addition it states clearly that there is a thermostat as well.This is not the caseAt present I have 3 stoves running including the DRU but the DRU is the only one that takes an age to heat up and as stated above burns gently whatever the air vents are set at.

    Stove expert replied: As an experienced stove user your comments are of great interest. The thermostat removal on the Dru stove is a recent change so the brochures may not have been updated to reflect this. This is a large stove and will require a decent amount of free air for combustion, is there an air brick in the room? Different stoves have different requirements and it may be that the Dru requires more free air than the Invicta. Having other stoves in the property will also affect the way a stove performs, they can be in opposite ends of a property but one flue can and often affects the other and can lead to one stove being starved of free air whilst the other continues to work well. I would suggest further investigation into the installation of this stove as they are normally very reliable and work well producing large amounts of heat.

    Overall rating:

    3.5 flames

  • Dru 78

    John Smith 8 years ago

    A sensational heater, no doubt. probably the heaviest you can get which means it';s meat to burn non-stop with no risk of buckled plates unlike maybe cheaper versions.It seems very efficient
    and doesn't use much wood. You can also cook on the flat top if desiredI never need to use firelighters and it kindles very quickly. The heat output is tremendous and its wonderful to sit in front of the stove and watch the dancing flames; how great is that.
    Overall rating:

    5 flames

  • Dru 78 Multi Fuel Stove

    Geoffrey Isaac 10 years ago

    We bought this stove to replace a Stovax insert fire, we removed because we increased the living space of our room and the Stovax wasn't efficient enough. The Dru answered our prayers as the
    output of the heavy cast iron construction is like a radiator in itself. We also bought the stove knowing that it is possibly the heaviiest on the market (we call it the beast) the only fault I can think of is the ash pan it is made of flimsy steel with sharp edges whereas It could have been made of stainless steel with folded edges, other than that it is a briiliant fire.
    Overall rating:

    5 flames

  • Great stove

    Richard 11 years ago

    I got one of these for my lounge as I wanted a big flat top cast iron stove to fill a large inglenook fireplace.Similar size stoves were around the same price or more expensive.It was good value
    for money.This stove is very heavy and took three of us to move it into place,slowly! It has a simple design that looks handsome in its setting. I don't like too much fancy cast iron detail and prefer the simple solid appearance of this stove.The cast iron detail is understated but beautifully made.The single arch door is very attractive when lit.In use it belts out the heat,the air control is very good indeed.The large single door is only used to get it started after which we use the side door to refill, this works perfectly.Make sure you have space on the right to open this door and load. The firebox isn't as big as you would expect because it has an ash pan below and fire brick lining.It is plenty big enough though, and takes long logs.All in all an excellent stove and we are very happy with it.

    Stove expert replied: Nice review, the stove appears to be working well and good value for money!

    Overall rating:

    5 flames

  • dru 78

    Ursula Falconer 12 years ago

    It is strongly built but oddly tacky.....the door wiggled when opens and shuts..too big a span for door.all the vent handles fell off in first few weeks ....but were replaced by Dru.It is ugly
    tho and I would much prefer a Morso Dove or big Clear view.Anyone want to swop????

    Stove expert replied: perhaps this stove owner had a particularly bad example of this stove as I have used it myself and, for example, it has a very large firebox indeed, seemed a very good finish to me, etc. Perhaps worth going back to the installer or supplier to sort the door wiggle out as well as the one I used had no wiggle.

    Overall rating:

    2.5 flames

  • Dru 78

    Veronica Slevin 13 years ago

    This stove is super. We had an oil stove originally fitted in our 2600square feet and our house is all oil. This summer 2010, we decided to fit a dru 78 into our open plan kitchen, dining
    , livingroom, conservatory. I totally agree with the review by Glenn it is the DADDY. I also have to say that it is heating nearly all of our house. We only have to have the oil on in the bedroom for an hour in the morning and a hour in the evening. I think i will fit another one in my sitting room in the future. We did buy an almond/cream dru 78 and anyone that has seen it has loved it esp the colour. I'm a bit sad to say that i can't stop looking at it when it's lit, it looks fantastci. It's the best thing we have put into our house. If you are thinking about buying one. Do!!!

    Stove expert replied: Big stove, high output and good additions to save on alternative fuels.

    Overall rating:

    5 flames

  • Great stove

    Simon Burnell

    Dru - This is a great stove. I bought it to replace an aging Vermont Vigilant and I can't believe how superior this stove is. The build quality is superb and all the doors etc are beautifully
    balanced with a perfect fit. It sounds like a totally different stove to the one described by Ursula.It can even be made to burn overnight, but the glass will obviously get black if you do. One word of warning-the stove is HEAVY, so get help with fitting it!My friend has a similar stove (looks and output) made by Charnwood- I think the Dru has a more refined finish and a look which is more subtle.I highly recommend this stove.
    Overall rating:

    5 flames