Review of Jotul F3 stove
Jotul F3 CB - very good stove
This is excellent stove, but you have to know what you are doing and how to handle it properly. Once you figure it out, you'll be happy with it.
Build quality - very good nothing to add to this part. I have also removed top plate and inside it looks very well build too Quality of the finish - I've got black paint finish, it is easy to scratch and you have to avoid water on surface, otherwise it will rust. However spray-can with black finish is cheap, so you can repaint it for little of money. Enamel finish is probably much better choice, but much more expensive. Value for money - quite expensive Ease of use - no problems to start and keep the fire, however to run it most effectively with maximum usage of secondary combustion, you have to understand how wood burns and adjust air vents accordingly. Ease of lighting - I'm using top-down method and no problems at all Burning overnight - best burn time with wet wood was arround 6 hours (I had still enough hot coals in it to relight without matches). On the other hand overnight burning (in general and in each stove) is very uneffcient and unecological. Firebox size - small one, but fine for me. I have to heat arround 75 square meters, so it perfect matches my needs Does the airwash work - yes, wokrs fine, but when you close air vents and wood starts to smolder, glass gets a bit dirty - no problem to clean it with wet sponge and little of ash. Controlability - you have only one control (I do not count ingnition vent) to influnce the burning process. Air for clean burn unit cannot be adjusted - there is simply no control for it - but it is not an issue. i plan to build a control for seconday combustion and experiment with it a bit. Handle operation - door hanlde locks well in close posiotion, but it is a bit tight to open it (it is good, because children will not be able to open it) - few gentle hits to the wooden knob moves hanlde from locked position and then it is easy to operate. Wooden know is never too hot to touch, but air vent handles are very hot, be carefull when handling it - you can use your hands, but touch it only for fraction of time. Would you buy this again - There is no real reason not buying it. However I like a look and features od Vermont Castings "Dutchwest" stove. So probably I would try new "toy". Overall satisfaction - very good stove.