WhatStove?

Review of The Beaumont 5kW

We love it!

7 years ago

We love our Chesney''s Beaumont 5kW wood burner.

We bought it back in October, when we were doing repairs and alterations to our lounge. We thought this model would look nice and that we would use it maybe 5 or 6 times each winter (similar to the open fire that this replaced). But we soon discovered that the Beaumont is so easy to light and so clean to use, that we are using it 4, 5 or 6 evenings a week!

I light it by putting a flat piece of timber (say 200 x 80 x 15mm) on the floor of the fire box, and a split log right at the back, but resting on the edge of the flat piece. I break off a small piece of fire lighter (maybe 50 x 30 x 20mm) and put it on top of the flat timber, but touching the split log, then lay maybe 5 or 6 short pieces of kindling on top of the fire lighter. Light the fire lighter, shut the door, and pull the regulator control all the way out. That''s all there is to it. Just remember to add more wood and adjust the regulator before the fire burns itself out.

We quickly discovered that the glass stays reasonably clean if we avoid allowing any timber from touching or getting too close to the glass. Keep the wood to the back of the fire.

Our lounge is roughly 4.2 x 4.2 x 2.4m high. After the fire has been burning for about 60 to 90 minutes, we normally have to open the lounge door to allow some of our lovely heat to spread around the rest of the house. A smaller wood burner with a lower output power rating would probably be fine, but I think you want to be able to use reasonably sized logs, and the Beaumont has a single wide door with an opening up to approx 350mm. A higher power burner (above 5kW) probably needs a proper air inlet, so I think you would need a much larger room to justify.

The fire came with a kinky pair of black Chesney''s gloves. You need these because the door handle gets very hot, but they are also useful for placing wood onto an already hot file. You really need to place the wood on the fire, not throw it on, because you don''t want to break the fire bricks and you want the wood away from the glass, and stable so it wont roll forwards as it burns.

Kiln dried wood: I just don''t get this. We keep most of our firewood outside, so what is the point in buying the kiln dried stuff? Within a month or 2, the moisture level of any stored wood is going to stabilise to its local environment. But please let me know if I''ve missed something.

Spare parts are readily available.

Overall rating:

4.5 flames

Build Quality 4 flames (avg 4.7)
Quality of finish 5 flames (avg 5)
Value for money 5 flames (avg 4.7)
Ease of use 5 flames (avg 5)
Ease of lighting 5 flames (avg 4.7)
Firebox size 5 flames (avg 4)
How well does the airwash work 5 flames (avg 4.7)
Controllability 4 flames (avg 3.7)
Handle operation 4 flames (avg 4.3)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 4.7)
What is your overall satisfaction? 5 flames (avg 5)