WhatStove?

Review of Vermont Castings Intrepid 2 Multi fuel stove

Great so far...

DavidMartin 10 years ago

Living in Perthshire with oil-fired CH (ouch!) we decided to get one of these in the central living room and Little Wenlock Classic in the snug. We already had a small Morso in the kitchen. The Vermont takes a little getting used to - the info that comes with it rightly says operating a stove is an art form and everything has to be right to get the best out of it. I thought that was flannel at first, but it is spot on. One needs to tinker with it to get the best out of it. By contrast the AGA is very easy to get the right settings almost firat time. We seem to be getting the hang of it now and it is good to acquire the skill. The stove takes quite a while to heat completely (we only use wood as it comparatively cheap here and eco-friendly) but once it gets the base of hot ashes (just over an hour or so) it belts out the heat (esp. with stove fan). You must use seasoned wood though, or it simply doesn't get as hot. Our house is sort of open plan when we leave the double doors open so the heat gets into the adjoining room and up the stairs too, which is what we wanted in order to reduce reliance on the ferociously pricey oil system. Seems reasonable on log consumption - our open fire (previously in the same location) would eat 20 logs a night and nearly all the heat went up the chimney. The Vermont probably uses less than half that. It is very pretty too and everyone admires it. It is a quality casting.

Stove expert replied: Great review and economic heat being generated by this stove.

Overall rating:

4 flames

Build Quality 4 flames (avg 4.3)
Quality of finish 4.5 flames (avg 4.4)
Value for money 4 flames (avg 3.7)
Ease of use 3.5 flames (avg 3.9)
Ease of lighting 4 flames (avg 4)
Firebox size 4.5 flames (avg 4.2)
How well does the airwash work 4 flames (avg 3.8)
Controllability 3.5 flames (avg 3.8)
Handle operation 4 flames (avg 3.8)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 3.5)
What is your overall satisfaction? 4.5 flames (avg 3.8)