Review of Clearview vision 500 stove
Clearview Vision 500 - Absolutely brilliant!
This is an expensive stove and one would expect a high quality product that works well. Thankfully, I am delighted with this stove (after one of the coldest winters on record!) and consider it an excellent investment. \n\nDon't be put off by the only moderate efficieny rating of this stove - my experience suggests that it is very honest, whereas others may be 'overstating things' somewhat! Once up to temperature it will provide more than enough heat for a very large living room whilst consuming about 1 - 1.5 kg wood per hour. Infact, this stove heats most of my home (a resonably large 4-bed house) through the winter with only the support of an AGA at the opposite end of the house. However, as with any stove the efficency is only as good as the fuel and if one is relying on wood alone then it is important to use well seasoned logs to achieve optimal performance. The ease of lighting the stove will, of course, depend on individual chimney configurations etc. but with dry, softwood kindling and well seasoned fuel it lights very quickly (normally just one match) and is up to optimum burn temperature in about 40 minutes.\n\nThe firebox is a great size - especially if you rely on splitting timber from rounds whose length may vary (i.e. it can accomodate relatively large logs for an 8kw stove). It burns both coal and wood very well - although if you are intending to burn through the night you'll need to bank up with coal - it won't take you through to the morning on wood alone (however any stove of this size is unlikely to achieve this). Some others here suggest that you can't overnight this stove - this is NOT my experience as long as it is fully banked with coal at about 10.30 pm, set to burn on minimum rate, and re-stocked with wood by about 7.00 am.\n\nThere is little doubt that the build quality exceeds almost any other stove. The design is simple and there are few frills - but this means that the product is exceptionally well designed and you are paying for quality rather than fancy looks. Features such as double glazed glass are uncommon on other brands yet standard on a Clearview. Similarly, easy-to-adjust hinges mean that door draughts can be eliminated in a few seconds as the ropes compress (so you don't need to replace rope seals anything like as often). Similarly, all handles are solid brass - there is no 'coated' steel here - but they do get very hot and you'll need to use stove gloves. This is a minor irritation. The airwash is exceptional - I burn every day and wipe over the glass about once every two weeks.\n\nIn summary - you'll pay more for a Clearview. However, if you are looking for a stove to rely on every day, that will heat well, need little attention and can take you through an overnight if necessary then you really should consider spending the extra and buying one.
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