WhatStove?

Review of Esse 100 stove

5k Esse multifuel 100 stove - excellent!

Freda Robertson 10 years ago

Feb. 2014. I used this site over and over when buying my stove (July 2013) and so thought to give it some payback for all its help!

After four estimates and many rushed intakes of breath I decided to source everything myself and saved thousands of pounds. I went for a 5k stove which is meant to heat up a large room, mine is 14' x 13'though I now wish I had gone with my gut instinct and bought a 6k/7k/8k which I yet may do and just build a smaller fire. I live in an old Manse in Aberdeenshire where -20c has been known in recent years (planes trains and automobiles). The 5k stove does not require extra venting whereas anything above does ONLY IF you live in a modern house where everything is sealed. With a fan - I bought the smartfan because it was quite short - and leaving the door of my living room open, my wonderful Esse 100 mf, which I CAN KEEP IN ALL NIGHT by topping up with ovoids before going to bed, keeps the chill off my home at all times. I had a teething problem with the door and contacted my online supplier who contacted Esse, who were at my home within a week and fixed the very minor problem immediately (the door had an incorrect air baffle and the engineer completely replaced my large window door then and there). I use both logs and ovoids in my stove - if you want flames use logs if you want a glow use ovoids. The airwash works perfectly - to avoid any blackness on the door keep the upper control wide enough to allow the airwash to function, though with both controls open to the fullest the airwash is so strong that it whistles up my chimney. I used linotherm insulation which is like a thermal blanket around my double walled liner and the only time I have had any blowback is when I left the fire off for a few days and did not leave the door open for the warmer air to flow freely - which only takes a couple of minutes. Niggles: the size of the ashpan which if you keep your stove in all night , you need two trips to empty the ash from your stove. The handle gets far too hot to touch and you need a glove to open the door.

This stove has no creaking noises, it lights first time IF you leave the vents 100% open to begin with and playing around with the vents of your new toy will give you the correct energy/fuel burning/heat ratio that you can live with. I would recommend this stove to anyone.

Stove expert replied: Good feed back and great to hear that the manufacturer rectified the fault so quickly. Producing heat well.

Overall rating:

4.5 flames

Build Quality 4.5 flames (avg 3.9)
Quality of finish 4.5 flames (avg 4.2)
Value for money 4.5 flames (avg 3.8)
Ease of use 5 flames (avg 4.1)
Ease of lighting 5 flames (avg 4.3)
Firebox size 4.5 flames (avg 4.4)
How well does the airwash work 5 flames (avg 3.9)
Controllability 5 flames (avg 3.8)
Handle operation 1 flames (avg 3.8)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 3.9)
What is your overall satisfaction? 5 flames (avg 3.9)