WhatStove?

Review of Esse 525 stove

Classy design, great stove

Toby 13 years ago

I ordered this because it looked sylish, modern and very suited to my decor. I got it up and running this past weekend, and I am delighted. It looks fantastic, burns beautifully, produces loads of heat (I have a digital thermostat about 6m away to control underfloor heating, and the stove raised room temperature from 19 to 23 degrees in an hour). First lighting per instructions failed and the smoke didn't draw properly, coming out of the airwash instead which made the room smell for a couple of days, but with enough kindling its been fine since. It wont burn overnight as you cant get enough wood into it but its only 5kw so you would expect that and I would not mark it down for it. Its a great stove.\n\n

Stove expert replied: sometimes you need to get the chimney warm before the stove will work well. Lining and insulating the chimney will probably help but you can also light some newspaper in the stove first to prewarm the chimney. This is especially the case at the beginning of the season.

Overall rating:

4.5 flames

Build Quality 5 flames (avg 4.2)
Quality of finish 5 flames (avg 4.5)
Value for money 5 flames (avg 4)
Ease of use 5 flames (avg 4.3)
Ease of lighting 3 flames (avg 3.7)
Firebox size 4 flames (avg 3.3)
How well does the airwash work 5 flames (avg 4)
Controllability 4 flames (avg 3.8)
Handle operation 5 flames (avg 3.8)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 3.7)
What is your overall satisfaction? 5 flames (avg 3.7)