WhatStove?

Review of Harmony 13 stove

5 years and as good as new

Gordon C 11 years ago

Having had this stove for 5 years now, I thought I'd contribute to this great website.

This is the only stove I have ever owned but have been amazed how good this little stove is. Being a heating engineer I installed it myself along with the 6 inch liner insulated with vermiculite.

The key to this stove is getting a nice glowing bed of ash established in the firebox,done by using thin kindling, slightly bigger log splittings and then the main logs. The stove having a smallish firebox works better with 2 or 3 shorter logs around 9 inches rather than one large one. It has been used from around autumn to spring mostly in the evenings during the week and all day at the weekends if we are at home. The stove will stays in overnight if there is plenty of glowing ash in the fire box but we don't usually bother with this as its so easy to light. I mainly burn wood but occasionally burn smokeless coal during the Christmas holidays when we have family staying (the only time we keep it burning overnight) as others have said the riddling grate sometimes jams but the poker can be used to give it a riddle. The best part about the stove from my point of view is the controllability,if used properly achieving clean combustion the glass stays clean as a whistle.

From a build quality point of view it is also spot on, in 5 years of use I have never had to replace any parts on it, the door still closes and seals like it has just left the factory.

I wholeheartedly recommend this stove to anyone, just make absolutely sure your wood is good quality and well seasoned and you will have many trouble free years of service!

Stove expert replied: Small logs work better in stoves and should not exceed 4" diam. Great review.

Overall rating:

4.5 flames

Build Quality 5 flames (avg 4.8)
Quality of finish 4 flames (avg 4.7)
Value for money 4 flames (avg 4)
Ease of use 5 flames (avg 4.2)
Ease of lighting 4 flames (avg 4.5)
Firebox size 4 flames (avg 3.6)
How well does the airwash work 5 flames (avg 4.1)
Controllability 5 flames (avg 4.3)
Handle operation 5 flames (avg 3.6)
How likely are you to buy it again? 5 flames (avg 4.2)
What is your overall satisfaction? 5 flames (avg 4.2)