Cheap Foriegn Imports?

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Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 16 11:22 am Post subject: Cheap Foriegn Imports?

We need to replace one of our wood burning stoves but like most tight wads, I don't want to pay over the odds. Having said that, I know that you tend to get what you pay for.

There are myriads of cheap cast iron and steel stoves being imported into the UK and I'm hoping that I might find one that's worth having.

I found this cast iron stove on the internet the other night.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/CHESHIRE-7-KW-CAST-IRON-CLEAN-BURN-MULTIFUEL-WOOD-BURNING-STOVE-BRAND-NEW-/331276597732?hash=item4d219fb9e4:g:iZYAAOSwEK9T2kDX

Has anyone bought any of these 'cheapos' , whether it be this particular one or any other make? Any and recommendations advice will be much appreciated.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46211
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 16 12:33 pm Post subject:

i dont know about that model but when i was pricing up for a medium sized one most of the online advice/reviews were avoid the cheapo sorts as they tend to crack, have ill fitting doors, less than ideal air flow etc etc .

if you do go cheap steel is less prone to cracks and easier to adjust if needs be, some of the best i have come across have been made from scrap (old gas bottles industrial stuff etc etc )

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 16 9:07 pm Post subject:

I think you definitely get what you pay for with stoves. Living in rented houses has meant I've used a few over the last few years, and they've mostly been crap compared to the expensive one I bought. Much more difficult to light, a lot less controlable and impossible to keep burning all night. And cleaning out has been hard in some, to (although at least you can vet that when you buy)

The first one was fab. Easy to light, really easy to control, light on wood use, could be loaded up and left burning all night, piece of cake to clean. Worth every penny (bought a good 15 years ago before they were fashionable. I don't think there were any cheap imports then!). Just wish I could remember what it was. I want to say a Forrester, but I don't think that's quite right. I wonder if I posted about it somewhere?

Edit: the good woodburner predates Downsizer (imagine that! No wonder I've no idea. I've been using DS as external memory for 11 years) but a bit of reading has rung dusty bells and I think it was a Charnwood. Which is why it makes me think of forests - Charnwood Forest, near where I grew up. It was very traditional though, not one of those ultra slick modern looking ones.

Woo

Joined: 19 Sep 2011
Posts: 787
Location: Mayenne, Pays de Loire

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 16 10:25 pm Post subject:

getting what you pay for is one way of looking at it. surely it depends what you can afford?

we had a really cheep one when it was vital it was a bit of a teabag. we now have a more pricy but still not a branded fire. its great. it heats our 6 bed house and provides all our hot water. it banks down overnight and lights easily the next day. i doubt many are actually mined and made in the uk anymore.

AND the big brands are not always what they are made out to be. we had a VW that nearly killed my OH when the engine ate itself on the a38. we have an old villager waiting for renovation but the boiler is knackered and they can all break...
the trusted names are very nice for dinner party discussion and all, but they are after all metal boxes you stuff with wood and set alight. its the flickering light and warmth you really need... you can buy a lot of firewood with the difference in cost.

GrahamH

Joined: 23 May 2015
Posts: 523

Posted: Wed Nov 09, 16 10:48 pm Post subject:
Cast iron can now be repaired due to new materials. Most stoves are gray cast iron (high carbon content), use of a 'cold cast rod' if electrode or a mig (brazing wire not steel wire) can be used. Note, brazing wire mig is not as strong asthe electrode type but would work on stoves. This will not alter the inherent defects listed by Dpack though.

wellington womble

Joined: 08 Nov 2004
Posts: 15051
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 12:47 am Post subject:

Woo wrote:

getting what you pay for is one way of looking at it. surely it depends what you can afford?

Ultimately, yes it depends on how much you can spend. But there may be different circumstances. If you need to urgently replace a nonfunctional wood burner and it's your main heating/hot water you may have to settle for what the money you have in the bank right now will pay for.

If you have the luxury of waiting and are able to save (or possibly if you able to utilise credit) it may be worth paying more for a more efficient one, which will last longer or save on wood (depending on where you get your wood) or own your own time. If the woodburner is such a pain to light that you switch on the heating instead, you aren't exactly benefiting from it. Or if it can't be left in overnight and you need supplementary heating in the morning, you aren't saving money. If it breaks down in considerably less time you will have to replace it, possibly spending more than you might have on a higher quality one and still having to put up with a woodburner which isn't meeting your needs in the meantime. Tis the Captain Vimes Boots Theory of Economics.

Dinner parties don't come into it. I couldn't give a monkeys what anyone else thinks. I want a product that works for me with the minimum amount of inconvenience. I'll happily spend more (and save longer for) good design that works well and lasts well, and I think they save money in the long term. I only mentioned a brand because I know it worked well. I realise not everyone is in a position to, or prefers to choose to spend money to get better product, AND that a more expensive product isn't necessarily better, or better enough to justify its price difference. But in my experience, in the case of woodburners, it absolutely is. Which was the question.

Woo

Joined: 19 Sep 2011
Posts: 787
Location: Mayenne, Pays de Loire

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 6:33 am Post subject:

"Has anyone bought any of these 'cheapos' , whether it be this particular one or any other make? Any and recommendations advice will be much appreciated"

This was the question. to be fair.

I am sure Bodger had already been hanging his nose over all the 'top brands' and saying 'if only i could', 'we should save up' and 'what about putting it on the never never'

i was simply trying to answer the question and introduce a point of view not already expressed here many many times.

Mistress Rose

Joined: 21 Jul 2011
Posts: 15967

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 8:00 am Post subject:

I agree with WW. We have had a Clearview for years and it is still going strong. As far as cost per year is concerned, it is far cheaper than needing a couple of fires in that time, and having to replace bits, or them being difficult to control.

Another way of going about it if you have time is to go round to some of the shows where people sell their own wares. I have seen a few people who make stoves at some of them. Difficult to describe the sort of show, but woodfair heavy on the practical rather than the airy fairy or display for the townsfolk.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 8:56 am Post subject:
We're still trying to sell our property, that's why I don't want to lash out too much if I can help it.

onemanband

Joined: 26 Dec 2010
Posts: 1473
Location: NCA90

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 9:24 am Post subject:

There is a warning somewhere on ebay (and I think I've linked to it here before) about cheap stoves with fake ce plates etc.
I bought a cheapy, but from a reputable shop that also sells expensive stoves.
I've not used an expensive stove so I can't compare, but I've no complaints.
https://www.gr8fires.co.uk/mazona-aston-5-5-kw-multi-fuel-stove
It's been my only heat for 4 years - runs 24/7 over winter. Had to replace baffle plate last year - new part was in stock, no problem.

Ty Gwyn

Joined: 22 Sep 2010
Posts: 4613
Location: Lampeter

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 9:47 am Post subject:

If that is your reasoning Bodger,possibly a compromise would be a 2nd hand branded make,my neighbour picked up a nice Hunter on e-bay for �150,surprising how many people take them out when they realise purchased wood is not cheap and cutting your own is hard work.

When I was looking for one I was surprised at the price of some of the branded makes,a lot on here recommended Clearview,but I ended up getting a Parkray,with all the same features at a 1/3rd of the price.

I looked at loads of different makes but found the cheaper Chinese cast iron ones very light compared with other makes.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 11:26 am Post subject:
I've been going through the adds on E- bay for a couple of days now, second hand is a definite possibility. On Monday, we intend visiting a couple of the fairly local stove showrooms. Up to St Asaph and then cross country to one in Oswestry.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Thu Nov 10, 16 11:28 am Post subject:

onemanband wrote:

As long as the seals are good, that model could do for us nicely. We have a chimney that draws a heck of a lot and that's in spite f us having installed a a baffle in the flu pipe.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Fri Nov 11, 16 1:13 pm Post subject:

We ended up getting one of these but for �750.

https://www.stovesareus.co.uk/dunsley-highlander-7-log-store-multifuel-wood-burning-stove.html

We couldn't be sure about the quality of the cheaper ones and we've had the 5 KW version of 7 in the study for a number of years and we really rate it. An added bonus, is that the pipework that we have for the one that we're taking out will fit the new one exactly. Its quite a saving.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46211
Location: yes

Posted: Fri Nov 11, 16 1:26 pm Post subject:
dunsley are a good make and slide in to the existing pipes is quite a saving

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