Thinking about a Jotul Oslo in Ivory. What has your experience been?

[ewoudenberg]

Hi Folks,

This is my first post -- thank you for the wealth of information you've provided here.

We've narrowed our choice to a Jotul Olso, the only question is which color. We think that ivory will look nice against our brick wall, but we've heard from one of the dealer's staff that ivory is not a great choice since it does not age well. He said any chipping will be visible and it just won't keep that beautiful showroom look over the years. I don't need showroom perfection, but I think it's important for the stove to age with some grace. We're replacing a Jotul Combifire #4 that at 35 years old was still soldiering on, looking quite presentable.

I'd be happy to hear the experiences of others who have had enameled Jotuls for many years. Any photos might also be helpful.

Thank you!

Eric Woudenberg

 

[begreen]

Welcome Eric. That's a great old soldier you have there.

Jotul does a good job with their porcelain finishes. They offer two types, the glossy majolica finishes (brown, blue, green) or a new style satin finish in ivory and blue-black. The majolica finishes are heavier and will chip and crack with abuse. But they are not fragile. We have an 1981 model 602 with a dark red majolica finish that still looks good. It has a few nicks on it, but the finish has held up well. The satin finish is more like a heavy powder coating. It seems pretty durable from the models we had with this finish. I wouldn't hesitate to get one in ivory, if you are pretty careful with the stove, though the blue-black is my favorite.

One caveat, ivory will show every nick because the cast iron underneath the finish is dark grey. We had one tiny knick from the dealer on our F3CB, but you could hardly find it because of the dark blue-black finish. With a dab of touchup paint, it disappeared.

If the stove often has a pot on it and there are sometimes when cold water gets splashed on the stove, then maybe porcelain is not a good idea. The finish can crack if cold water is spilled onto the hot surface. Likewise if heavy pots or tools frequently bang against the stove. But if you generally take modest care, then the finish should hold up fine.

 

[firefighterjake]

I can't speak to the ivory finish . . . but I can say that I love my Oslo . . . I think you'll be pretty happy with this stove when it replaces the Easter Island Head Stove you're using now.

 

[mikefrommaine]

I have a 8 +- year old f3cb in ivory. The finish has not held up well, lots of nicks and it shows every bit of dirt/dust.

 

[summit]

Ivory finish is not the best, especially on the larger stoves. We have installed several F600 and F500 units w/ ivory over the last couple yrs, and the finish starts to chip almost immediatly. Go for a nice blue black (satin finish) it is the most durable of the enamel colors.

 

[ewoudenberg]

Thanks to all for your advice. We ended up with an Oslo in green. It was installed a week ago and we've been running it a few days. It really does seem to be a fine stove. We had to put down tile in front of the hearth to bring it up to code. We ended up doing it ourselves using a porcelain tile that is made to look like slate.

 

[firefighterjake]

I like the use of the tile/slate . . . looks good.

 

[RSNovi]

Yes, very nice install. We were considering the ivory stove, but thought it would really lock us into to future colors of paint, carpet, etc... We ended up going with a blu/black and have been very happy with that color. I can't see any blue in it with a dark brown wall behind it and tan walls next to it.

Chris