Lopi Endeavor or Jotul F500....help please!!

[Gravel7]

Boy O Boy I am having a really hard time with this decision. What do you guys think is a better stove......the Lopi Endeavor or the Jotul F500 Oslo. According to the specs in the brocures, the Lopi has the Jotul beat by a little on burn time, btu's, effincey, pretty much everything. So, I guess that should answer my question but I would love to hear what others have heard or experienced. I haven't compared the cost yet but was told over the phone from a dealer that the cost between the two stoves was "pretty much the same". What do you think? Thank you very much for the opinions!

Mike from Maine

 

[begreen]

Welcome Mike. I think this is a little like comparing apples to an oranges. These are very different stove designs, one is steel and one is a cast iron stove. The Lopi does have a slightly larger firebox, so the burn time may be a little longer. It would be good to know where the stove is going too. Are there aesthetic concerns, clearance issues, etc.?

The good news is there are a lot of fine stoves to choose from including the two you've mentioned. First thing to be sure of is that it's sized right for the house and heating load and will work in the space it's planned to go in.

 

[fossil]

Howdy Mike - I've never owned a Jotul stove, but from what I've learned on this forum, they're very good products. We have a Lopi Liberty that was installed in our home last Fall, and we're quite pleased with it. There, I'm sure my invaluable input will make your decision easier. :-S Rick (Oh yeah...welcome!)

 

[Hanko]

I have the F 500, and I have a friend that has the Lopi. as mentioned the fire box on the lopi is larger. his house is a tad bigger than mine 1800 vrs 1500, mines newer is better windows and insulation. they both do a great job. I get an honest 6 to 8 hrs burn in winter with good dry hardwood. Mine is centrally located in the center of the house in an ideal location for even heat thru out. I like my stove better for one reason. I have a brown enamel finnish and the stove still looks new and will stay that way. both are great stoves and will do a fine job. if you like you chit to look new go with the jotul, if you have a larger house and need to load more wood in it go with the lopi

 

[Gravel7]

Thanks for the information everyone....it is very helpful. The stove is going in the living room. We have an open floor plan on the first floor. I have a Lopi Answer and love it. Its done a great job for me, but its just too small. So, I am already biased having owned and been happy with a Lopi product. My wife is in love with the way the Jotul looks.........
I do really like the way the Jotul looks to.
I'm in southern Maine and just got back in from a job site, its about 90° out right now. Funny to be out there sweating and then back in the office researching wood stoves

 

[begreen]

Both are good stoves. The Jotul has side loading which is nice (no logs rolling out of the stove) and looks very sharp in the blue-black enamel. But the Lopi is built solid too and should gives years of heat.

58 here, I'll send you some natural A/C .

 

[ansehnlich1]

Sounds like you have a little problem with this decision making process

Plate Steel vs. Cast Iron eh?

I like my Jotul, I like the cast iron look, only problems with it thus far is the front door is about useless as each time you open it ash falls out all over the place, I use the side door only.

Hmmm, oh yes, the air adjustment lever, myself and several others have had a problem with it sticking, being difficult to adjust/slide back and forth. I've had to get into it and put graphite powder on it a couple times, has not been a terrible issue and seems to be ok now. Others have had a more difficult time with theirs I believe.

Also, I did re-do some of the seams inside the stove with rutland cement, about halfway through the season, because the original stove cement was sloppy and I'd hit it when running my poker in there, thereby loosening it up, resulting in my re-doing some of it.

Otherwise a heavy duty heater, takes a 22 inch split, burns down overnight but leaves plenty of coals for a morning re-start, glass stays clean of black soot, but gets hazy over a week or so, I just clean it with a sponge of water, no problem.

I can't help ya on the Lopi, though I've heard they are a great stove, possibly if I were single I'd be loading a steel stove, but my GORGEOUS wife does not like the look of the "boxy" stoves I can't blame her for that, our Jotul is a very prominent feature in our home, and it sits there day and night ya know.

My number one desire was for a wood heating unit that I could crank up whether the electric was on, or off. Looks like the Lopi fits that bill as well.

Good luck.

 

[Gravel7]

Good point about the prominent feature in the house. It would be in mine too........just about the first thing you will see when you walk in. I just got off the phone with a dealer who sells both stoves and he strongly pushed me towards the Oslo. He believes its way more bang for my buck. I am now leaning hard towards the Jotul. Ah, thats nice...getting very close to having made the decision.