Professional reviews of wood stoves?

[Carstonio]

While I've found plenty of sites that have consumer ratings and reviews of wood stoves, I've been unable to find magazines or online sources that are the equivalent of Consumer Reports, where paid staffers review stoves in identical setups using identical woods. Any recommendations for such sources?

 

[crazy_dan]

EPA ratings ?
they are supposedly identical set ups

 

[Todd]

I don't think there are any. The EPA only tests for emissions and throws every stove into a default efficiency rating of 63% for non cats and 72% for cat stoves. If you want real world reviews you can read some right here.
https://www.hearth.com/ratings.html

 

[kenny chaos]

How many different cars may be reviewed compared to how many different stoves available, roughly?
Any guesses?

 

[Later]

Any "professional reviews". other than Consumer Reports, seem to be directly related to ad placement in the reviewer's journal.

 

[mikeh]

What can be more professional that and actual consumer review, the real life user, not some test lab. Look at the hundreds of reviews on this website alone.

Mike

 

[Highbeam]

I suppose it might be nice to have it all organized with scores for several categories like CR. The closest thing I've seen is the chimneysweep's site that lists all stoves sold by him and compares factual things like widow area and firebox volume. A database for all stoves that worked the same way would be nice but would be an ongoing maintenance nightmare.

I value actual reviews from customers more highly since they deal with non-factual things like aesthetics and reliability. Yes, you'll get the occasional bogus review that needs to be ignored.

 

[jpl1nh]

I've spent an awful lot of time on the stove reviews right here at Hearth.com. Nothing like actual experiences of end users to highlight strengths and weaknesses of a stove, things the EPA would never test for and things manufactures might just gloss over like uundersized or difficult to use ashpans, door handles that seem shabby, everburn systems that seem to neverburn etc.

 

[Dave_1]

Carstonio

Here is the link that Highbeam mentioned.

(broken link removed to http://www.chimneysweeponline.com/wscompha.htm)

 

[Steve Z]

What can be more professional that and actual consumer review, the real life user, not some test lab. Look at the hundreds of reviews on this website alone.

Mike

Yep agree. Have a look see right here where real people rate their stoves in real situtions. Most people are pretty honest about them too. Most of the EPA rating are using kiln dried lumber bits and not seasoned firewood. The do this too standardise but it's not a reflection of the real world use. Check them out and rate your own for others too see.