Stove Ratings
The rating system below is on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the best and 1 the worst. Even though a stove got the highest or lowest score, it does not mean that there aren’t many other stoves that could perform better or worse.
For each of the five criteria, we had numerical data from the testing and the lowest scoring stove always got a “1” and the highest got a “5.” We then set ranges, such as 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61-80 and 81-100. If several of the stoves fell into the 61-80, for example, they both got a “4.” In one of the scoring areas, no stove got a “2”, and three stoves got a “5.” A rating of “5” does not mean its five times better than a “1” and it may not even mean its twice as good, depending on the scoring criteria.
We chose these five criteria to assess because we could objectively test the stoves in these areas. We did not try to assess stoves on reliability, ease of operation and other important characteristics because we either did not have enough data or we felt it became too subjective. Other areas that we measured or discussed, but did not include in our five-point rating were hopper size vs. claimed hopper size, length of burn and cost, all of which are important and should be considered in purchasing decision.
Disclaimer
We took many precautions to ensure that our comparison testing and measurements were fair and accurate. We make a number of disclaimers, however, to remind readers that we only tested one stove in each model line, not multiple ones. We also only tested with a single brand of pellets, and different quality pellets would likely produce slightly better or worse results in some of the categories. Click here for more on disclaimers.
Click here for a list of stove attributes, warranties and prices.
Summary of ratings
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The Quadra-Fire Mt. Vernon AE got the best overall rating. It did very well in cleanliness of emissions, maintenance, and glass visibility. It was average on heat output and the only area where it was lower than average compared to the other stoves was efficiency.
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The Harman Accentra 52i Insert performed very well in all categories except cleanliness.
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The Enviro M55 insert had top or good scores everywhere except efficiency.
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The Ravelli RV 80 had very good scores in cleanliness and glass visibility, but had only average efficiency.
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The Piazzetta Sabrina had the highest score for efficiency and good heat output, but low scores for maintenance and glass visibility.
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The England’s Stove Works 25-PDVC got average scores in most categories but was a solid performer considering it costs less than a third of what most of the other stoves cost.
For the rest of this report, the above stoves will be referred to by their manufacturer’s name: the Englander, the Enviro, the Harman, the Piazzetta, the Quadra-Fire and the Ravelli.
For next section, on Cleanliness, click here.