Discussion
Aga's, archaic, totally inefficient. No WiFi controls, no glitz, why the hell would you want one?
Above was correct until we moved house and the place came with a 55 year old 4 oven Aga. It is a lovely piece of kit and it runs on oil from Oct to May. We do not even cook on it. It is just there radiating enough heat to keep a big kitchen warm.
We cannot justify it in any way or form, however, I always remember the saying
"far too many know the price of everything, but the value of nothing"
Like a nice car, it makes no sense, but it is a great thing!
Above was correct until we moved house and the place came with a 55 year old 4 oven Aga. It is a lovely piece of kit and it runs on oil from Oct to May. We do not even cook on it. It is just there radiating enough heat to keep a big kitchen warm.
We cannot justify it in any way or form, however, I always remember the saying
"far too many know the price of everything, but the value of nothing"
Like a nice car, it makes no sense, but it is a great thing!
Don’t have one, but I know several people who do, and when I was a kid most of my mates were farmers kids, all of whom had an Aga.
Do I like them? Yes, absolutely.
Would I own one? Not in current house (and I’m unlikely to move), but in the right house, and the right budget (e.g. old farmhouse), absolutely, especially if it was my ‘forever’ house so it would amortise until I die, and I can leave the thing to a sprog.
Do I like them? Yes, absolutely.
Would I own one? Not in current house (and I’m unlikely to move), but in the right house, and the right budget (e.g. old farmhouse), absolutely, especially if it was my ‘forever’ house so it would amortise until I die, and I can leave the thing to a sprog.
67Dino said:
You’re quite right, this isn’t just about the most ‘efficient’ form of heating. It might sound woolly, but personally I find there’s also an inviting quality to an AGA, not least because it‘s warm to stand near or lean on. People often refer to them as the ‘heart of the home’. I know when we occasionally have ours turned off, the kitchen feels a bit soulless.
Maybe that explains why non-owners find it so hard to understand why anyone has one: if you don’t need the practical benefits and/or don’t value the emotional ones, I can see they would seem expensive and pointless. But if you do, then like me, you would really appreciate yours.
You forget the fact that a number of people on this thread have had Agas and were pleased to get rid of them. Maybe that explains why non-owners find it so hard to understand why anyone has one: if you don’t need the practical benefits and/or don’t value the emotional ones, I can see they would seem expensive and pointless. But if you do, then like me, you would really appreciate yours.
We sold ours. Kitchen got too hot, ovens stupid shape and too small, it took up a disproportionate amount of space etc
DKL said:
AndrewCrown said:
To my previous point and the reverse of the above...
Hands up who has a Land Rover (any model) and an Aga ...
Range Rover classic and an Aga if that counts. And yes a very old house.Hands up who has a Land Rover (any model) and an Aga ...
There are definitely others on this thread with both too!
Edited by DKL on Saturday 16th November 13:01
2 Rangie Classics. Old house. Passive aggressive toaster but no band saw.
blueg33 said:
You forget the fact that a number of people on this thread have had Agas and were pleased to get rid of them.
We sold ours. Kitchen got too hot, ovens stupid shape and too small, it took up a disproportionate amount of space etc
So technically, wrong tool in wrong space. The previous owners had shoehorned a big heat source into a room that had no need of it and no ability to utilise any of the benefits. A bit of a result really as they do sell well and a perfect way to help fund a new kitchen. We sold ours. Kitchen got too hot, ovens stupid shape and too small, it took up a disproportionate amount of space etc
I’ve looked at the one that we have inherited and pondered a few times whether to cash it in. The kitchen is kaput so it’s logical to consider at this point in time. But in this instance it’s sitting there keeping the chill off about 2000 sqft of living space and is turned off in the summer so there aren’t the big negatives.
I’ve been at other parent’s houses and been very surprised that some have fitted agas into normal sized kitchens of very well insulated homes and with no ability to turn them off in summer. I personally think such installations are madness and would have cashed in any such Aga let alone ever even remotely considered buying one.
The common car in the above situations is the Audi. Typically the Q7
Aluminati said:
Have a Rayburn, best way to cook a bit of meat , does the ch/hot water, and the kitchen is always toasty in the winter.
It’s 25 years old, has had 2 thermocouple s in that time, and a Hoover out round the burners every 6 months.
No new fangled tech to break, parts easily available and easy to change.
Not for everyone, but we wouldn’t be without.
Hi all,It’s 25 years old, has had 2 thermocouple s in that time, and a Hoover out round the burners every 6 months.
No new fangled tech to break, parts easily available and easy to change.
Not for everyone, but we wouldn’t be without.
A Rayburn could be just the thing for our house in Brittany that is a blank canvas. Anybody got any ideas of yearly usage of Kerosene for model that does cooking, hot water and central heating?
Heating oil is more expensive here.
Cheers
DKL said:
Oil fired here, a Marshall which is broadly a Rayburn with a different badge. Runs the CH and hot water and its brilliant. If it died tomorrow I'd do it again.
Iirc the purchase and installation cost wasn't wildly different to a new boiler and a new cooker at the time.
DKL - you could have the answer. Iirc the purchase and installation cost wasn't wildly different to a new boiler and a new cooker at the time.
dmsims said:
That’s the thing. It beards no correlation to an analogy of 20th/21st century tech. It’s more akin to 19th century tech. It has no buttons, no lights, no software. The key point is that unlike that laptop it still functions as well as a state of the art cooker when you use it in the correct application.
Nearly all of the Aga issues come down to incorrect application rather than failures of the tool. It has either been installed in the wrong space or is trying to fit a different need.
There is genuinely no logical comparison with a bit of outdated modern tech.
And of course there is an awful lot of Ian Bone going on that one needs to sift through.
Wayne E Edge said:
Hi all,
A Rayburn could be just the thing for our house in Brittany that is a blank canvas. Anybody got any ideas of yearly usage of Kerosene for model that does cooking, hot water and central heating?
Heating oil is more expensive here.
Cheers
Wayne...A Rayburn could be just the thing for our house in Brittany that is a blank canvas. Anybody got any ideas of yearly usage of Kerosene for model that does cooking, hot water and central heating?
Heating oil is more expensive here.
Cheers
Now you’re opening up a new interesting area...Full time ? part time?
AndrewCrown said:
Wayne...
Now you’re opening up a new interesting area...Full time ? part time?
Indeed. If part time, then it’s ideal as you’ll be told to head down two days early, on your own, to fire it up and get the heating and hot water going. Now you’re opening up a new interesting area...Full time ? part time?
Of course the downside is when it stops working when everyone is there and you haven’t the small part in your supply!!!
My general rule with overseas holiday homes is to go simple and local with appliances as there’s always a bloke in the village who can fix it.
Edited by DonkeyApple on Sunday 17th November 13:29
They hold their value. My folks got an anthracite powered one in 1982 for 900 from Aga (refurb) and ran it til 2016, when Aga gave the 1200 px on it vs a gas powered one.
I used to love sitting on the hot plate lid as a kid eating toast and having a cuppa before school. Not good for the old Chalfonts though!
I used to love sitting on the hot plate lid as a kid eating toast and having a cuppa before school. Not good for the old Chalfonts though!
Bill said:
Some of the posts in this thread remind me of a certain poster's determined defence of live axles on a 4x4. 
True but to be a real comparison there needs to be a post where an Aga is fervently recommended as the ideal cooker for a little old lady living in a small, city centre council flat. DonkeyApple said:
Of course the downside is when it stops working when everyone is there and .......
We installed an oil fired Aga in our large, draughty and extremely old house 30 years ago, and it suits us ............. however - it does occasionally suffer from 'Performance Anxiety'
generally by going out and requiring a de-coke on Christmas Day
.DonkeyApple said:
Indeed. If part time, then it’s ideal as you’ll be told to head down two days early, on your own, to fire it up and get the heating and hot water going.
Of course the downside is when it stops working when everyone is there and you haven’t the small part in your supply!!!
My general rule with overseas holiday homes is to go simple and local with appliances as there’s always a bloke in the village who can fix it.
This is our full time home.Of course the downside is when it stops working when everyone is there and you haven’t the small part in your supply!!!
My general rule with overseas holiday homes is to go simple and local with appliances as there’s always a bloke in the village who can fix it.
Edited by DonkeyApple on Sunday 17th November 13:29
DonkeyApple said:
dmsims said:
That’s the thing. It beards no correlation to an analogy of 20th/21st century tech. It’s more akin to 19th century tech. It has no buttons, no lights, no software. The key point is that unlike that laptop it still functions as well as a state of the art cooker when you use it in the correct application.
Nearly all of the Aga issues come down to incorrect application rather than failures of the tool. It has either been installed in the wrong space or is trying to fit a different need.
There is genuinely no logical comparison with a bit of outdated modern tech.
And of course there is an awful lot of Ian Bone going on that one needs to sift through.
If an Aga were a laptop:
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