Woodford Didsbury 5 review

Woodford Didsbury 5 review

The Woodford Didsbury is the first fully focused woodburner from Woodford. There is no grate or ash pan, but it retains a similar handle and the 2 controls from the other Woodford stoves. They make it in 2 sizes:

Woodford Didsbury 5

Woodford Didsbury 5 wide

Both are 5KW, but the wide version is capable of a bit more, despite the figures suggesting that they are essentially the same output, efficiency etc despite being different sizes (slightly odd). They do also make a grate which you can put into the stove, but I would strongly suggest only buying this version if you intend to burn wood only, and look at the other models if coal usage is likely.

The build is decent, but nothing out of the ordinary and they are made out of steel with cast iron doors.

 

Lighting the stove: 6/10

 

No issue lighting the stove, it opens up nicely, draws well and breathes easily even on a cold flue. 

 

Cleanness: 7/10

The Didsbury stoves run at just over 81% efficiency, which is a great score, they also run clean on the glass.

 

Controls & Controllability: 5/10

These stoves are quite standardised, there are a lot of similarities between the different models from Woodford, so the only real difference is the lack of a grate and ash pan. It was a good stove to use, like all the others and did a good job in basically all areas. 

 

Fuel economy & Burn time: 6/10

This is where you could notice an improvement between this and the other Woodford models when burning wood. Not only is it easier to get fuel into, the fuel lasts longer. Strangely it is tested at a lower efficiency than the multi-fuel Woodford stoves with wood, I'm not sure how they were tested, but as far as I'm concerned this is the better stove. Woodford clearly think so too, because this stove also costs significantly more. Like the differences between the 2 Didsbury models, some of the figures seem strange. It's also the pick of the bunch should you want to close it down and keep it in, as sitting the wood in a thick bed of ash rather than on a grate had a marked affect on potential burn time too.

 

Who's it for:

This stove is designed as a back up and focal point. It is a more capable functional stove for people burning wood, but it will age more quickly the more seriously it is used. If you're burning wood and want something affordable, tough and smart looking, it's definitely one for the shortlist.

 

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