Anyone got an AGA?

[Proto]

Our new house has an ancient (age unknown but pre 1974) oil fired AGA stove. Our first thoughts that we’d take it out and put an electric range cooker in its place but man came on Monday to service and commission it and were beginning to think it’s rather good. Different but good. Get rid of the electric kettle and toaster, learn to cook in a different way.

Anyone else got one? Handy hints and tips? Bread making possible?

 

[Levo-Lon]

No ,but there wonderful things.
Nan had one in her old farm cottage.
Bit of faffing but give it a fo

 

[tom73]

Don't get rid I don't have one but have used them in holiday lets. They are not too hard to work out plenty of stuff on the net as to which oven to use. Once you get your head round it they are fab. So easy really and well worth a go.

 

[Proto]

By the way, it’s dark blue, nice colour, but for £2500 🙀 you can have them re-enamelled in the colour of your choice.

 

[Salar]

Make sure it's efficient. We had one years ago in a rental farmhouse and it used to drink oil.

 

[Proto]

Make sure it's efficient. We had one years ago in a rental farmhouse and it used to drink oil.

yep, it will drink oil. I was told to expect 40 litres a week, but at current price of 20p a litre, not so serious.

 

[Ian H]

Yup. Ours came with the house. It's gas-fired. We wouldn't have installed one but, you know.

It's worth getting a dedicated cookbook as you will need a very different technique for cooking. Much more is done in the oven, the top part of which you can use like a grill.

And yes, it bakes a fine loaf.

 

[Slioch]

Haven't got one myself, but trendy friends dahn sarf had one installed a few years back.
Their guest bedroom is above the kitchen, and it was flippin roasting in the summer. It's not something you can just turn on and off.

 

[Ridgeway]

We've been cooking on Aga's and Rayburns for about 30yrs i guess now, used oil, gas and now wood. A few comments:

Make sure you have a 2nd cooker, gas or electric (ie a regular oven and hot plate) Aga's and Rayburns are "always on" so in summer you will need an alternative method of cooking
Defiantly get some decent books, Carol Bowen is excellent as are Mary Berry's old books (nearer ones are slightly naff)
DEFINATELY (I mean 100% do) get decent long oven gloves, Aga type go up your forearm, if you don't you'll have brand marks on your inside wrists...
You need to think ahead, remember an Aga or Rayburn can take 1-2hrs to get to hotter temperatures os say +180, even more for roasting at +200º
Use Astonish it's the best cleaner of enamel surfaces and will last years
Yes it will drink oil, perhaps £200-300 a month ? they are super inefficient in that respect (Rayburns are typically better than Aga's in that)
Although we've had gas, oil and wood we wouldn't want to run anything other than wood now, the cheapest fuel but also the trickiest to manage
Baking is just a pleasure and you'll learn to really enjoy it, you'll hopefully get the bug !
Keep your leccy kettle for summer, you'll need it unless you want to melt in your kitchen

If you do want to re-enamel the Aga i'm sure you can get it done for much less, i bought a completely refurbished Rayburn for less than that only 5yrs ago, dragged it across Europe in the back of a Landy and it now sits in our kitchen, it's run from about Nov - March/April.

Good luck and enjoy it (certainly would take it out)

 

[Proto]

Fellow who serviced it told us to keep hot oven at a constant 240°C and leave it alone. We‘ll Get settled with it then maybe experiment.

Running cost, at current oil prices should be about £30 per month, if so, we can live with that. Intend running it 365 days a year!!

We have a 2 ring ceramic hob next to the Aga, but that might become redundant. We've already ditched the electric kettle and toaster.

 

[tom73]

Aga toast .... is fab

 

[Ian H]

We had the AIMS sytem installed, which allows us to programme the temperature for cooking times and holidays. So during the day it is much cooler. I think AIMS might be obsolete now, dunno if anything has replaced it.
Having a big airy kitchen, we run it all year round.

 

[Ridgeway]

£30 a month

i know oil prices have dropped but that ain't going to happen, that's £360 a year. Be prepared for more.

Running it 365 is the right way to do it do keep in mind it's like leaving a 4kw wood burner on in your kitchen during the summer, of course possible but most people do switch them off for summer months and use a back up method.

IMO 240º is way too hot, but i have only been cooking on them since 1992 keep the slider in the middle and you'll be lucky to get 200º in the roasting oven and perhaps 150 in the baking oven.

 

[Proto]

£30 a month

i know oil prices have dropped but that ain't going to happen, that's £360 a year. Be prepared for more.

Running it 365 is the right way to do it do keep in mind it's like leaving a 4kw wood burner on in your kitchen during the summer, of course possible but most people do switch them off for summer months and use a back up method.

IMO 240º is way too hot, but i have only been cooking on them since 1992 keep the slider in the middle and you'll be lucky to get 200º in the roasting oven and perhaps 150 in the baking oven.

Slider? We’ve got an oil flow control knob.

 

[Proto]

Aga toast .... is fab

certainly is. Chicken and mayo toastie for lunch. Excellent.