To keep the Aga?

[UmbriaLover]

We are having the kitchen re-done.

DH wants to replace of the Aga with fantastically modern electric ovens/microwaves that cook food quickly, easily, and at low cost without the extreme hassle of an Aga.

DH says:

1. The Aga costs too much to run (oil... don't ask it came with the house)
2. It's quicker to boil an electric kettle
3. We don't live in the country (we live in Fulham) or have a springer spaniel.

This is my ABSOLUTE worse nightmare.

How can I convince DH to keep the Aga?

AIBU to keep the Aga?

We’ve inherited an electric one with the house which we have switched off due to the running costs so now it just sits there like a massive pointless hulk of cold metal. I loved it but couldn’t justify the huge running cost. Used to have to open the windows in summer as it made the kitchen too hot. Need to make a longer term plan - would move to sell it but who on earth wants a cooker that costs £10 a day to run?

You're in Fulham, get rid of the Aga.

If you absolutely want an always on range cooker and can afford it, get an Everhot. Reconditioned is just as good as new, much cheaper, they will do them in all the colours. Never need servicing, just plug in to a normal plug. I love mine.

www.secondhandeverhot.co.uk/

Get a sandwhich toaster and ditch the aga

I adored mine, which I moved away from 11yo are ago and still miss. If I could afford it, I’d get solar panels and an electric one.

Surely it's cheaper to get takeaway food for the foreseeable future?

@MrsWooster

I adored mine, which I moved away from 11yo are ago and still miss. If I could afford it, I’d get solar panels and an electric one.

Interesting, was your garden big enough? DH calculated that we would need about 1.5 hectare for an electric one.

Get the panels on the roof

I voted YANBU (as if you love it, you love it) but I would hate an Aga. I recently got a dual fuel rangemaster, just a small one as that's all my kitchen will accommodate, and I love that it's fuel efficient and (crucially) that I have total control over the heating functions.

@Whetheryouthinkyoucan

You need an Everhot and then an Everhot stove for upstairs. Exactly what you are describing.

Having an Aga or EH means you never need to iron, tumble dry, pre heat the oven, you don’t need a toaster, an electric kettle or any kind of sandwich toaster/waffle machine. My heating doesn’t come on until at the last week of October, and is off by now in early March.

I think this. Though not sure your husband will be up for the bill. You both sound delightfully comedy posh BTW.

@UmbriaLover

I am getting slightly confused now. Is it only possible to cook Yorkshire puddings in an Aga? Is the Aga good for anything else? We don't really use it that much for cooking, truth be told.

If you precook your sausages you could have Toad in the hole. A little more interesting. Out of interest, how do you pronounce Aga? Also, is the laundry also ironed?

Honestly, get rid of it.

I lived with a (gas) aga for 12 months and ended up wanting to smash it with a hammer. The kitchen was unbearably hot, it was absolute shit to cook on, it took ages to do anything and was totally uncontrollable.

Terrible for the environment too and costs a fortune.

With your update that you barely use it for cooking, just ditch it for a microwave.

You don't cook with it?! What's the point then?

What do you cook with if you haven't got an oven?

11 years living in the countryside with my 4 oven AGA, no other ovens, microwaves or hob. It was the heart of the home.
I am now living in a city with fully modern appliances and I miss my AgA so much

DH and I don't use it that much, but DHK does. So we will check with her before we get rid of it.

“DH says that it cost about £2,500 to keep the Aga running last year”

my central heating and hot water are oil... it cost me half that last year to heat a 4 bedroom house.

@Jonny1265

I took ours out and replaced it with a duel fuel range which is far superior in every way. The multi-function oven gets up to 220 in around 7 mins and is much better during summer. I've thought about installing an ESSE Ironheart too for winter use but it would require a significant shuffle around in the kitchen so I've held off. I did like the aga in the colder months but I'm happy to forgo it for the increased benefits of a superior oven and much lower energy costs.

‘Superior’ is that you Hyacinth?

I believe you can convert an old oil fired Aga to electric? Costs a few grand though. I have an old Aga and currently debating whether to convert it due to oil prices and would allow us to get rid of ugly oil tank. It took me a couple of years to learn her whims and ways and learn tricks to raise the temperature without a costly visit from the Aga man but I do kind of love her now. My son has said he only likes Aga cooked lamb now, which sounds horribly middle class, and I've told him not to repeat this outside the home 😆 All Aga owners -if your Aga is not due a service and the temperature has dropped and won't rise, turn the dial on the oil box up to 12 O'clock/max and quickly tap the tiny silver button next to it 10-12 times. Wait and repeat if necessary. (You should hear the flames whoosh up immediately if it'd worked) Wait 5 mins then turn the dial back to regular position. It clears a wax build up in the pipe apparently. Has saved me a fortune in call outs. Aga engineers don't generally share this tip willingly.

@fortheloveofcheesecake

I can't work out if the OP is taking the piss. Laundry out etc.

Or possibly on something enjoyable? I can’t decide if I want some or not.

@UmbriaLover

I am getting slightly confused now. Is it only possible to cook Yorkshire puddings in an Aga? Is the Aga good for anything else? We don't really use it that much for cooking, truth be told.

So you don’t dry your laundry on it and you don’t use it much for cooking....what do you use it for?

@UmbriaLover

I am getting slightly confused now. Is it only possible to cook Yorkshire puddings in an Aga? Is the Aga good for anything else? We don't really use it that much for cooking, truth be told.

Naturally you outsource the cooking too, as well as the laundry, cleaning and probably children.

What about sex?

Op you are absolutely correct to rely on takeaways. An Aga cannot do haddock and chips with scraps, however much you adjust the dials.

Ok, I thin op may be taking the p!ss…. But if not… We swapped out our oil aga for an Everhot about 5 years ago, it’s great. However due to the price of electric going up I’m buying a second oven so I can turn it off totally from mid April to end of Oct this year … They are an expensive luxury so if you’re not cooking with it, drying your laundry or cuddling it when it’s freezing then you’re best off getting some swanky ovens ….. if you really do have an oil fired aga in Fulham though, where the hell is your oil tank?!….bear in mind any works will require building control and the requirements for positioning of tanks have become a lot stricter in recent years (& if you have a classic small London garden it may be v difficult to comply!!)

@UmbriaLover

I am getting slightly confused now. Is it only possible to cook Yorkshire puddings in an Aga? Is the Aga good for anything else? We don't really use it that much for cooking, truth be told.

You were doing so well until now. That post has tipped the thread.