Aga with AIMS or Rayburn?

[lexie01]

Can anyone please help a very confused MN!

I live in a rather draughty Edwardian house with a fairly large (long & narrow) kitchen. We have a chimney breast which is the perfect size for a rangecooker but I have no idea which one to choose (if any!!).
The layout of the kitchen dictates that I won't be able to have a secondary cooker for the summer months so I have been told that a Rayburn would be the better option. However I am worried about the size of the ovens (to small?). An aga has larger ovens but how hot would it be in the summer even with AIMS? I could just have a 'normal' rangecooker but the kitchen is very cold in the winter and I can only fit a small radiator in the breakfast area so I think it would be just too cold.

Any thoughts/suggestions??

What is AIMS?

I have an aga, and only an aga, not even a microwave.
The summer question depends on where you live. It is essential even in summer in Scotland, it is far too hot in the South of England.

Don't know what AIMS is, but our Aga 6:4 is fabulous, and works like a normal range cooker - so doesn't boil you in summer.

My understanding is that AIMS enables you to programme an Aga - so it will go into slumber mode when not in use. What I don't know is how warm slumber mode is and how long it takes to heat the Aga back up for cooking. We live in the Midlands so I guess it might be too warm in the summer??

It takes about a day to get our aga up from the pilot light to full tempreture. In the summer we run ours on the pilot light, the hot oven then becomes the same tempreture as the cool oven is normally. so you can heat things up and do things like slow roasts, the hot plate is still good for a fast simmer and the cooler one is still good for a slow one. On the pilot light it is just warm to the touch but it is fine even on really hot days. We do have an extra hob which we use in summer for pasta and things

I have a 4 oven Aga and I live in the South. I don't have a huge draughty old house either - it's modern and well insulated, but I don't find I ever have a problem with getting too hot. In the summer we have the kitchen doors open (summer evenings can be quite quite cool) and in the winter the Aga keeps downstairs nice and toasty warm.

Not sure why I put 'quite' twice

This is all good news. My preference has always been for an Aga but I was concerned about the heat. Everyone I know who has one switches it off in the summer. Your replies give me some hope!

Can I ask how easy you found it to cook on an Aga? I have only ever used a normal gas cooker and am really worried that I will find it too hard to use. I intend to book myself on a cooking session with the local Aga shop but I don't want to make a costly mistake and regret it!

It is the easiest way to cook by far!

It does take a little bit of adjustment, but honestly, you'll wonder how you ever managed without one. They are so easy!

The demonstrations are brilliant. I've only been to two but they were really helpful. A Day in the Life of an Aga is brilliant for anyone considering an Aga. You get to try all the food that is cooked too - scrummy!

You wont regret it.

Its only the old solid-fuel coal ones that are a pain to cook on because the temperature depends on the wind and weather. I grew up with one and it was a sod.

Modern gas or oil ones are fine. I have one now.

I never went on a course, seems like a waste of money to me, unless you want to go for the general cooking and social side of it. There's lots of very good books, and plenty of people on here to give advice.

There are obviously more Aga owners than Rayburn!

Just out of interest does anyone who owns an Aga use AIMS? I just wondered if it made any difference to heat when in slumber mode and how long it takes to warm back up.

Thanks for all your replies so far. I am feeling much more positive!

Are there any MN's who use AIMS?