When planning and designing handmade kitchens, we’re often get asked which are better, Aga or Everhot. We highly recommend both brands for similar reasons. Cooking in a heat storage range cooker has so many benefits because the entire body heats food gently but efficiently. Owners benefit from flame-less cooking and excellent results every time. For those not familiar with heat storage cooking, it may take a little time to get used to it, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll rarely go back. If you want a kitchen with an efficient and long-lasting cooker that helps heat the home, you can’t beat them. Here’s what we’ve learned about the heat storage range cookers Aga and Everhot.
Aga
The Aga cooker was the brainchild of a Swedish physicist Dr Gustaf Dalén, who wanted to make cooking safer, cleaner, and more efficient for his wife. The cast-iron design was so successful in Scandinavian kitchens that it came to Britain in 1929 and has been made in Shropshire for almost a century. The popularity of the Aga continues, thanks to its unique ability to heat the home and last a lifetime.
Traditionally, the humble Aga is always turned on and keeps a steady ‘ready to cook’ temperature. Most recently, the clever engineers at Aga have introduced digital ‘Total Control’ allowing owners to turn the cookers off or down. The state-of-the-art R7 Series is also designed to have the ovens on all the time, but unlike the classic models, the temperature settings include an economy setting to save energy and fuel costs.
In our Georgian Manor House Kitchen project in Somerset, our client dreamed of a bespoke kitchen that ticked all their boxes. So, to match their passion for cooking, the 5-door Aga range cooker with an electric module, including gas burners, was included in the planning and design of their handmade kitchen.
For our Rectory Kitchen project in Bath, Somerset, our clients were keen foodies and wanted a 4-door Aga to celebrate their love of cooking and dining. So the Pearl Ashes 4-door electric Aga was chosen and set in the far end of the traditional handmade bespoke kitchen between two feature glazed panels.
Everhot
Everhot has been designing and manufacturing cast-iron electric range cookers since 1979. Designed by Ossie Goring in Gloucestershire with a clear motive to create an environmentally friendly and energy-efficient cooker. For over twenty-five years, the family-run business has been in the hands of Ossie’s son Guy, and the engineer has continued to make efficient, inventive, and functional ranges to suit many kitchens.
The key Everhot’s innovation is that each cooker uses a trickle feed of electricity, meaning that the ranges stay hot but use less power to do so.
For our Richlite Kitchen project, we included a single module Evershot cooker as part of the overall design. As one of our favourite contemporary kitchens projects to date, we wanted to accomplish a modern design using Richlite to contrast the natural oak and black limestone. The black Evehot cooker matched our bespoke design beautifully.
A double-module Evershot cooker was chosen for the grand Victorian villa kitchen in our Kitchen in Bath project. The fifth-generation family had clear ideas about the design, so we planned a bespoke kitchen befitting the home’s grandeur with classic design pieces and all the conveniences of the 21st century.
Papilio’s Verdict
There have been some questions over Aga’s energy efficiency compared with Everhot, the forerunner in energy-efficient credentials. And as a result, Aga has improved the efficiency of its cookers over the last few years, developing their ranges to suit conscientious homeowners.
In terms of aesthetics, however, it really is a personal choice. As transformational bespoke kitchen designers, we rate Aga and Everhot very highly and make our suggestions for appliances according to our client’s specific needs.
