Dimplex CS3311 Compact Electric Stove
by Dimplex
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Tools and Hardware Reviews of Dimplex CS3311 Compact Electric Stove
Customer Review: Warm 'n Cozy
Summary: 5 Stars
Like other reviewers, I was considering an oil-filled electric radiator heater which costs about a third to a half the price of the CS3311 Compact Electric Stove but instead bought this item. As others have pointed out, the name on the unit is NOT Dimplex but is ElectraLog (not an issue in my view). I am very pleased with the purchase. We have an 11X16 foot room (9 foot ceilings) at the end of a gas forced air furnace run and with an unfinished basement space below. The room can be isolated from the rest of the house by closing a set of french doors. It gets cool in the winter and in the past we have had to turn the furnace up to a point where it was very warm in the rest of the house to get this room comfortable. We spend a lot of time in this room where we read, watch TV and "game".
While we are not in the dead of winter yet, I can say that the heater provides plenty of heat to bring the temperature up quickly and to a point where it is downright toasty. To get the room to that temperature, it seems to cycle about 50% of the time (the outside temperature has been about 40 degrees). As pointed out in other reviews, the unit itself does not get hot like a traditional wood stove but rather the heat comes out of a lower blower unit which houses the electic heater. The blower remains on even when the electic heating element has cycled to "off". I had no concern about the wood floor temperature getting too hot in front of the unit.
About the unit...It seems to be built well, the finish looks like a real cast iron wood stove but the unit weighs only about 25 pounds. The flames are very realistic! We have three fireplaces in the house and while this unit does not provide the same ambiance (you don't feel radiant heat coming from the stove), it is much better than a ceramic or oil-filled heater. For our purpose of heating the room and having a nice looking piece in the room, it is perfect. The heater is 1500 watts and when it kicks in, the lights in the room dim a little (everything is on a single circuit). Despite this, the plug on the unit or the wall receptacle does not seem to get warm. The fan on the unit makes a low hum which is not very noticeable. There is a knob on the back of the unit which operates as a thermostat or you can purchase one of these thermostat'ed plugs from Amazon WIN100 Heating & Cooling Programmable Outlet Thermostat. Love the on/off remote and like others, wish you could control the temperature setting from it. Great unit and we may purchase another for the upstairs master bedroom to sit in front of the wood fireplace which gets sparse use.
I will update this review in the middle of winter to comment on how well it heats when the winter nights go below 20 or 30 degrees and the unit gets much more use. Also, we will be able to get an idea of whether or not we are saving money by turning down the thermostat in the rest of the house and heating the room we spend much of our time in. There were some who commented on the reliability of the unit and that, only time will tell. But for now, it gets five stars for looks, realism and functionality. Dimplex Compact Electric Stove (CS3311)
Update 1: After using the unit for a month, we love it even more. We ordered a second one for the upstairs bedroom. I have cut back the gas furnace thermostat 2 degrees and use the current unit in the family room where it has kept the room "warm and cozy".
People are wondering how much does this cost to run? You can calculate how much once you go to your electric bill and see how much you are being charged per kilowatt hour (kWh) - on our bill, it is broken into two charges: a delivery and a supply charge...you need to add these two costs together). A kilowatt hour is equal to running a device that uses one thousand watts for one hour. A 100 watt bulb needs to burn for 10 hours to use one kilowatt. The CS3311 would use 1500 watts (heater and "flame") or 1.5 kilowatts (kW). If the heater was on 100% of the time for 24 hours (which it usually would not be), it would use 1.5 kW X 24 hours = 36 kilowatt hours (kWh). My electric costs about 18.5 cents ($0.185) per kWh so it would cost me (36 X $0.185) $6.66 to run it 24 hours a day (which is a maximum of $200 per month) IF the heating element stayed on constantly. If the heating element cycles 50% of the time (which is what I have noticed but it depends on how high you turn the little temperature knob up in the back of the unit), then it would cost $4.00 per day (this number is not half of $6.66 because the unit still uses 300 watts per hour to run the light bulbs, heater fan and internal motor that "produces" the flame even when the heating element is off). Now, we only run the unit when we are in the room (about 5 hours a day) so it should actually cost us about ($4.00 X 5 / 24 ) = $0.83 per day (or about $25 per month).
Now, Dimplex makes this all even easier. They say it costs 3 cents an hour to run the "flame" and 8 cents an hour to run the heater and the flame (assumes heater element is on 50% of the time) for a typical electric rate. My cost to run the heater and the flame is about $0.17 per hour (to run the "flame" alone it is 5.6 cents per hour). Clearly, their electric costs less than mine :-(
So how much does it cost you? You need to know your electric rate then follow one of the formulas below:
The MOST it could cost you per day in dollars = (your electric rate in dollars per kWh) X (1.5) X (24)
Daily cost in dollars with a 50% heater cycle time = (your electric rate in dollars per kWh) X (0.9) X (24)
Typical HOURLY cost in dollars with a 50% heater cycle time = (your electric rate in dollars per kWh) X (0.9)
Customer Review: Love It!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a great item and I am so happy that I ordered it. First of all, let me say that you should be careful who you purchase this from. I made the mistake of originally ordering it from another vendor who advertises on this website. The price was ridiculously low with free s/h. You know when they say if it's too good to be true, yada, yada. The item was charged to my account immediately but the order was put on back order. Waited and waited with no return calls or e-mails from the vendor. Finally cancelled the order and I'm still waiting for my refund.
Now for the good news....
So, I smartened up and ordered it through Amazon.com and guess what? I ordered it this past Tuesday afternoon and received it on Thursday. Huh? Excellent. What was wrong with that other vendor?
The product arrived I would have to say not greatly padded, which is no fault of Amazon.com. The vendor should definitely rethink the cardboard and go with styrofoam, at least around the corners. The edge of the product was slightly dented but I did my magic with shoe polish and it looks great.
The product is excellent and of high quality. It is very sturdy, not shoddy at all and throws off great heat. I have not used the remote yet. I placed it in my bedroom and it looks beautiful. I can't believe the flame. I know, I know, it's an artifical flame but Dimplex really has done a great job with the flame.
The product does not get hot to the touch but does put out substantial heat. Also, the "glass" in the door is not really glass; just a plastic laminate. It's okay though, the product is still great.
Several have mentioned that the stove is tiny. I don't think so unless you're comparing it to a large life-size stove. This is perfect and would fit inside a fireplace beautifully.
Others have also mentioned that the Dimplex now says Electralog and that's true. However, I've gone on the Dimplex website and that's just one of several names under the Dimplex flag.
I am very happy with this product and I am hard to please. It looks beautiful, it works great, my kitty cats love it and so do I. If I had more money, I'd purchase two more...one for my enclosed porch and one most definitely for my kitchen. Eventually I want to get one of their super duper Victorian stove models.
Go with Amazon. They were great.
Customer Review: How do I love my Dimplex? Let me count the ways!
Summary: 5 Stars
I purchased my Dimplex CS3311 back in November and it was love at first sight. But I've waited to review it until I had some solid utility bill facts to provide and am now able to give prospective consumers some good, helpul information. My small 10' x 10' bedroom is cold and draughty in the winter - the house heating system doesn't reach well into that corner - making it difficult to be in except during warm afternoons. Many nights this December 2009 reached temperatures below 40 degrees and I gave this adorable little heater a big workout in that room where I also write and read as well as sleep. The result, which is True Love Reason (TLR)#1, is that my electric bill was only $30 dollars higher than the same time last year, in an area where the average kilowatt hour is 8 cents. Meanwhile, my gas heating bill was more than halved (TLR #2). In other words, TLR #3, I suspect that by the end of January, the Dimplex will have just about paid for itself.
Left on, this heater will spill heat out into the rest of the cottage (TLR #4) and flood the adjacent bathroom with warmth: no wonder I don't use the gas heater system as much! In fact the heater, which is so quiet you have to focus a bit to hear if it is on (TLR #5) can actually make that room a bit too toasty, which is why I heartily recommend this model, with its remote control (TLR #6). You will make a big mistake if you don't opt for this feature. Because with the remote, once tucked in under the duvets, you can switch the heater on and off at will, throughout the night if need be, without bestirring yourself or others.
Now my gas heater is programmed to go on in the rest of the house only in the morning, which means that my four cats, who adore watching the flickering toy flames, now sleep with me and the Dimplex, every night - which makes TLR #7,8,9,10!
More reasons to love this little heater : TLR #11 - very lightweight yet, TLR #12, very well-made, TLR #13, charming and full of 'ambience', TLR #14, very safe, even on carpet it doesn't heat the surrounding floor but sends the heat upward, #TLR 15, and kind of goofy fun, like a toy for a grown-up, TLR #16.
So there you have it: my sixteen reasons for highly recommending this heater, esp. if you have an area in your house that just doesn't heat up easily.
Customer Review: Great little stove
Summary: 5 Stars
Let me start by saying I'm a fireplace guy. It's a New England thing. Big open fireplace, several logs in a fiery inferno, licking at the flue. So to consider this for as an auxiliary heater for our newly closed-in back porch was a bit of a stretch for me. I've seen some of those electric fireplaces and the idea of buying a product that might look like a six year old's Crayola rendition of fireplace flames drawn on the side of a rotating Quaker Oats container didn't seem like something I would do so long as there was that familiar pulsation at my wrist. But we saw a couple of videos from You Tube and the manufacturer's web site that seemed promising and even impressive, as well as a similar product in a local fireplace store, so relying on Amazon's great customer satisfaction history, we bought this one. Pleasantly surprised would only begin to describe my shock in watching the "flames" licking at the "flue" in this puppy. The allusion is really uncanny! The only consideration is that in a well lit room, you do get some reflection of the grid from the glass door on the interior rear of the unit. But due to the low light level of the stove, you'll probably want to use it with the lights lowered anyway. The heater component (you also have the option of no heat, fireplace-only use) is that protrusion you seen on the bottom of the unit, and it blows a consistent flow of warm (not hot - the whole unit stays cool to the touch) air, the output being comparable to other forced air units of 1500 watts, enough that when we tested it one evening when it was 40 degrees outside, the little guy managed to heat the 12 X 20 room (floor still uninsulated) to a "wear a sweater" comfortable temperature. I expect that with an additional space heater we should be able to use the room on all but the coldest of nights. While it's somewhat more costly than other space heaters of similar output, you're paying more for the ambiance it creates. But it's worth it. Did I mention how great this thing looks?Customer Review: The Best Little Stove Ever!
Summary: 5 Stars
I love this stove!!! After a week of going back in forth between this size and the smaller one, and reading countless reviews I made my choice and selected this larger one and I am so happy that I did!! I ordered the stove on Tuesday morning and it arrived Wednesday afternoon, how is that for service? It looks great and it fits perfectly under our TV. We live in a drafty house built in 1936 and even though we live in central Texas, the winters at times can be quite cold. Having always had a fireplace as a fixture in childhood memories, and loving its warmth and glow, I was determined to find something that could fit our needs and this was it!
As soon as it arrived, I literally lifted it out of the box and plugged it in. The remote is simply an on/off remote, which can be manually customized on the back of the unit so it can turn on/off according to your preferences. (I wish the remote was able to control the heat.) There are three controls on the back, a knob to adjust the heat/temperature level, a three part switch to turn the unit off, on, and remote mode, and a third switch to turn heat on/off, (a winning feature). Just for kicks I decided to crank up the heat and in no time, hot/warm heat was coming out of the bottom. I like that it was almost radiating heat with a slight force; I don't like having heat blowing at me. This was putting out heat at the bottom and since heat rises it was no time before the room was toasty warm.
The stoves' overall appearance is very pleasing, it reminds me of what one might find in an old farm house, but please keep in mind it is on the smaller size; 20 in long, 23 in tall and 10 in deep. But if you have a smaller, draftier room, such as a den, this will work great. And keep in mind; it is super light so you can move it around the house depending on where you are. I can't wait to move it to the kitchen, for that nostalgic "fireplace in the kitchen" feeling!
Hope this helps, and enjoy! º