jeff 37 - 11 May 2008 05:09 PM
I know there are alot of harman owners out there and few St. Croix people to. I have been to the mansfield Harman dealer who seemed to care less if I existed, and the mendon St Croix dealer who spent 45 minutes with me talking about all the options I have. The St. Criox Hasting is about 2600 and the Harman xxv is about 3000. I guess my question is wether or not the St. Croix is enough stove for a 1200 sq ft cape at only 38,000 btus or do I need the Harman xxv at 50,000 btus. Some of the other things that stand out about the harman is a bigger hopper, bigger name, and bigger price. I know the customer sales department in Mendon was excellent, will it transfer over to the service???? Has anybody had dealing with either stove or stores. Any suggestions or comments would be great. Also anyone in the mass area have a installer they would reccomend. Thanks jeff
Since I own a Harman P61 and a St Croix Hastings I feel obligated to chime in. I’m not completely familiar with the XXV, but i’m pretty sure it is similar to the P61, at least in terms of the way it opeates.
My first comment would be that the Hastings and the XXV are very different stoves. They both have the great cast iron looks, and are both are solid reliable stoves (IMO and in my exp), but that is where the similarities stop. As you know thos two stoves are sized very differently. Most people on the forum will tell you that it is a very bad idea to oversize your stove. If you are a well insulated 1200 sq feet then the Harman might be a bit overkill for your house. I’m using my Hastings to heat the first and 2nd level of my cape (probably 1400 square feet) and it does a very good job...usually running no higher than medium. My layout is pretty quirky so I do have 2 small CPU fans that I use to help distribute the heat. The Harman heats my 600 sq foot basement. Definitely not the ideal stove for the job, but it does a fine job, and I typically run it on a very low setting.
I would think the Hastings would the perfect BTUs for you if you are reasonably well insulated, and your layout is somewhat open.
A few notables:
The Hastings has a very small ash pan (plan on cleaning the stove weekly in the heating season)
The Hastings distribution blower is less powerful than the XXVs, this is one reason why I feel like I need the extra fans
(IN my exp) The Hastings seems to be more “finicky” about what types of pellets I feed it. Never had a big problem, but some hardwood pellets i’ve used have lead to significant “clinker” build up in the burnpot. These same pellets have burned well in the Harman.
The St Croix seems to have a better igniter system than the Harman. This comment is based on the fact that my igniter needed to be replaced when I first bought the stove (used) and the fact that i’ve seen numrous threads with other people expereince Harman igniter issues. The St Croix lights like a champ after 3 seasons of heavy, heavy operation.
In summary, both are excellent stoves. If you don’t mind the weekly maintenence the St Croix would probably work well for you. Realistically, the XXV will run best if you perform some maintenece tasks on a weekly basis, but I believe it is more forgiving if you’re not right on top of things.
Have you looked at the Harman Accentra? I would think pricing would be right there in the 2600 range, and they also have the great cast iron looks. BTU-wise I suspect that stove would be perefct at 40,000.
The last, perhaps most important thing to think about is dealer quality. I’m fairly handy so I have not had to engage the Harman or St Croix dealers often, but if you don’t want to trouble shoot/repair on your own you’ll want to make sure you go with a reputable dealer. Hopefully some folks on the forum will be able to comment on the dealers in your area.
Hope this is useful. Feel free to fire off specific questions
