Deciding on a pellet stove -- bad reviews making me nervous

[99miles]

Hello-
I have found a few pellet stoves I like, then I go to read reviews and they are mostly awful reviews and it makes me really nervous.
The ones I'm looking at are:
Enviro - Empress
Quadrafire - Castile
Harman - XXV

I like the looks of the first two the best but the reviews seem worse than the Harman.

Does anyone have any thoughts about this? Maybe people are just more likely to take the time to write a bad review than a good one, or maybe many of these pellet stoves really are more of a headache than a pleasure.

Thanks!

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

I think that all pellet stoves have there strong points and weaknesses. Its hard to say what is going to work best. The quads in my opinion take less maintenance, and are easy to set up. But they have less controls then the other two. Just low med and high. The harmans allow more user interaction/tweaking. The enviros are a basic design that works on a typical thermostat but also has more user controls. So really it depends on what you want!

 

[99miles]

Thanks! I guess first and foremost I want reliability. What good are user controls if the stove always breaks!

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

To add to this, pellet stoves no matter what the make are prone to problems. User maintenance, pellet quality, frequency of cleaning etc all play into how satisfied someone is with a pellet product. Some stoves are bad out of the box, most arent. I have seen all brands fail for some reason or another. Im becoming more of a harman fan by the day. I like the way they are built, i like the user interface, and i like the looks!

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

Thanks! I guess first and foremost I want reliability. What good are user controls if the stove always breaks!

I think the quad and harman are some of the more reliable pellet stoves on the market. The quad is plug and play, the harman is more like... linux :coolsmirk:

 

[Steveo]

I love my Harman P68. It is simple to use and seems to burn any pellet it put in it.

 

[Pellet-King]

I have only 1 problem with my Whitfield Advantge 2T, which i bought new in 1998, the washer/bushing on bottom of auger motor wore down and the auger stopped moving, other than that for constant 5+ months burning each year not a problem.
They got bought out by Lennox, dont know what they stil make or sell, find a used one.

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

the advantage 2t was one of the best stoves on the market in its day. We still have a ton of them out in the field. The new lennox stoves are far from the quality that jerry whitfied put out in the 90's. The look is a bit dated for most peoples tastes today.

 

[amick780]

Extremely satisfied with my Harman XXV, was looking at both a Quad and the Harman at the time. Was told by a friend who sells Quads to buy the Harman which he did not sell. No problems with mine to date. Heats my 2900 sq/ft colonial on its own for most of the winter. Looks great, runs quiet, could not be more satisfied.

 

[amick780]

the advantage 2t was one of the best stoves on the market in its day. We still have a ton of them out in the field. The new lennox stoves are far from the quality that jerry whitfied put out in the 90's. The look is a bit dated for most peoples tastes today.

My brother has a lennox...he wishes he bought a Harman.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

the one GLARING fact with pellet stoves is this; take care of it and it will take care of you. neglect it and it will let you down when you need it. hey i build them for a living and i was a bit nervous pulling the woodstove out for a pellet unit, did so 5 years ago and havent looked back, wife fought me tooth and nail at the time, one of the few "put my foot down" moments in our marriage. i travel more now and may not be home to tend to the woodstove and she couldnt start a fire in a stove with a gallon of napalm and a gun to her head. fear of stupidly high electric bills made the descision for me, as soon as the unit lit the first time at the touch of a button , the hook was set. i doubt she would let me go back to wood now even if i wanted to. she maintains it "almost" as well as i do now and the stove hasnt blinked in 4 seasons (5th coming)

FWIW my personal view on bad reviews, most people who do reviews are usually those who have been disappointed. human nature is to be more vocal on negatives than positives when you have to go out of your way to do so. now im not saying this is the hard and fast rule , but the tendancy in general. people who are happy because they are getting what they expected are less likely to vocalize unless asked, and certainly arent as likely to go out of their way to say that they got what they expected because its not out of the ordinary to get what you expect from a purchase of this type. some folks will go out of their way to laud a product ive gotten a few calls over the years but mostly letters of the "testimonial" type on our products as im sure any manufacturer gets. but the bottom line is when you buy somthing and it does what its supposed to do , it doesnt "stand out" because its what was expected.


the 3 products you listed are ALL fine products from some of the highest regarded names in the industry, balance the "reviews" with the "testimonials" and above all select the product for the features you like , not just on the reviews. i should note also that the "dealer relationship" in this market is as important as the product name a good dealer is one of the best "variables" in the stove market and should be the selling point most looked at IMHO if all other things are even close to equal.

 

[smoke show]

human nature is to be more vocal on negatives than positives when you have to go out of your way to do so.

x2

 

[amick780]

Althought I am a huge Harman adviocate I agree with stoveguy....all products you are looking at are good products, and will probaly give you great service over the years. Satisifaction with your dealer is almost just as important as satisifaction with the stove. With out a doubt at some point in time somthing will happen with the stove no matter what brand it is, and the dealer is going to be the one you are going to call. I do believe that some brands are a little better then others, but if you never owned them you would probaly never notice the difference.

 

[slls]

I like my Quad CB1200, the reason being is, nothing to fool with. After setting the initial pellet feed slide, I put it on med heat and high fan. I now never have to do nothing but set the thermostat and turn power on.

Cleaning is easy, I got into a routine real fast, do it once a day. Pellet stoves are not maintenance free, they take some tender loving care.

Good owners manual, I also found the Quad Service Manual online, that is important to me as I like to do my own work. I have always serviced my oil fired furnace and will do the same for my pellet stove.

I knew little about pellet stoves when I bought mine last year, I was just lucky to get one that fit me to a tee. What attracted me to the CB was the pot dump valve and round burn pot, and very little adjustments. I would have gone crazy trying to make it run perfect by fooling with all the adjustments.

Good luck on what ever you chose, I got to the point of ignoring all the online stove bashing, seems like there were no good stoves being produced.

 

[newf lover]

Even though I'm new to the pellet stove world, the only suggestion I have is to make sure whichever brand you buy, you can trust the dealer. I bought a Harman P68 that had squealing right out of the box. I was not happy of course, but the dealer did make it right. You can read many horror stories from people who bought a stove that had some problems, and the dealer ignored them. I would also listen to those members on the forum who service the stoves. They know which ones they get a lot of service request calls on. Even with the initial problems, I am very happy I bought a pellet stove. The house has never been this comfortable, and I do not find the maintenance a big deal. Good luck.

 

[MainePellethead]

As I have stated many times... I have the Quad Castile and LOVE it. It has far exceeded my expectations Keep er clean she'll keep you warm

 

[swalz]

Even though I'm new to the pellet stove world, the only suggestion I have is to make sure whichever brand you buy, you can trust the dealer. I bought a Harman P68 that had squealing right out of the box. I was not happy of course, but the dealer did make it right. You can read many horror stories from people who bought a stove that had some problems, and the dealer ignored them. I would also listen to those members on the forum who service the stoves. They know which ones they get a lot of service request calls on. Even with the initial problems, I am very happy I bought a pellet stove. The house has never been this comfortable, and I do not find the maintenance a big deal. Good luck.

I had the Bad dealer experience and they would ignore me until I went in person to the store, I guess that is why they are no longer a Harman dealer. I found another Harman dealer that is willing to help me out when needing parts for my still under warranty stove, need to do the work myself or get a service charge but at least I can get the parts.

 

[countk]

Hello-
I have found a few pellet stoves I like, then I go to read reviews and they are mostly awful reviews and it makes me really nervous.
The ones I'm looking at are:
Enviro - Empress
Quadrafire - Castile
Harman - XXV

I like the looks of the first two the best but the reviews seem worse than the Harman.

Does anyone have any thoughts about this? Maybe people are just more likely to take the time to write a bad review than a good one, or maybe many of these pellet stoves really are more of a headache than a pleasure.

Thanks!

I don't think you will go wrong with any of these choices UNLESS your dealer doesn't support you. I was originally leaning toward a Harman XXV when I was about to purchase, but I wasn't comfortable with the dealer, although all indications here is that it's a great stove.

Bottom line, I found a local dealer who promised me service and I trusted him. I haven't really needed any, but when I first bought the stove he came over immediately because I was doing something wrong and he straightened me out. After that, there was a door recall, (however my stove was working fine with the old door), and my dealer ordered the new one and promptly put it in at no charge.

I have only had my Enviro Empress stove for one season and I absolutely love it!

IMO I would choose the best dealer!!

 

[Clay H]

Get a St. Croix and be done. Mine operates flawlessly so far (this will be season 5) it doesnt care if its clean, dirty or if i use crappy pellets (because thats all i can get here in OK)...just fire it up and let it eat!

 

[pelletdude]

All the guys are right on, go with the stove that has the look you want and the features that you feel are the most important. But at the end of the day the dealer that you feel the most comfortable with is probably at the top of the list. IMO - the Empress is one pretty stove and Enviro has been around along time with good results. Also buy the best pellets you can afford. You won't be sorry in the end.

 

[Lazy Flame]

human nature is to be more vocal on negatives than positives

Amen to that. Like 5:1 IMO.

I prefer a woodburner so far because the units in my house are supplemental and the woodburner has nearly nothing to go wrong with it. But a pellet burner is TONS eaier to deal with. All I do is buy bag of pellets and insert as needed. Altho, I do have to keep a an extra big all weather generator around for the PB :-O

I agree w/most all of these posts. I think ANY and EVERY pellet stove getting a regular workout is going to break down eventually, even w/care and maintenance, so when it does be prepared. Mine is sitting in pieces b/c it's out of production and I'm having grande trouble finding parts. When I get another pellet appliance I'm going to look hardest and how long the companies been around and ease of DIY repair (unless my wifey getes involved, then it'll be all about style and if the color maches the drapes)

Best O luck in any case!

 

[sparkydog00]

Well i can say that if you are comparing wood over pellets...
I just helped a neighbor move 3 cords of wood....took forever...backbreaking work...
Kept telling him how I moved 3 tons of pellets into my basement a few months ago...BY MYSELF....
For what it is worth!

 

[99miles]

Thanks for all the input everyone! I am now the proud owner of a Harman XXV!
I don't have it yet, but I bought it today! 14 days 'til installation!

 

[stoveguy2esw]

good deal, you picked a great stove , dont forget to download the certificate to carry with you at tax time for the credit

 

[Mr Whitfield]

I think the older Whitfield's work great, I have 3 Advantages II-T, 2 from the 90's and 1 from 2006. What ever stove you buy, you will have to maintain it to keep it running like new. I have repaired many stove, I feel that the older Whitfield's are easy to trouble shoot if you have a problem. I would look on Craigslist for a nice used stove, why buy new when you can fine a nice used one for a 1/4 or 1/3 of the price of new one. You will need to work on any stove from time to time.