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JKID3

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Nov 12, 2012
4
Hey Everyone,

I am looking to purchase a new pellet insert to supplement (or replace) my use of propane gas. I am looking to cover the floor the insert will be on which is roughly 1,000 square feet and up stairs if possible which is probably 900 square feet. I have narrowed down to the Quadra-Fire Mt. Vernon AE or the Harmon Accentra unit. I was hoping to get feedback on which unit is better. I feel the Harman get's better reviews, but the Quadra-ifire unit does 10,000 ore BTUs which would be a benefit. Anyway, I would appreciate the feedback. Thank You, John
 
Go big, You'll still have enough if it gets really cold. Nice having room at the top and beats over working the smaller stove. And its a multifuel unit which offers options!
 
Welcome to the Forums. Both are solid units.

How insulated and old is your house? How much propane were you using and what size heating system is currently in place ?

I Love Quads. They throw heat. Simply put. But Harmans do to. There known for being the Cadillac of Stoves.

Dont think you would go wrong with either unit.
 
Welcome to the Forums. Both are solid units.

How insulated and old is your house? How much propane were you using and what size heating system is currently in place ?

I Love Quads. They throw heat. Simply put. But Harmans do to. There known for being the Cadillac of Stoves.

Dont think you would go wrong with either unit.

My house was built in 1991. Insulation is average. Used about 1,100 gallons and my furnace is under sized for my home. Very inefficient I think.
 
Harman is a solid unit. Quad AE had a ton of problems awhile ago, they may have them ironed out by now. Parts are very expensive, and there are alot of parts and sensors in the unit. It is the quietest stove that I have seen.
 
You should consider the Enviro M55 if you have a dealer in the area. While I like some of the design features of the Mt. Vernon, you would be wise to consider an insert that slides/rolls out on rails. These stoves are extremely heavy and sliding them out for maintenance is a major operation if it doesn't have rails. The M55 will give as much if not more heat than the Mt. Vernon. The Accentra and M55 both slide out on rails. The Mt. Vernon does not. Also, the Mt. Vernon has to essentially shut down for it's autoclean every couple of hours. This will affect it's overall heat output. Probably the biggest pro to the Mt Vernon is it is the quietest of the 3. You won't go wrong with any of the 3 stoves, but make sure you understand each stove's pro's and cons before buying or you might wish you made a different choice.

Also, most of us that buy the biggest stoves RARELY ever turn them above medium. I almost never run my M55 above heat level 3 (heating about 2000sf). The Accentra will probably put out as much heat as my M55 (running on medium) just at a higher setting. So unless you get below 0F for long periods, the Accentra will probably be enough stove for you. Sorry to muddy up the water, I agonized for months on what stove to buy. None of them are perfect in every way. Although if Quad did away with the autoclean and the overly complicated and problem prone controller and put the Mt. Vernon on rails, I'd say it would be a clear winner.
 
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You should consider the Enviro M55 if you have a dealer in the area. While I like some of the design features of the Mt. Vernon, you would be wise to consider an insert that slides/rolls out on rails. These stoves are extremely heavy and sliding them out for maintenance is a major operation if it doesn't have rails. The M55 will give as much if not more heat than the Mt. Vernon. The Accentra and M55 both slide out on rails. The Mt. Vernon does not. Also, the Mt. Vernon has to essentially shut down for it's autoclean every couple of hours. This will affect it's overall heat output. Probably the biggest pro to the Mt Vernon is it is the quietest of the 3. You won't go wrong with any of the 3 stoves, but make sure you understand each stove's pro's and cons before buying or you might wish you made a different choice.

Also, most of us that buy the biggest stoves RARELY ever turn them above medium. I almost never run my M55 above heat level 3 (heating about 2000sf). The Accentra will probably put out as much heat as my M55 (running on medium) just at a higher setting. So unless you get below 0F for long periods, the Accentra will probably be enough stove for you. Sorry to muddy up the water, I agonized for months on what stove to buy. None of them are perfect in every way. Although if Quad did away with the autoclean and the overly complicated and problem prone controller and put the Mt. Vernon on rails, I'd say it would be a clear winner.

Thanks for the heads up. I am going to check out the M55 and Accentra at the same dealer. How does maintenance compare, M55 Good?
 
The M55 is very easy to work on and uses high quality components. I have owned mine for 2yrs and still on original ignitor. I have heard this style ignitor lasts a long time anyways. The M55 had some teething problems when it first came out, but they have addressed those and now it's a very solid stove. One advantage is that it is a true multi-fuel stove. It has an agitator in the burn pot that moves the ashes/clinker out of the burn pot automatically without having to shut down like the Mt. Vernon. Having multi-fuel capability is nice in that it will burn a wide variety of pellet quality (or other fuels) without any problems. But, I have found that most of us end up burning the best pellet we can afford, so the biggest advantage to the multi-fuelers is that they autoclean the burn pot and tend to be a lot less picky on pellet selection. What you are looking for is the M55 Cast Insert. It comes in a variety of finishes and is a very nice looking stove.
 
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The M55 is very easy to work on and uses high quality components. I have owned mine for 2yrs and still on original ignitor. I have heard this style ignitor lasts a long time anyways. The M55 had some teething problems when it first came out, but they have addressed those and now it's a very solid stove. One advantage is that it is a true multi-fuel stove. It has an agitator in the burn pot that moves the ashes/clinker out of the burn pot automatically without having to shut down like the Mt. Vernon. Having multi-fuel capability is nice in that it will burn a wide variety of pellet quality (or other fuels) without any problems. But, I have found that most of us end up burning the best pellet we can afford, so the biggest advantage to the multi-fuelers is that they autoclean the burn pot and tend to be a lot less picky on pellet selection. What you are looking for is the M55 Cast Insert. It comes in a variety of finishes and is a very nice looking stove.
I am going to check out the unit today. This is great information thank you for the feedback. The dealer has the harmon and the M55 so I am going to try and make the call today. I will let you all know which way I go. Any last minute information please let me know. Looking forward to burning!
 
My 2/16th cents (due to inflation)
Another thing on stoves is replacement parts ($ & availability ) can also be a factor too.

6 tons of pellets is good starting point(using a stove exclusively- not as a supplement )for a 1000 gallons of oil usage (depends on lot of factors though)but they wont go to waste can always use them next season;)
 
Yup, I was going by a post that had a gallon figure but not fuel type.

So it is 5.94 tons worth of pellets assuming all things equal but they aren't.

Looks like we'll have a new pig to the club then! :p A buffer to be sure is always good.


Now if you wanna talk pellets... thats another story :p

If you left any for the rest of us! ;em
 
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If I had an M55 available at the time I got my two, I'd have TWO M55's just for the easy of getting those suckers out for cleaning! Quads are very good and the problems about the Mt. Vernon are a thing of the past, I believe. ALL parts are expensive so don't assume Harman parts are cheaper than Quads, as hinted at above. I have no problems with my stoves and they are reliable and simple to operate/work on. You WILL be working on whatever stove you get. That's just a fact of life that many don't take into account.
 
Welcome to the Forums. Both are solid units.

How insulated and old is your house? How much propane were you using and what size heating system is currently in place ?

I Love Quads. They throw heat. Simply put. But Harmans do to. There known for being the Cadillac of Stoves.

Dont think you would go wrong with either unit.
Hi DexterDay

How do you like your quad classic bay and how long have you owned it. My father is looking at the classic bay 1200 insert for his house. Your thoughts as you are an owner of the classic bay. Do you have insert or freestanding?
 
Hi DexterDay

How do you like your quad classic bay and how long have you owned it. My father is looking at the classic bay 1200 insert for his house. Your thoughts as you are an owner of the classic bay. Do you have insert or freestanding?

I love it. I wish it had Hi/Low (goes to low fire when stat is satisfied), inetead of just On/Off.

But out of the Quad line up, its heat exchanger and exhaust path is prob 2nd (Mt. Vernon AE takes #1). Compared.to the Santa Fe and Castille, its far superior path.

It heats like the Sun and I am going on 5 yrs with it. For 3 yrs I used just the Quad. Last year I added all the other stoves in my Signature.

I use Low 90% of the time (again, great heat exchange system) heating 2,180 sq ft Ranch. House is only 17 yrs old and is insulated and sealed pretty well. Stove is centrally located in the house and does an awesome job.

If I had to replace it, the Shortlist would be a Enviro M-55 Steel, Enerzone Euromax, or a Harman (Accentra, P-43, P-61, P-68).

Nothing burns like a Quad! ;)
 
since everyone is boasting their stove i'll give mine a pop lol
Owned it for a year all i ever did was put pellets in it vacuum once a week and watch it burn ;)

OK OMV, you DON'T want to start boasting about how long it will burn WITHOUT opening the door for ANY reason, do you????
 
OK OMV, you DON'T want to start boasting about how long it will burn WITHOUT opening the door for ANY reason, do you????

That AE may do pretty well?

With the right settings, operator, and pellet, it may go pretty far.

I went 25 bags last year and didnt even try. And my stove dont auto clean. I only dis it because the glass was horrible and we had company coming over :)

Every year I go longer and longer between cleanings. I am at almost 20 bags now (Crazy compared to last year) and only pulled my pot dump twice. The ash has overfilled my ash pan and is building up the sides. I'm gonna start a thread when i do clean it. Its not gonna be considered into competition because of my pot dump, but I want to go as long as possible.
 
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That AE may do pretty well?

With the right settings, operator, and pellet, it may go pretty far.....

Bring it on! ;lol

BTW, I did mine on horrible CleanFire (NEWP) pellets during shoulder season, AFAIR.
 
Hey Everyone,

I am looking to purchase a new pellet insert to supplement (or replace) my use of propane gas. I am looking to cover the floor the insert will be on which is roughly 1,000 square feet and up stairs if possible which is probably 900 square feet. I have narrowed down to the Quadra-Fire Mt. Vernon AE or the Harmon Accentra unit. I was hoping to get feedback on which unit is better. I feel the Harman get's better reviews, but the Quadra-ifire unit does 10,000 ore BTUs which would be a benefit. Anyway, I would appreciate the feedback. Thank You, John
Consider a Harman P35i, it is very easy to maintain and can easily handle your 1000 sq feet with heat to spare.
 
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