Shaver Wood Boilers (Good/bad)

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knteriele

New Member
May 12, 2008
11
New York near Canada
Is there anyone out there with a shaver wood boiler in operation? If so how do you like it? I have one on order, I hope I made a good choice. It is the 165 model. Does anyone have one close to Ticonderoga I could look at ?
 
I bought one of the 165s recently and will be putting it into operation this fall. I talked to a guy who had had one for 15 years and no problems with it other than a pump. For me in Tennessee it was the way to go as far as I was concerned ...I wish I could justify gasification but I just could not do it. RH
 
STAY AWAY from them. Thier customer service stinks. The craftsmanship is SUB standard. I puller 3 lbs of metal shavings from mine inside the water box. And still lost 2 pumps. And all I get is "wellll we don't know what could be wrong" NO HELP AT ALL.
Try Natures Comfort, same design but Cadillac quality.
 
I will be installing my unit next week. I did my due diligence on them before buying ....got nothing but good reports and the guy I bought it from has been very responsive. However .... I cannot speak to any potential problems yet because I have not even installed the unit and ran it. Any suggestions on checking for potentila problems ..i.e. ....how can I check for the metal shavings issue so I do not destroy any components? Thx, RH
 
You can flush it out with a garden hose, for starters.
 
I would find someone to buy it and get something different. BAD customer service is the biggest thing. Have you ever tried to call the office? Try leaving a message and then wait a week for help.
 
I have talked to them several times but I did have to call and not wait on a call back, they were very helpful when I did talk to them. I have also received excellent service from the gentleman I bought it from ....so unless I experience some kind of problem I don't think I will be selling the unit, taking a loss and buying a different brand. Again, so far so good for me as of yet ...but of course I have not used the unit or had it installed as of yet ....I will flush the water jacket out and see what I find. To reiterate ....I talked to several owners before buying the Shaver and received nothing but good reports ...including one gentleman that still has his furnace working and doing a good job after 15 years. Of course ...I believe that you have experienced problems and I will update if I find that I am also a similar experience. Regarding competitors available down here ....I received bad reports on service for the top brand ....Central Boiler ....and when I was in the market to buy one it took three weeks for someone to call me back from them when they did not even have my money yet! I guess I am optimistic that my experience will be a good one ...but I will keep you posted. Thx, RH
 
Remember, most boiler manufacturers deal with heating contractors. They are willing to talk to end-users, but they usually expect most end-users to talk to the dealer/installer they bought it from.

There are very few boiler manufacturers who have average or better customer service, when dealing with end-users. Their "customer" is the dealer/installer, and that's who their customer service is designed to handle.

Unfortunately, many of the manufacturers who are willing to sell to end-users, directly, have not changed the way they handle customer service to match their new customer base.

Joe
 
headrc said:
I will be installing my unit next week. I did my due diligence on them before buying ....got nothing but good reports and the guy I bought it from has been very responsive. However .... I cannot speak to any potential problems yet because I have not even installed the unit and ran it. Any suggestions on checking for potentila problems ..i.e. ....how can I check for the metal shavings issue so I do not destroy any components? Thx, RH

As Eric says, flush it out first with a garden hose. You should also install a cleanable mesh strainer on the line coming from the boiler, and check it regularly. Make sure to install isolation valves so you can do so without draining the boiler.

Joe
 
knteriele said:
Is there anyone out there with a shaver wood boiler in operation? If so how do you like it? I have one on order, I hope I made a good choice. It is the 165 model. Does anyone have one close to Ticonderoga I could look at ?

I received a call from the Ticonderoga building inspector, he refused a Shaver boiler permit because they are not UL listed.
I have never heard of anything like that has anyone else?
 
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