The technicians suggested replacing, but I want some outside opinions before throwing in the towel. I've got a regularly serviced St Croix Hastings in good cosmetic shape that I bought used a few years ago for about $600. Had no trouble the first few seasons (replaced an igniter, nothing major) but had an issue this year where the Versa Grate failed. This caused the firebox to no longer be flush, resulting in lots of issues including bad fires, smoke, and ash and pellet build-up that resulted in a small hopper fire.
I found a decent work-around, by extending the firebox with some wire and aluminum foil, which seemed to fix the issue. Techs came, and confirmed that it was the Versa grate system, and said they'd recommend replacing vs repairing, as the cost was $2k+. Other posts here mentioned that the versa grate isn't totally required to use the stove effectively, so I figured I'd go with my existing solution until the stove gave up, but just a few weeks later the fuse blew, and the stove wouldn't start. I replaced both fuses, and the stove turns on, and passes pressure check, but the auger no longer turns. No error lights on the control panel, but no pellets dropped. I'm a novice, but I cleaned and vacuumed the hopper and gave the auger a little wiggle to see if I could knock it loose, and took the side and back off to see if I could pinpoint the issue. As far as I could tell, I couldn't see the motor trying to spin. It's a pretty stove that serves my needs well when it works, and I don't want to scrap it if I don't have to, but I don't want to chase bad money with good if it's time to give up the ghost. Really appreciate any more experienced opinions if I should listen to the techs, or invest in repairing it.
I found a decent work-around, by extending the firebox with some wire and aluminum foil, which seemed to fix the issue. Techs came, and confirmed that it was the Versa grate system, and said they'd recommend replacing vs repairing, as the cost was $2k+. Other posts here mentioned that the versa grate isn't totally required to use the stove effectively, so I figured I'd go with my existing solution until the stove gave up, but just a few weeks later the fuse blew, and the stove wouldn't start. I replaced both fuses, and the stove turns on, and passes pressure check, but the auger no longer turns. No error lights on the control panel, but no pellets dropped. I'm a novice, but I cleaned and vacuumed the hopper and gave the auger a little wiggle to see if I could knock it loose, and took the side and back off to see if I could pinpoint the issue. As far as I could tell, I couldn't see the motor trying to spin. It's a pretty stove that serves my needs well when it works, and I don't want to scrap it if I don't have to, but I don't want to chase bad money with good if it's time to give up the ghost. Really appreciate any more experienced opinions if I should listen to the techs, or invest in repairing it.
