Need advice on new pellet stove.

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K

KenofShelby

Burning Hunk
Feb 1, 2019
151
West Michigan’s Gold Coast
Have a 27 yr old. Quadrafire 1000, had it rebuilt once,, replace the thermocouple a few times,,,still working alright, but getting more temperamental. Figure it’s time to replace it,,, It has a 40 lb hopper,,,,,I would like a bigger hopper...Use it in my 1000 sq ft workshop, that is pretty well insulated.. My top three choices.....so far...are
PelPro PP130
King Deluxe Kp130
Pleasant hearth 50,000 BTU

Want one that has a large hopper so that eliminates the Serenity, Looked at Englander, not sure about that one,,,

Sure would appreciate your wisdom.

Thank you.
 
Not real familiar with all the stoves you mentioned. From what I've seen those have a 5 to 7 year life without a lot of trouble. I know it's hard to swallow but Harmon and Quad are you best bets for a long life and parts.
 
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KenofShelby said:
Have a 27 yr old. Quadrafire 1000, had it rebuilt once,, replace the thermocouple a few times,,,still working alright, but getting more temperamental. Figure it’s time to replace it,,, It has a 40 lb hopper,,,,,I would like a bigger hopper...Use it in my 1000 sq ft workshop, that is pretty well insulated.. My top three choices.....so far...are
PelPro PP130
King Deluxe Kp130
Pleasant hearth 50,000 BTU

Want one that has a large hopper so that eliminates the Serenity, Looked at Englander, not sure about that one,,,

Sure would appreciate your wisdom.

Thank you.
Click to expand...
A Harman would probably out live you or I. Quadafire not the same since the Chinese purchased the company but, still a good stove!
 
You can also look at stoves that you can get a hopper extension for. Harman's are one such stove and there are aftermarket extension for some other stoves - I think there is one that will fit an Englander and I'm not sure what other brands.
 
Envrio Max 130 lb hopper 70000 Btu output
made in North America (Canada)
 
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Looked at an Englander also,,,however, it only has a 40 pound hopper, I defintely want bigger.....Also Englander insists on a 3 foot vertical to finish a thru the wall exhaust. My Quadrafire has worked fine with just the horizontal..I don’t care for the looks of the vertical stack.

I really don’t need to spend the money for a Harman,,, it’s just for my workshop.....My Quadrafire has worked ten years since the rebuild, but it is only on or off...No way to adjust the burn rate up or down.


Anyway went to both Tractor Suppy and Home Depot today. Neither had any pellet stoves in stock....the are done with ‘winter’, so I guess I forget about it for now. Because I would like to see a stove in person before buying,
 
Englander hopper extension. - oh, realized you had other reasons for not wanting an Englander.

Hu, TSC has pellet stoves and wood stoves on sale in my area. They probably won't be out much longer as I see they have gotten their seed displays in.
 
You are looking at economy stoves.Remember,they tend to fail/break/ just when you really need it.You might want to learn more about pellet stoves,buy a higher quality one,refurbish(if necessary) over the summer,You might be happier in the long run.
 
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Phil Do's fire. said:
A Harman would probably out live you or I. Quadafire not the same since the Chinese purchased the company but, still a good stove!
Click to expand...
Quadafire not the same since the Chinese purchased the company but, still a good stove! Can you clarify this?HNI owns Quad,harman,heatilator and lots of other brands.Some years ago,they bought out the china office furniture company,and added it to their portfolio.Their home office is in Muscatine,IA.
 
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I feel like I’m kinda in the wrong church here,,,,,,reference the Johnny Paycheck song.. I don’t drive a Lexus or a Rolls,,, I drive a Ford F-150. 30 yrs old, on it’s 3rd 100,000,,, two Suzuki’s both over 250,000...... I guess cheap cars compared to what you’all drive. Like I said , my Quadrafire 27 years old,,, so according to you guys, the brands I mentioned are just ‘junk stoves’. Funny , that old Ford cost less than ten grand, still running..
So what I am saying is that I see no reason to buy a Rolls......a Harman,,,, when I can make a Suzuki work and last and be happy,,
So, if you don’t know anything but a Harmon,,,,,that’s fine,,,, I don’t breath that stratified air.... Perhaps you can help me out with my humble choices,....If not,,, thanks anyway.
 
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KenofShelby said:
I feel like I’m kinda in the wrong church here,,,,,,reference the Johnny Paycheck song.. I don’t drive a Lexus or a Rolls,,, I drive a Ford F-150. 30 yrs old, on it’s 3rd 100,000,,, two Suzuki’s both over 250,000...... I guess cheap cars compared to what you’all drive. Like I said , my Quadrafire 27 years old,,, so according to you guys, the brands I mentioned are just ‘junk stoves’. Funny , that old Ford cost less than ten grand, still running..
So what I am saying is that I see no reason to buy a Rolls......a Harman,,,, when I can make a Suzuki work and last and be happy,,
So, if you don’t know anything but a Harmon,,,,,that’s fine,,,, I don’t breath that stratified air.... Perhaps you can help me out with my humble choices,....If not,,, thanks anyway.
Click to expand...
You "drove" a Cadillac for years,and now you want to downgrade to a pinto.Your choice.
 
I have the Home Depot PelPro 130 and am very pleased with it....easy to clean, easy to maintain and at least in my case cheap (bought it on kijiji a year old for $1000 including exhaust pipe and 10 bags of pellets), even at full price in Canada ($2200) they are a deal..
and it holds 120 lbs of pellets

just a fyi.. there is a pellet stove company in Winnipeg Manitoba (I moved from there) called KOZI..I've visited the factory, seen them built and spoken to the sales and manufacturing people and.....decided to buy the PelPro.... infer what you will :)
 
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bob bare said:
You "drove" a Cadillac for years,and now you want to downgrade to a pinto.Your choice.
Click to expand...

I understand your point,,, however, my ‘Cadillac’ is a 1969 model with a blown transmission that only has one speed.

1969 wasn’t a good year for Caddy’s,, remember....
My Quadrafire has only on or off, no way to adjust burn rate, and it only holds 40 pounds of pellets.

I will look at Harmon and another Quadra fire....... However, while a Cadillac would be very nice for a 3,000 mile trip,,, a Ford Falcon will do the one mile trip to the corner store much better.
Anyway, I now have all summer to research

Also like Kenora’s post. First one to answer my question directly.
 
kenora said:
I have the Home Depot PelPro 130 and am very pleased with it....easy to clean, easy to maintain and at least in my case cheap (bought it on kijiji a year old for $1000 including exhaust pipe and 10 bags of pellets), even at full price in Canada ($2200) they are a deal..
and it holds 120 lbs of pellets

just a fyi.. there is a pellet stove company in Winnipeg Manitoba (I moved from there) called KOZI..I've visited the factory, seen them built and spoken to the sales and manufacturing people and.....decided to buy the PelPro.... infer what you will :)
Click to expand...

Thank you, !!, Thank you,!! Very much Kendra.....FIRST person to answer my request directly...
 
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Why bother asking for our input if you only want our take on the cheaper stoves
most of us have been burning pellets a far number of years . I am in my 18 th year
with the same stove and have only had to change my combustion fan . My friend
bought a big box stove and has had to replace it twice . I believe that buying cheaper
products is false economy but suit yourself
My 2 cents worth
 
johneh said:
Why bother asking for our input if you only want our take on the cheaper stoves
most of us have been burning pellets a far number of years . I am in my 18 th year
with the same stove and have only had to change my combustion fan . My friend
bought a big box stove and has had to replace it twice . I believe that buying cheaper
products is false economy but suit yourself
My 2 cents worth
Click to expand...

I apologize for ‘bothering’ you!! However, I wanted to learn what the ‘experts’ thought of those stoves. I didn’t realize there is a pellet stove ‘elite’. My Quadrafire has has over a thousand dollars worth of work on it.. It has burned for me for 12 years,....but as I have mentioned several times,,, it only burns at one speed, no adjustment for burn rate, and it’s hopper only holds 40 pounds.

A nearby Tractor Supply has sold over 100 of those ‘cheap’ stoves this year alone.....and not one has been returned,,all are happy customers. On various ‘review’ sites I have looked at, one of the most ‘praised’ stoves is that Castle Serenity,,, it is sheet metal,,,, a cheap piece of ‘junk’,,, yet highly recommended......I don’t get it???
 
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Englander makes a decent stove they are not top of the line by no means. But if they are kept clean and maintained they can last as long as any stove. I have a Breckwell that has been a heater since 2004, a quad cb1200 since 2000. My 2 whitfields are heating my sons farm house. My lopi, hhmm i don’t remember which kid has that one. Buy one you like learn everything about it do the up keep and stay warm
 
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KenofShelby said:
My Quadrafire has has over a thousand dollars worth of work on it.. It has burned for me for 12 years,....but as I have mentioned several times,,, it only burns at one speed, no adjustment for burn rate, and it’s hopper only holds 40 pounds.
Click to expand...
Your Quadrafire has cost you over 1000 $ in 12 years and still does not work properly !!
My Enviro is 17 years old has cost me 230$ looks like new and runs like new and I run 4.5 ton
throw it every year . There is no pellet stove "elite" just people who want to get more bang for there BUCK
 
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johneh said:
Your Quadrafire has cost you over 1000 $ in 12 years and still does not work properly !!
My Enviro is 17 years old has cost me 230$ looks like new and runs like new and I run 4.5 ton
throw it every year . There is no pellet stove "elite" just people who want to get more bang for there BUCK
Click to expand...

Johneh,,,Thanks for your comment,,,What I meant is 12 years ago I paid just over $800 to have my Quadrafire rebuilt,,, new burn pot, etc...At that time it hadn’t worked for years,,,,Since then I’ve replaced the thermocouple at least twice at about $85 a pop. Does it work properly now? I’m not really sure, The dealer that rebuilt it said to use a thru the wall horizontal exhaust,, which seems fine.....My problem with the Quad is that it is either ‘on’ or ‘off’, no way to adjust the burn rate.....and the hopper only holds 40 pounds,, ..I have learned how to clean it, and ‘baby’ it, however some days it just doesn’t want to work....It might work fine for ten days, then nothing.
 
Another vote for the PP130. I helped a friend install one a few weeks ago and am impressed with its performance. It's so quiet, the pellets dropping into the pot are about the loudest thing you hear. If my old Englander didn't work so well, I'd be temped to replace it with a Pelpro.
 
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Wow Ken, you seem to have really struck a nerve here with several posters! In my years here I’ve never seen such dissension! We are usually a very happy bunch sharing information and opinions. Enjoy your new stove, whatever you choose.
 
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jackhammer said:
Wow Ken, you seem to have really struck a nerve here with several posters! In my years here I’ve never seen such dissension! We are usually a very happy bunch sharing information and opinions. Enjoy your new stove, whatever you choose.
Click to expand...


Thank you, Jackhammer,,, I think...... I’m not trying to cause dissension,,,,I just like fact better than opinion.
 
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