We have a Harman advanced it was here when we bought the house in Dec 2013. (they had it installed in 2009) In 2016 we had to replace the auger tube and now it's cracked again. They are recommending we buy a new stove an XXV or Absolute 43 either one with the install is close to $6500 not including piping. Is this good pricing? Are there certain brands I should be looking at? Any advice would be appreciated.
buying a new stove
- Thread starter alicnwondrln
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Sounds about right to me. I got Harmon XXV in 2018. Paid $3500 for it (Floor Model couple years old). Another 1200 for Install. I got 1k off because it was floor model. So your pricing seems close. If you get Pellet stove let me know and I will tell you what we do for power outages.
I will thank you. I worry about it breaking I would not have thought the stove I have now would have had 2 cracked auger tubes in 12 years.
It is not a common problem at all. Are you doing all of the proper maintenance?
yes reg cleanings and emptying and scraping the burn pot we also just had the blower replaced a couple of months ago
ABusWrench
Feeling the Heat
What size house/room is the stove in? What heat settings do you use? Is it run on a real low setting? What shape is the auger end in? Any pictures? One cracked auger tube is strange, but two? Weird.
the crack is like a perfect half-circle it's so weird, the settings vary in the coldest part of the winter it can run fairly high, the stove is on the 1st floor of the house in the living room which is kinda open concept with the kitchen and dining area. The house is 2200 sq ft. I can take a photo.
ABusWrench
Feeling the Heat
Just went downstairs and looked at my P61a. From your picture it's hard to tell, but is your auger out to the end of the auger tube? What kind of shape is your auger end in? If the auger end is worn down, broken off or burnt up, on a low burn, that's going to let the fire burn into the end of the auger tube. This issue has been debated before on this forum. With my setup, I personally don't run my stove under feed rate 1 3/4. For less heat output than that I run my heat pump. After 7 burning seasons and approximately 43 tons thru it, my auger still looks like new. No carbon buildup, no squeaking, no wear. At least that I can see, hear or feel. Just my 2 cents.
alternativeheat
Minister of Fire
That model stove is generally very reliable and that problem is pretty rare, something sounds amiss here. I too suspect auger damage. But I would think a tube and auger replacement would be far less costly than the install and cost of a brand new Harman stove. Course too a new stove is kind of exciting I suppose lol ! Your install shouldn't be a ton of money, you already have the pipe. Anyway, I could be wrong but seems to me your auger end should be further out near the end of the tube, I own a P61a, installed in 2013, 0 repairs to date and that's not to say some couldn't be lurking. I looked inside just now and eyeballing, the auger end is maybe 1/8-3/16 inch back from the end of the tube, very near even with the tube end at any rate.
I run my stove in constant burn in mid winter these days, feed level 3-1/2ish, output maybe 2-1/2 to 3 but not over 4, fan medium speed as I combine that with oil in the coldest of winter. Once a week I crank that sucker right up for a really good hot burn for an hour or two, feed 5 and temp dial nearly pegged. My central oil heat cycles on about 3-4 times in 24 hours and this levels the old house out nicely with the old cast iron radiators. Late spring and early fall I run oil alone, and in the transition to and from cold weather I run the stove alone in room temp mode,so all sorts of settings over a winter. No signs yet of auger wear, I don't believe it should be much different for your stove. We have seen in the forums burned or broken auger ends causing all kinds of havoc before. The question to me at the moment is why is your auger so short and why does this happen to begin with ? Where it sits just doesn't look right to me.
I run my stove in constant burn in mid winter these days, feed level 3-1/2ish, output maybe 2-1/2 to 3 but not over 4, fan medium speed as I combine that with oil in the coldest of winter. Once a week I crank that sucker right up for a really good hot burn for an hour or two, feed 5 and temp dial nearly pegged. My central oil heat cycles on about 3-4 times in 24 hours and this levels the old house out nicely with the old cast iron radiators. Late spring and early fall I run oil alone, and in the transition to and from cold weather I run the stove alone in room temp mode,so all sorts of settings over a winter. No signs yet of auger wear, I don't believe it should be much different for your stove. We have seen in the forums burned or broken auger ends causing all kinds of havoc before. The question to me at the moment is why is your auger so short and why does this happen to begin with ? Where it sits just doesn't look right to me.
Tonyray
Minister of Fire
That is strange, I have a 2004 advance and still works fine!
What about welding the crack? That may give it a few more years?
Here is a crack in a burnpot I MiG welded.
Just weld and grind smooth.
Stopped heating with a crack pot! See pics
Hello It has been a few years and these cracks can only get worse, So I just pulled out the grinder and Vulcan Mig, ground it to clean it, zapped it, ground the weld down, painted it and put in a new flange gasket. Hope that will preserve it? How does it look? See the pics
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