Buying new pellet stove.

[JTBurner]

Hello, new to the forum, been going through a few of the posted items in the past little while trying to figure out what kinid of stove I want to purchase. Great site with lots of info..

I have a question regarding a possible stoves that I am looking at purchasing. I currently have a Whitfield Advantage stove, it is over 20+ years old and has done amazing for heatng the house. It is getting old and tired, will not stay lit on low burn, so it is time to retireit and get a new one.

To replace the stove, I am looking at getting another stove that can fit to the existing flue pipe that is installed. The stoves that I am looking at are the Enviro Meridian and the Quadrafire CB1200. I was tlaking to a reseller of the Enviro products and he told me that not all venting systems are the same and that the vent diameter may be differnet \ venting systems are made specific for particular brands.

Is this correct?

The Whitfield is a 3" - the Enviro is a 3" and the Quad uses a 3" or 4"..

Just need verfication that this is correct? If anyone has any exoperience or knowledge that the exisiting flue will work etc, that would be appreciated.

TY - JT

 

[Bioburner]

Your retailer must have been on vacation in Colorado and enjoying that states newest revenue stream. Most venting systems have a stove to venting converter. 3 inch is pretty standard and 4 inch is for longer or venting route that has more bends or longer. Now venting manufactures are not compatible between themselves. Selkirk won't mate with Simpson etc. Really surprised that the Ol Whit is having issues. May only need to have the gaskets replaced and a good cleaning.

 

[JTBurner]

Thanks for the info.. So the whole reason for me wanting to buy the new stove is becasue of the stove not running on low auger feeds - Plus for safety, due to the stove being over 20+ years old. Saying this, I really do not use it that much, as I have heat pumps in the house. This year we burned approximately 25 bags of pellets, last year only about.

This leads me to another question:

I have always cleaned the stove every year - I take it outside and do a full cleaning on it. But I have never done the gaskets. I know that the door gasket is in need of replacement, what other gaskets would be needed? Is there a gasket kit that can be bought for a stove or do you buy them individualy?

So a stove that is over 20 years is still safe? The selkirk is good with no issues.. Just wondering about the stove itself..

Thanks for the info..

 

[Bioburner]

Try a search using the sites feature to find other tips on the stove. I would think a new gasket for the exhaust fan would probably be in order but will have to make your own from high temp gasket sheet material from an automotive store and rope gaskets are easy to do for doors and most stove stores carry that and some silicone high temp adhesive. Stove design once they installed vacuum switches has not changed much in lower end stoves. When you say the stove does not run on low auger speeds does it go out from lack of pellets or overfeeding and snuffing out? Whitfeild made good stoves. Also the first freestanding stand alone pellet stove.

 

[JTBurner]

Seems that the flame blows out and then there is a burn pot of unburned pellets feeding until ithe unit turns off.

Thanks,

 

[SteveG518]

Do what you can to fix that Whitfield. I've worked on many many Advantages. IMHO, and im sure most others as well, one of the best pellet stoves manufactured. Pretty bullet proof. Make sure door gasket is sealed well and behind those firebricks is cleaned well. Also try adjusting the damper rod and give it a little less air. Then you won't burn through the pellets as fast and the new pellets will have an ember bed to fall onto. My brother has a Whitfield from 1987 and with regular maintenance runs like a dream. I think you'd be disappointed with another newer stove, at least from the list you've compiled. The Meridian doesn't have an adjustable convection fan like your Whit does and I can't speak directly for the Quad but do some research on how they're an investment group stove now and most (if not all) parts are most likely sourced from China, and customer service has been an issue too from what I've heard and read. Not trying to steer you away, just hate the thought of another old Whitfield hitting the scrap yard

 

[MikeSs]

Depending on the total usage, It could also be the augur motor.
There is a little washer (plastic), that, when worn, does not let the augur motor shaft mesh with the gearbox gear.
Replaced mine several years back (the motor, not the washer) and still have the old one.
For the IIT insert, (1997) I just need to find the .194 diameter washer, and then I will have a spare motor..
Actually I think I found out about it here at some point...

 

[Jaymaine34]

I'm A big fan of Quads , but for what you burn I would have to agree with the above comments and fix what you have . I know a few people who have them and all are 15-20 years old and they run like a dream !

 

[SteveG518]

Agreed on the augur system. That neoprene washer can wear away causing too much resistance on the motor and it won't make the full rotation necessary. Replacement lower bushing plate could be a nice cheap $20 fix for the issue!

 

[Snowy Rivers]

The old Whit is a beast that is going to be hard to kill.

Save your hard earned $$$$ and fix the Whit.

The issue can't be that serious.

Watch the feed rate while its on the low setting, as its possible the Control board has gotten hinky and is not feeding correctly.

On low, the feed light should come on every 8 seconds.
Watch the feed motor to be sure it actually turns too.

Even a new control board and a feed motor are well worth springing for as compared to a new stove.

We have a Whit advantage 2T that we bought used in 09, or so, and its a great machine.

As long as the mechanical cabinet, fire box and heat exchanger tubes are in good shape, everything else is easily repaired.

All the components are readily available from our supporting vendors.

IMHO, buying a new stove is a bum jump, as you have one of the best stoves ever made.

Snowy

 

[JTBurner]

Well that says it all.. I will keep the Whit going.. I will start by getting the gaskets together and do a good cleaning to see where it goes from there. My biggest issue with the unit was safety, so I was thinking that I should replace. Saying this, when I run the stove now, I set the stove pellet feed rate on 3, the fan is on 2. Does anyone ever run the stove on a feed of 4 - fan on 2 or 3? Is this too much for the unit? I know that it says that the stove should never be run on a feed of 5 for very long. I have never run the stove on level 5 feed at all..

I am not scared of the unit, but, I am aware of fire - if that make sense..

Thanks for the advise..

JT

 

[MikeSs]

I run the fan on 5 (green), with combustion (red) of 1 thru 3 and on 4 when cold start, trying to pull as much heat out as possible...

 

[CygnusX1]

I've had my Meridian for 10 years. The only thing I've ever had to replace was an exhaust fan and a high temp sensor.

 

[Snowy Rivers]

We run ours on nut shells, and I never move it off 1
The shells burn hotter than the pellets and they are small pieces and burn faster, so the heat level is far different than what you do.

Our fan basically has one speed that it likes, and that is about 3/4 of full.

Higher is too noisy, and lower than the sweet spot the fan motor gets into a harmonic.

The triac is likely not perfect ???

But it works good.

When ours is in the sweet spot, the air leaving the vents into the room is at about 160-180 F
A higher setting would see somewhat higher temps, but it comes at a price over time.

When the fire is licking at the tubes, the oxidation of the metal is going to increase.

This is why we have Big Whit and Li'll Whit, and both never get run above 1 on the feed rate.
Again, with our biomass fuel, things are different as far as internal heat and combustion residue.

The shells don't have any creosote to skunk up the pipe.

Unless there is serious degradation of the heat tubes inside the fire box, these stoves should last a looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong time.

Good luck