Curious - Lopi stoves

[luv2byte]

Our Lopi Freedom insert was here when we bought our house back in 4/02. Out of all the strange things the previous owners did to this house the one thing they did right was the stove. We have a bi-level 2400 sq ft home; when it is 32-35F outside we can get the house to 78F if not careful so we try to burn at around 450-550F which will maintain the house as a cozy 74-75F, both upstairs and down. One thing we do have is a fan on our stove which we added as soon as we moved in & as of 3yr ago we have a whole house filtration system which circulates the air in the house and improves the stoves efficiency.

So...my curiosity question is, for as great as our stove is why does it seem that Lopi is one of the least popular here in this forum and I've yet to find anyone that has a Freedom in any other wood forum?

:question:

 

[BrotherBart]

That is a good question. Lopi makes some great wood stoves.

Funny name. Nice stoves.

 

[begreen]

Lopi makes fine stoves. They are part of Travis Industries and sometimes Avalon may get the Limelight, but it's pretty rare to hear a problem with a Lopi. I think if you do a search on Lopi Freedom here in the forum you'll find it coming up now and again. Shawn owns one.

 

[kdiman]

Just a guess, but the dealership that carries them around here wanted $3000 for just that stove that is compareable to my Quadra-Fire Isle Royale that i bought for $1600. But that place that carries the Lopis is high on everything.

Kelly

 

[webbie]

It used to be Lopi that was the bigger brand name....

The forum regulars are just a small slice of owners and users. If you look at our ratings pages, you'll see a LOT of Lopi, Avalon and FPX (their fireplace models)...

Also, it is probably a good testimony that not many Lopi or Avalon users come here for problems and advice - it means that their dealers are some of the better ones out there.

 

[GeeWizMan]

FWIW, we have a Lopi insert (Revere) it is new to us as of last year last year and it appears to be a wonderful stove. The thing can really kick out some heat. For a small insert, we have no problem getting 8 to 10 hour burns out of it.

George

 

[budman]

This stove kicks a-- :zip:

 

[wg_bent]

I believe that the name Lopi does not sound American. There is no doubt where Vermont Castings stoves are made.

 

[begreen]

Ah, but it's so clear where Chevrolet is made right? Or Herr Chrysler maybe, or Herr Harman?

 

[Dunadan]

Got our Lopi Revere last year too. I love it. I almost went with an Avalon Ranier, but decided I wanted a cook top, and, I liked the idea of having a much deeper (as opposed to wider) firebox. I find we get a much better burn loading splits straight in (loading horizontal always disapoints) so the deep firebox has worked out great.

 

[wg_bent]

Ah, but it's so clear where Chevrolet is made right? Or Herr Chrysler maybe, or Herr Harman?

It's perception. People think they know the brands of Chrysler (which by the way is not owned by a german company anymore)

It I walk up to 100 people on the street and ask them two questions:
1. What item does Lopi sell
2. Where are they made.

I'll bet that 1 in 100 will get those questions right, and maybe only 2 will get #1 right.

Ask
1. What item(s) does Chrysler sell
2. Where are they made.

I'm willing to bet that 100 out of 100 will answer correct to #1, and 60% will get #2 correct.

 

[budman]

I believe that the name Lopi does not sound American. There is no doubt where Vermont Castings stoves are made.

Lopi is a american Indian word but a can't remember what it is. :red:Can any one help me!

 

[myzamboni]

The Navajo nation had a Lopi tribe, but I don't know what Lopi translates to.

 

[begreen]

Ah, but it's so clear where Chevrolet is made right? Or Herr Chrysler maybe, or Herr Harman?

It's perception. People think they know the brands of Chrysler (which by the way is not owned by a german company anymore)

It I walk up to 100 people on the street and ask them two questions:
1. What item does Lopi sell
2. Where are they made.

I'll bet that 1 in 100 will get those questions right, and maybe only 2 will get #1 right.

Ask
1. What item(s) does Chrysler sell
2. Where are they made.

I'm willing to bet that 100 out of 100 will answer correct to #1, and 60% will get #2 correct.

Lopi is more common on the west coast, so your odds would be fairly good if you asked a woodburner out here what Lopi makes. Ask those same people where Harman is made or where Hearthstone is made and you'll get the same - dunno -response. The point being why should a name relate to a location? Many don't.

 

[begreen]

The Navajo nation had a Lopi tribe, but I don't know what Lopi translates to.

I think that's the Hopi Indian tribe. Not sure what Lopi relates to. All I've found so far is an Icelandic wool.

 

[Gunner]

I believe that the name Lopi does not sound American. There is no doubt where Vermont Castings stoves are made.

:snake:

 

[budman]

I believe that the name Lopi does not sound American. There is no doubt where Vermont Castings stoves are made.

:snake:

?????????????????

 

[Dunadan]

here is no doubt where Vermont Castings stoves are made.

Way to leave us hanging. Where are they made?

 

[stoveguy2esw]

as for geography, we at ESW get asked where we are all the time, when we tell them virginia they say"OH i thought new england stove works was up in the northeast " to which i have responded , well... we are north of boston, South Boston Va. usually gets a chuckle , a lot of folks call us "new england stoves , but its really Englands Stove Works , named after Bob England , the company founder.

Travis , who make Lopi units , is based in the northwest, VC is self explanatory ( they really are "new england stoves" ) although they have aquired CFM which i believe is canadien. lopi units have an outstanding reputation , and is one of the brands i recommend looking at to see if they have somthing when i do not carry exactly what a customer is looking for. that alone should be looked at as a pretty darned good indorsement considering where it comes from. when a customer calls me obviously i want them to buy one of my stoves (thats buisness) one thing ive learned (especially since ive frequented here) is that if i do not have what they need , but am honest in directing them to a company who may just have it,and they are happy with it it isnt a lost customer per se, but by not making a sale i still make an impression , which may just get me a sale to this guys neighbor, uncle, or buddy at work. definately worth my time. but here is the kicker, the stove i recommend has to be a good one because that could reflect on me too by wasting that customers time , or worse, directing him to a bad buy. so i look at specs , companies , and above all , i pay real close attention to the folks in here, which is where i get the best information from the best source.

well thats mike's idea of service , hope i havent bored you guys too much.

 

[Highbeam]

I just removed my Lopi Freedom Bay insert which was 15 or so years old. It gave us heat last year but we went to a freestander. We had another Lopi when I was a kid but that one was freestanding. Their current offerings are quite expensive when compared to the equivalents from the many other quality manufacturers. When I sold my used Freedom Bay the fellow said it was more than 3000$ for a new one.

 

[hearthtools]

I think you dont hear the names
Avalon, Lopi, Enviro or even Pacific Energy (all made on the West coast) on Hearth.com because most of the people on here are from the East coast.
and it makes sense to buy stoves made in the east coast. To you hear a lot about Hearthstone and Harmon.

 

[BrotherBart]

I think you dont hear the names
Avalon, Lopi, Enviro or even Pacific Energy (all made on the West coast) on Hearth.com because most of the people on here are from the East coast.
and it makes sense to buy stoves made in the east coast. To you hear a lot about Hearthstone and Harmon.

Pacific Energy? Who is that? Do they make wood stoves?

As to Lopi, the local wood store here in Virginia is full of them. All the guys there sell is Lopi and Harman.

 

[webbie]

I think you dont hear the names
Avalon, Lopi, Enviro or even Pacific Energy (all made on the West coast) on Hearth.com because most of the people on here are from the East coast.
and it makes sense to buy stoves made in the east coast. To you hear a lot about Hearthstone and Harmon.

Well, this NJ boy sold more Avalons than any dealer east of the Miss.....hundreds of them per year!

The stove biz is, as Rod mentions, somewhat regional.....often just by chance. For instance, we liked Avalon from the start so we created a pretty big demand for them around the Philly area over 10 years or more. Then other dealers wanted them, because people knew about them. Word spreads from person to person.

Also, there has always been regional style differences. The more modern steel stoves have generally been from the west coast, although the look has been copied everywhere now. Same for the New England Colonial look (Vermont Castings, Jotul, Upland, etc.), which appeals to us here.

Down south they were often less caring about style - the circulating heaters were popular, as well as Warm Morning coal stove, king and atlanta stoves, US Stove, etc. - People were not as "showy" as some in other parts of the country.

I would say things have changed now and the market is more "even" - meaning there is a market for just about all the styles everywhere.

BTW, Lopi virtually invented the "look" which a vast portion of the market has today - the arched brass doors and big glass.

 

[begreen]

Craig, do you know where the name Lopi came from?

 

[seaken]

Craig, do you know where the name Lopi came from?

Straight from the creators mouth - the name is not derived from anything. He made it up. He liked the sound.

It is a good conversation starter. Seems people like to try and guess where the name came from. Of course, it's more fun to think it's from a native tribe or a wolf, or something. Some are disappointed to learn otherwise. But the name really does not come from anything. Sorry.