wow- too many good and valid points to quote, but I must caution you folks not to take snippets of posts and then quote the snippet, forcing out-of-context thoughts and opinions.
As to my point abt stoves breaking......I beleive that was originally referred to folks who dont do maintenance. And yea, if they continue not to do it, it'll break again...funny, isnt it? You neglect something, it breaks...imagine that?
As for warrantees....when you buy a product, dont you also buy the warrantee? The dealer sells a product supported by the warrantee provided by the manufacturer. Did you ask for a warrantee, or copy thereof, before you bought your stove? Im guessing you didnt, but I might be wrong. If the warrantee is so important as you state, then, really, you should be reading that thing prior to buying the unit, and any questions should be addressed before the sale, by the dealer. I dont really think anyone except Craig, who is no longer selling stoves, expects the dealerto do that, the maybe prior to every sale, the dealer should pull out the warrantee and read it over with the customer, making sure he understands it. If they did this, this would be the FIRST time Ive ever seen this done, and in ANY industry....automobiles, etc. I guess tho, in our its-never-my-fault society, it would have to be someone elses fault that the warrantee wasnt read until AFTERWARDS.
As for cleaning the unit, PDK9...thats great. The manual is only slightly helpful in cleaning, there are pretty good cleaning resources on Harmans site, but alas, none yet specifically for the XXV. Although if you read other cleaning directions, many of the parts are common to all of the line, especially the important ones such as the igniter. You didnt get a manual with the stove? Your dealer can get you a manual, and it should be for free, but he can also download and print one for you, right from Harman's site. in fact, even you can...a manual is available online! Here's the link:
(broken link removed to http://harmanstoves.com/doc/xxvm.pdf)
And Craig is right in that the dealer absolutely should tell the prospective buyer of the warrantee of the new stove, whats covered and whats NOT covered, also at this time, of potential charges, such as mileage charges, etc. I dont feel this happens much either, to be honest, though we at least do our best to inform the customer of those charges.
Craig mentions taking the "gold" out of Harman's warrantee. Craig, would you please educate me on which pellet stove has a better warrantee than Harman? Because if there is one, I dont know of it....maybe you do?
As for troubleshooting resources, agreed. I absolutely have no problem with customers working on their own units, the only misgiving there is folks who SHOULDNT be doing so. Kinda goes back to not everyone owning a pellet stove, or a stove, for that matter.
As for the dealer padding the retail on the unit to pay for these mileage issues and such? Yea, I think its obvious this can be done. The only time this can be an issue is when you are asked to service a unit sold by a rival dealer. If warranteework is a money-loosing proposition, why subsidize your competition? The harman warrantee states that pretty specifically that the selling dealer is required to warrrantee it. Problem is that most people best know the warrantees provided for automobiles. Unfortunately, car work isnt done on site....the mechanic doesnt come to you. Thats my biggest area of contention, personally, the travel time and costs associated with it that we, as dealers, arent reimbursed for.
As for paying taxes in my town, actually, if we do have a fire, or need to get transported in an ambulance, we actually DO have to pay the costs, in addition to our taxes....possible flaw in your argument there. But, thats a good thing to think about, isnt it? The way I see it, like it or not, I have to pay taxes to support police, fire, schools, etc....so you get your cash from me irregardless of whether I want to pay for it or not....no warrantees there, is there?.....no guartantees of performance from you, huh? No choice by me either, huh? I see it as not having the choice to purchase services I may or may not need. Lets say, give the option of having the service. I wonder how much of my tax dollars do actually go to the police and fire? How about the schools, the biggest money-drain for many municipalities? many people dont have kids, but the majority of their town tax goes toward that. Lol- NOW I see the smiley face on your comment, after you got me all roused up!
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