Englander 13NC VS Country Hearth(USStoves) 2000

[Mike Ainsel]

I know both of these stoves have a lot of discussion on here so forgive me if I'm beating a dead horse.

I can pick up the US Stove model 2000 from Tractor Supply (10 minute drive for me, in stock, cash & carry) for $600
http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/sto...m-wood-stove-with-blower-medium-epa-certified

OR

I can ORDER the Englander 13NC from Home Depot, wait for delivery to store and drive an hour to pick it up there for $650

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Englander-1-800-sq-ft-Wood-Burning-Stove-13-NCH/100157775?N=5yc1vZc4ls

These stoves look almost identical. Can anyone speak directly to any performance or quality differences? I've gathered that Englander typically has the better reputation but in my situation it's the bigger PITA to buy.

It's going to be used to heat just under 1000sq ft (lower level) of my very leaky farm house.

I also considered the 2500 from Tractor Supply (next size up from the 2000) for $800 but I didn't really think I needed to go bigger and could certainly put the extra $200 to use elsewhere.

Any thoughts are appreciated -- Thanks -- M.A.

 

[bholler]

I would say dont buy a us stove works product i have seen many fail prematurly and the company is hard to deal with when it happens

 

[BrotherBart]

I would buy a scratched 13 from AM/FM for $615 shipping included and a hundred miles from your house and they will send it to you. They are over in Amherst, VA.

(broken link removed to http://www.amfmenergy.com/50tnc13----epa-certified-noncatalytic-wood-stove--1850131801.html)

 

[Dix]

I ca only vouch for the 13, which I adore. It's an awesome heater.

Sits in a lower level in the house (2000 SF), not the basement .... think long split ranch. I've had occasions where the PE has been down ( chimney cleaning, etc) and we pump that stove, and it will heat the entire house.

Disadvantage, smaller firebox, less burn time. - 7 hour max burn time / heat out put.

 

[kennyp2339]

I would say dont buy a us stove works product i have seen many fail prematurly and the company is hard to deal with when it happens

As what Bholler said.. DO NOT BUY US STOVE!! I owned a 2500 from tractor supply for (3) heating seasons, it was a decent heater but the stove literally fell apart. To properly clean the stove the instructions recommended that I take the air tubes (secondary's) out, to bad for me, I snapped every cheap mount and had to retap all the holes, the company uses sheet metal screws, the door latch system is garbage, don't even try to replace the door seal, the company says use a 5/8 gasket rope, well the groove in the door is to large for the 5/8 and 7/8 (which I ended up using) was a little tight, if I could have adjusted the door latch it might have been not as big of an issue. The stove also developed cracks in it, again by the door area, all (4) sides between a quarter inch to one full inch, the steel was way to thin. The baffle board started to break down after season two. The stove was literally a hunk of junk as far as mechanical, it did keep the house warm but with all the defects / problems I simply didn't trust it. Oh and I forgot about the flue collar, yeah another let down. I literally bought my stove and installed it, my best friend bought an Englander nc30 the next week, he didn't have any issues, the stove seemed much more durable than mine. I also went to tractor supply to ask for help, the manager was very sympathetic but said I had to go through the company, I made a phone call, left a message, never got a call back, then someone on this forum (don't know if it was true or not) claimed to be a rep for US stove and was a complete snot in conversations, That really spoke volumes to me, especially when people brag about the Englanders customer service. Go with the Englander, you will not be let down, I know buying things from the big box stores seems a little scary, but the Englander is the real deal, and I don't even own one.

 

[Mike Ainsel]

Thats basically the story I'm reading online... a lot of quality issues with the US Stoves. I just wish I could see the Englander in person, but as far as I know the home improvement stores in my area don't carry stock on wood stoves.

 

[Dix]

You're in VA, they're in VA.

Welcome to the forums !

 

[RickBlaine]

Mike,

1) Call US Stove customer support. Ask a simple question. Then do the same for Englander. Your answer will be clear.
2) Since money is an issue: Grab a Harbor Freight 20% off of anything coupon....then grab a Lowe's 10% off coupon. Now CALL Home Depot (or take a chance on the service desk at your local Home Depot). They took 15% off of my Englander 13. Some may offer ship-to-store for free.
3) Moving it: You take the firebricks out and the door off (five minutes, tops) and two strong guys can pick it up and move it by hand.
4) BrotherBart has a great suggestion- get a slightly scratched one with free shipping to your door.
5) You are in Virginia, man! They make the Englander in Virginia. About 15 miles from you. Call them up- maybe they can persuade you.

I am a newbie to wood burning, but an old hat to customer service. In college, I worked at the local grocery store with profit margins between 1-3%. We had to hustle and earn our keep. Englander's customer service is like a bunch of 1950's local hardware store clerks hustling for your business- it is like something out of a time warp.

 

[Mike Ainsel]

That's pretty wild. I never knew they were so close by. They're right outside of Lynchburg (which is like the dark side of the moon to me anyway, I don't usually go past Roanoke)

OK I'm sold.

but wait... Do I want the 13NC or the 30NC?

 

[RickBlaine]

You wanna hear "wild"? When I called their customer service, I mentioned that my niece goes to college just down the road from them. The customer service rep who answered mentioned that his wife worked at that college. Turns out, the rep's wife was my niece's student counselor. Small world- but big customer service.

I will let the seasoned pros here answer about the 13, 30, or the 50.....depends on your layout, insulation (if any), overnight burns vs. shorter bursts of heat, etc....

 

[Mike Ainsel]

For fun... here's a rough layout of the house. The 1st floor is basically one large open area with a fairly low ceiling (I can stand on my toes & touch it & I'm 6'0"). I'm not expecting to heat the upstairs with the wood stove, but the warmest spot in the house when our current stove is burning is the stairway. The right half of the house was built around 1898 (along with the upstairs) the left half was an addition added in the 1940's and is one level.

I really think the 13 would heat the down stairs perfectly fine, the main appeal of the
30 is the ability to bank a coal bed down longer. Wood is our main source of heat.

 

[Mike Ainsel]

You wanna hear "wild"? When I called their customer service, I mentioned that my niece goes to college just down the road from them. The customer service rep who answered mentioned that his wife worked at that college. Turns out, the rep's wife was my niece's student counselor. Small world- but big customer service.

I will let the seasoned pros here answer about the 13, 30, or the 50.....depends on your layout, insulation (if any), overnight burns vs. shorter bursts of heat, etc....

Crazy!

 

[kennyp2339]

I would do the nc30, you can always have smaller fires to adjust your heat curve and have the insurence of a larger firebox for times like these when its very cold. The foot print of the nc30 really isn't much larger than the 13, it's around 6" or so, the 30 does weight about 420 lbs but that's because of the heavier steel, like the other poster said, take the door off and the fire brick out and it makes it lighter to move, also you can take 2x4 and strap then between the pedestal and fire box which gives a little more leverage to move, you won't be disappointed, I'm running a blaze king princess right now, it's a great stove, but when I do my addition on the house my second " helper" stove is going to be englander

 

[FTG-05]

I know both of these stoves have a lot of discussion on here so forgive me if I'm beating a dead horse.

[snip]

It's going to be used to heat just under 1000sq ft (lower level) of my very leaky farm house.

I also considered the 2500 from Tractor Supply (next size up from the 2000) for $800 but I didn't really think I needed to go bigger and could certainly put the extra $200 to use elsewhere.

Any thoughts are appreciated -- Thanks -- M.A.

30-NC, without a doubt.

Good luck!

 

[realstihl]

I know there's a lot of Englander fans here but you might want to consider a Drolet 1800 also. It's kind of in between a 13 and 30.