Experiences with St. Croix stoves/insert?

[nhcat]

We're looking at a St. Croix York insert for our fireplace. I haven't seen much on the boards about St. Croix pellet stoves, and I am wondering about the reputation of these stoves - in terms of service/repair, heat output, warranty, etc. I've checked into Quadra-Fire and Harman, and the St. Croix is a little better for our budget, but I want to be sure that we're buying a quality product. What's the word on these pellet stoves? I'd appreciate any feedback and information that people can share.

Thanks.

 

[Xena]

This coming Fall will be my 4th season with the St Croix Prescott.
When the cold weather arrives my stove runs 24/7 which is usually
at least November to April. I keep it clean and it just pumps out
the heat. I find it to be top quality in looks, construction, and
performance. I wouldn't trade it for anything. :coolsmile:


edit: I never needed warranty work, but my brother and I installed
it ourselves and I do all the maintenance/repairs myself. This past
February I had to install a room air blower. The blowers should be
pulled yearly and cleaned (on any stove) - which I hadn't done. The room air blower
still worked but it was noisy as heck and a cleaning at that point
didn't cut it so I replaced it. Was simple.

 

[ylomnstr]

I just purchased a St. Croix Hastings. I'm in the process of installing it, so I can't give you any realtime reviews, but I will once I fire it up this year. I did call another woman who has had that model for years and she loves it.

 

[mkmh]

I'll be going into season 4 with my St Croix Hastings and I have had no problems. Great stove, and by now I have run about 9 or 10 tons through it with great results. I stay on top of the maintenance and it has been good for me. The only "issue" I ever had was a plugged vacuum hose which was diagnosed by my dealer over the phone and fixed by me in about 20 minutes.
Zeta that is a good tip on the room blower. I have never pulled mine, but I should probably do that. I vacuum them out once per week, but I can tell a lot of dog hair and junk has built up in there.

St Croix makes a great stove and while there aren't too many owners on the boards, the few of us that are out here seem to be pretty happy.
My other stove is the Harman P61A which i'm probably equally happy with for different reasons.

 

[nhcat]

Thanks for the info. It is good to hear some encouraging feedback on the St. Croix stoves. I'm not sure how different the stand alone models are from the York insert. I'm guessing that the mechanics are about the same. Are the St. Croix stoves choosy about the kinds of pellets they will burn? Or better yet, any recommendations on the kinds of pellets we should look for or avoid with this stove? In general, are there certain pellets that burn better? Again, this is new territory for us, so I appreciate the replies and feedback.

 

[ylomnstr]

From what I hear, the St. croix is a strong burner and starts easily. Don't think you'll have too much of a problem with choice of pellets.

 

[Xena]

nhcat I think the mechanical parts of the st croix stoves and inserts are the same.

I've burned LG Granules, Stove Chow, Cubex, Energex, NEWP, Barefoot, and Lignetics
in our stove. No problems with any of them. I keep the stove super clean
so that of course helps get a better burn no matter which brand you use.

 

[hossthehermit]

Just picked up my new St. Croix Revolution yesterday and got it home. Now to spend today getting it into the cellar.

 

[bosclo]

I purchased the St Croix insert last year and overall it's been a great stove. My only issues with it are a small hopper (40lbs) and smaller ash trays which require more frequent emptying, but that's some of the differences between a freestanding stove and an insert. Other than that, the stove has served me well.