FINALLY bought a replacement - a used Hearthstone Equinox

[DougA]

I have been searching for something to replace my old VC for most of a year and almost bought a Woodstock IS until I found out it didn't have ULC approval for Canada and the setbacks without it would be intolerable for me. Looked at a lot of stoves (King, Summit, etc.) but everything had problems that made them less than ideal in my case. Found a used Hearthstone Equinox that is 2 years old for half the price of new. It appears to be in great, almost perfect condition. I had a long, careful look inside.

The guy was heating a 4,000+ living area with it but also wanted to heat the basement that was another 4000'. OUCH. HUGE home. He's losing a ton of money going from a great stove with chimney & install to an outdoor furnace but his loss is my gain. He cared for the Equinox very well so I am not going to say anything about what I would have done.

My question is this: the Equinox weighs a TON - most of 700 lb. My plan was to jack up both sides, put two 4' pieces of 2x10 under the feet, then bolt two 2x6 cross braces on the ends of the 2x10s and put wheels under that that would be similar to scaffolding wheels. I am pretty sure that I can't put anything right under the middle as the ash pan is cast iron and probably not made to support the weight.

I tried lifting one corner and it would not budge. It's a monster. I have 3 guys to push it up & onto a trailer and think I will have a winch handy in case.

Any other thoughts.

 

[webby3650]

It can be lifted from the Ashpan if the weight is evenly distributed over the surface. We lift them from the bottom with an escalera. I get to do it again on Friday!

 

[DougA]

Thanks for the answer.

 

[Grisu]

Found a used Hearthstone Equinox that is 2 years old for half the price of new

I think that qualifies for the steal of the year! Congrats!

 

[BrotherBart]

Where is that "drooling" emoticon?

 

[Jags]

Nice choice. That is a big hunk of hot rock. Are you prepared for the 8" stack?

 

[DougA]

He included some of the 8" that he had but I only needed 2 sections for the roof. I'm relocating the stove from where my old one was to ensure the heat will move through the whole room better. I've got to buy a cathedral ceiling kit and a fair bit of double wall stove pipe. I'll be hard pressed to have the installation done before I need the heat so the old stove will be running for a short period. It works fine until we get the bitterly cold days like last year.

I will be very happy about cutting, splitting & stacking 24" lengths instead of 15's.

The best comment came from my wife who I took along to see the stove. We've got a modern design home and the old VC didn't ever look right. She said the Equinox, "looks like a piece of fine furniture".

Thanks for the comments.

 

[begreen]

She's right, that's a beautiful big rock. Take pics as the stove goes in and congratulations.

 

[DougA]

Finally picked-up the Equinox on Sunday. Took some time to coordinate 4 people plus the former owner.

WHAT A BRUTE of a stove
One guy on each corner lifting and we got it up a few inches at the most. Tried putting a 2x6 under the middle to pry up one end to put the casters under and the 2x6 started to snap.

So, out with the hydraulic jacks and the jack stands and after an hour of tension, we got it raised enough to put the custom made dolly underneath. I used larger wheels than I should have which added to the height risk but the stove was sitting on floor of 24x24" white porcelain tiles and I was not wanting to crack the tiles. Plus, the larger wheels were great for getting the stove up the ramp onto the trailer. We were taking extra care to keep everything smooth and not to torque the stove as I read other posts about this risk.

The side door handle snapped off while moving into the new house. I grabbed it by accident when the stove wanted to go back downhill on the way in. Other than that, everything survived. I tested the fans by putting a butane lighter on the sensor and they are a bit louder than I like but we'll see once they get installed in the back again. Still, the fans are MUCH quieter than other stove fans I have heard. I prefer using the eco fans that run on the stove heat anyway as they are almost silent. There's a hairline crack on one soapstone panel at the back but it is covered by the heat shield so I didn't see it during inspection. I had no idea how thick the soapstone is until I started to pull the exit assembly off so it gets changed to a top vent instead of rear. I'm also ordering the outside air kit since our house is fairly air tight and we notice a cold draft coming in when the old stove is on.

I have to put stone on the wall behind the stove for appearance only. Where the new stove will be sitting is on a tiled cement pad and great for clearance but I want to raise the hearth 8" to avoid the constant bending over when loading, plus change the appearance to add more of a natural stone hearth and wall. The old VC was on briefly today and we'll be using it for the next month or so. As long as I get the Equinox going before the really bitter weather comes in Dec., I will be happy.

Thanks to all of you for the forums which provided me with a lot of good reading while researching what to replace the VC with. I've spent 8 months searching for a good buy. Rewards come to those with patience. There really is a ton of information here for those that take the time to find it. You guys are great.

 

[webby3650]

Is it a crack for sure? Often soapstone has natural lines that look like cracks but really aren't an issue. According to Hearthstone, cracks are not an issue unless you can see light through it. They will give you a new stone, but you have to provide the labor. They have a lifetime warranty on stones. Since it's changed hands, that might change. Not sure how that works?

 

[DougA]

A hairline crack. It's so small that I am not going to worry about it. I'll put a bit of cement in to make sure it doesn't leak air.