Harman Absolute 43

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David Myers

Member
Jul 3, 2016
4
USA
There has been a lot of talk about the Absolute 43, some good and some not so good. So I thought I would Tell about my experiences with the stove. The first thing I would like to talk about is the problem with the burn plate warping. The first symptom I had was a flame that was burning too rich. As the burn plate began to warp some of the fresh air coming in was escaping from under the plate. Also the igniter would clog up with ashes due to the fact that the air flow through the igniter was reduced. As the burn plate continued to warp more symptoms appeared. The stove would take a long time to ignite and then finally would not ignite at all. If you have this stove check the burn plate and make sure that it is perfectly straight. Harmon has a newly designed burn plate. The old design is flat from front to back, the new one is bent down at the front.
I have heard a lot of complaints about the room sensor. It is located on the back of the stove. If you set the desired temp to say 72 the room temp is going to be mush lower. I didn't find this to be a big problem. I have the desired temp set to 79 and the room temp stayed about 70. I think you just need to experiment to see what setting will work for a particular area. Harman does have a remote wireless room sensor available now. But I don't think I will spend the money on it if I don't really need it.
Compared to my old Travis Fire Fox stove, that I had for almost 20 years, this stove is mush easer to clean and maintain. I love the fact that I can set a desired temp and forget about it. I'm not getting cooked out of the room any more, no matter what the outside temp is. I chose this stove for two main reasons. It was the perfect size for my house, and most important, it was the stove my wife liked the appearance of.
As far as the electronics go I have had no problems yet. Time will tell. I like the fact that there is diagnostics contained within the unit. I doubt I will use most of the units capabilities, but who knows. I think it's just the way of the future. I think that electronics today are mush more reliable than in years past, so I feel confident that things will be OK.
So to sum things up I am pleased with the stove and with Harmon in general. I hope that others with this stove will post. I would like to hear their opinions and experiences. I also hope this post may help others with the same problems with this stove. Thanks for listening, Dave.
 
I am looking to buy this as my second stove. currently running at P61a.
I have not had the stove long enough to make a recommendation one way or another. With the new burn plate everything seems to be working very well. Perhaps by the end of the season I will be able to make a more confident recommendation.
 
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I have not had the stove long enough to make a recommendation one way or another. With the new burn plate everything seems to be working very well. Perhaps by the end of the season I will be able to make a more confident recommendation.
Well it will be my experimental stove sense I have a P61 as the main heating unit. I just love how it looks, damn sexy for a stove.
 
I have the xxv and have learned alot in the last two years have trouble free operations. This may seem extreme to other's but I have gotton into a 7 day thorugh cleaning , cause my stove runs non stop for that 7 days during winter. I just recently bought a leaf blower suction that i use on my exhaust pipe to clean out ash that i thought i was getting on my prior cleanings until i used this thing! Its pulls everything out except the kitchen sink. I get hot burns efficent use & less work cause i clean beyond the recommended time frames therefore its less dirty. P43 are good stove's and will last a life time.Temperature probes can be a pain but elevate them 5 to 6 feet above the ground for the most accurate temp settings. Just in case some one wasn't aware of this.
 
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I have had an Harmon Absolute 43 for over a year, now running on my second season. The pros- the unit runs great, easy to clean, good electronics and maintains temperature once I extended the temp probe out the back. Runs great on the pellets available from Tractor Supply. The only negative I have is the metal to metal snaping sound that it is intermittent. The sound is not oil canning, which I do hear, and normal for a heating device. This sound can be muffled to very sharp and loud. At the peak, it sounds like two pieces of metal slapping together. The sound is startling and makes you jump inside.
 
My xxv will make a slap noise like a pop but i think its a pellet that gets between the auger then snaps! The pellet. Are your pellets pretty long pellets In lenth?
 
The pellets I'm using are normal length, about 5/8" long. I've tried 4-5 different brands with the same results. If it's the crushing of pellets that's causing it, then the manufacturer should have allowed for this issue and modified the shutter or auger causing the issue. The noise startles everyone in the room when it happens.
 
I have the xxv and have learned alot in the last two years have trouble free operations. This may seem extreme to other's but I have gotton into a 7 day thorugh cleaning , cause my stove runs non stop for that 7 days during winter. I just recently bought a leaf blower suction that i use on my exhaust pipe to clean out ash that i thought i was getting on my prior cleanings until i used this thing! Its pulls everything out except the kitchen sink. I get hot burns efficent use & less work cause i clean beyond the recommended time frames therefore its less dirty. P43 are good stove's and will last a life time.Temperature probes can be a pain but elevate them 5 to 6 feet above the ground for the most accurate temp settings. Just in case some one wasn't aware of this.
Hve mine just peaking out behind the hopper,lid.,, have it ductaped there....
 
The pellets I'm using are normal length, about 5/8" long. I've tried 4-5 different brands with the same results. If it's the crushing of pellets that's causing it, then the manufacturer should have allowed for this issue and modified the shutter or auger causing the issue. The noise startles everyone in the room when it happens.
Okay i mean how often does this clunking happen every few minutes.
 
The pellets I'm using are normal length, about 5/8" long. I've tried 4-5 different brands with the same results. If it's the crushing of pellets that's causing it, then the manufacturer should have allowed for this issue and modified the shutter or auger causing the issue. The noise startles everyone in the room when it happens.
Here is a link to someone who might be able to help you. Just post your problem info & they will respond. Pellethead.com. go to the line tab in the upper right corner then go to blogs then go to tips from uncle jed. Hope this helps
 
There has been a lot of talk about the Absolute 43, some good and some not so good. So I thought I would Tell about my experiences with the stove. The first thing I would like to talk about is the problem with the burn plate warping. The first symptom I had was a flame that was burning too rich. As the burn plate began to warp some of the fresh air coming in was escaping from under the plate. Also the igniter would clog up with ashes due to the fact that the air flow through the igniter was reduced. As the burn plate continued to warp more symptoms appeared. The stove would take a long time to ignite and then finally would not ignite at all. If you have this stove check the burn plate and make sure that it is perfectly straight. Harmon has a newly designed burn plate. The old design is flat from front to back, the new one is bent down at the front.
I have heard a lot of complaints about the room sensor. It is located on the back of the stove. If you set the desired temp to say 72 the room temp is going to be mush lower. I didn't find this to be a big problem. I have the desired temp set to 79 and the room temp stayed about 70. I think you just need to experiment to see what setting will work for a particular area. Harman does have a remote wireless room sensor available now. But I don't think I will spend the money on it if I don't really need it.
Compared to my old Travis Fire Fox stove, that I had for almost 20 years, this stove is mush easer to clean and maintain. I love the fact that I can set a desired temp and forget about it. I'm not getting cooked out of the room any more, no matter what the outside temp is. I chose this stove for two main reasons. It was the perfect size for my house, and most important, it was the stove my wife liked the appearance of.
As far as the electronics go I have had no problems yet. Time will tell. I like the fact that there is diagnostics contained within the unit. I doubt I will use most of the units capabilities, but who knows. I think it's just the way of the future. I think that electronics today are mush more reliable than in years past, so I feel confident that things will be OK.
So to sum things up I am pleased with the stove and with Harmon in general. I hope that others with this stove will post. I would like to hear their opinions and experiences. I also hope this post may help others with the same problems with this stove. Thanks for listening, Dave.
I also have a lopi foxfire since 1996. Still runs great but you mentioned that the absolute 43 with the thermostat setting would run at a more even temp witch would b great, with the new 26%tax credit on pellet stoves im thinking its about time i replaced the lopi, do you still think the harman is a significantly better stove to spend 3 or 4 thousand dollars for? Thanks in advance for your recommendation
 
the trick to getting close to your desired temperature with the probe is "Placement"..
I have a Harman P61A.. assuming your stove is freestanding and not an insert,
Tape the probe wire to the back of the hopper and have the Probe tip just about peeking above the hopper backside.
maybe an inch.
guarantee that your room temp will be pretty close to what u have it set to.
been doing it that way for 8 yrs now and just about same temp as the thermostat across the living room is the temp i set the Harman at.
a degree or so difference.