Harman Absolute 63 Install

[Bassmasta]

I took the plunge late last winter and replaced a Dutchwest wood stove with a Harman Absolute 63. The Dutchwest had been a warhorse over the prior 20 years burning an average of three cords a season.

Several factors played into making the switch including parts availability and the fact that I've blown out too many birthday candles to be cutting three cords of wood a season. In addition, our class A chimney was getting up in years so we were looking at over 3K for a chimney plus a new wood stove which made the pellet option a reasonable choice for our situation. We went with the top venting option tied into a liner in our existing class A chimney..... (which IMHO gives it a pretty clean look .) While I was at it, we replaced the 'Z-Brick' wall with stacked stone. (Anyone that knows' Z-Brick' is dating themselves)

What I like about the Harman Absolute 63.

1.) ease of use...push the button ....heat and an even temp control. (NOTE: I installed the remote thermostat sensor this year and it makes a world of difference if you are not using outside air intake)
2.) No more cord wood mess in the house (including hitch-hiking insects)
3.) Safety Flue Fire worries are minimized

Concerns

1.) Longevity. These are not cheap stoves so we hope to get a good 15 years out of it with good maintenance schedules.
2.) Some of the parts replacement may be a challenge with the top venting option installed including eventual auger motor replacement. Guess I'll cross that bridge when we get there.
3.) Dirty Glass. This is a well documented complaint about this stove but overall it's a minor gripe. Just need to clean it daily

Overall we are happy with the stove and will post any additional concerns etc when they arise.

Thank you all for your great posts on this forum.....love the knowledge sharing from everyone!

Bill

 

[johneh]

Nice install. I wouldn't worry about working on it.
You have lots of room to get into every area of that stove
Hope it is plugged into surge protector!
And remember a clean stove is a happy stove

 

[Bassmasta]

Thank you for the feedback and yes sir.......We did put the Tripp-Lite surge protector/battery backup in so all good there.

I actually enjoy cleaning the stove thoroughly ever few days ......I may have an illness. The warden thinks I'm nuts,

 

[Ssyko]

Outstanding Job Bill, looks awesome. the warden here thinks im Ssyko they musta got it from warden school

 

[Bassmasta]

LOL...Thanks.

The warden school curriculum sounds like it needs to be revamped.

 

[Harman Lover 007]

Oooh that’s pretty.....how did you get the power to it?

 

[gfreek]

Real nice install.
Dutchwest stove history is interesting leading to Vermont Casting, then going under...

 

[Bassmasta]

Oooh that’s pretty.....how did you get the power to it?

Thanks for the compliment! I was fortunate in that there was an outlet installed in an adjacent hallway. Originally there was no power directly behind the stove but once I took the old Z-Brick down I was able to fish a line to a new outlet directly behind the new unit. The old Z-Brick product (vintage '70's) was god-awful stuff....basically a fiber composite fake brick. The problem is the mortar supplied with the product does not come off. Translation = the drywall had to come down be and be replaced.! The silver lining was it made putting the new outlet in easier prior to installing the stacked stone.

 

[Washed-Up]

Congratulations....Brilliant install and such a beautiful stove! Keep us posted

 

[Bassmasta]

Real nice install.
Dutchwest stove history is interesting leading to Vermont Casting, then going under...

Thank you for the nice words.

Yeah it's a shame they went under. I know the Dutchwest has its detractors but it served us well. I was going to take it apart a couple of years ago and perform a total refurb on it since the inner top was starting to warp (some great posts from folks on this forum that went thru that process) but the state of the company and dwindling parts drove me to start the pellet stove journey.

And now that I think about it we haven't had to open our windows in the winter since we went with the pellet stove ....LOL