Harman p43 or enviro min

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donovansn585

donovansn585

Member
Mar 4, 2011
15
NEK Vermont
So I'm looking at buying a new pellet stove, I currently have a jamestown j1000 it has been a great stove but needs a little work and there's a few things about it I don't like. So I'm thinking of upgrading I'm trying to decide between a harman p43 and. Enviro mini. I really like the size of the mini but know the reputation of harman. The price is almost identical. Please help me decide.
 
I have the P43 and absolutely love it! Almost zero maintenance compared to my Englander. I have no experience with the Enviro but my Harman has been fantastic thus far. Best of luck with your decision!
 
After search for some reviews of the Mini it seems they have done several improvements which leads me to think I don't-won't be a test subject. Resale of the Harman as well as less service and cleaning would lead me to Harman.
 
The improvements you speak of are the difference between the mini and the mini-a the switch happened years ago. The biggest issue the stove currently has is the ash pan latch has a plastic(?) bushing, but they are starting to come threw the line with a new "beefier" one and the retrofit is available for free at any Enviro dealer.
 
hwdemers said:
Don222 Isn't that what setting up your stove is for, increasing airflow only means compensating by moving the slide damper, and adjusting trim settings
Click to expand...

Yes, however I work on many brands of stoves and I can see improvements.

I rebuilt a Mini over the summer, an older one.

I was very dissapointed when even though all the upgrades made a difference, that it was not good enough.

Many other stoves use larger impeller blades and a higher current blower just like what Harman does. The top speed is still 3,000 RPMs but on lower speeds and heat levels the smaller blades that Enviro uses do not cut the mustard!

So on the old Mini, that I rebuilt, I did not install the more expensive wider burn pot or the very expensive new control panel with the combustion trim button. Instead, I installed the ash pan latch and put in the better blower and shazam! It worked super!
 
Don2222 said:
smaller blades that Enviro uses do not cut the mustard
Click to expand...
can you clarify, I am confused

it has been my experience that if anything the mini draws too much on low and will burn the pellets faster than the feed rate, a proper adjustment fixes this.
what exactly was the issue you were trying to fix with the fan blades?

Don2222 said:
I was very dissapointed when even though all the upgrades made a difference, that it was not good enough
Click to expand...

Don2222 said:
So on the old Mini, that I rebuilt, I did not install the more expensive wider burn pot or the very expensive new control panel with the combustion trim button
Click to expand...


also the wider burn pot and upgraded control board makes it a different unit, precisely why there was a model number change, the mini and the mini-a are not the same unit.
with out the trim buttons you are not properly setting up the unit thus my confusion, why are the new fan blades necessary?
 
Hello

Many other brands use the larger blades and do not need all those trim adjustments.

When I rebuilt the Mini, instead of installing a new control panel with the combustion trim button, I put in the bigger blades and bingo, the unit worked great on all heat levels. Amazing!
 
I have a Mini (new last year) and love it. It is very quiet. Can some one chime in on a P43 and its noise level as compared to a Mini? I will say that having to replacing the combustion motor gasket on a Mini every time you want to give it a thorough clean is a downer. I have been looking at the Harman 52 for the larger portion of the house and like the idea of simply pulling a few screws and cleaning the combustion motor. I do not know if the P43 is that easy.
 
hwdemers said:
not trying to be a pain i am genuinely curious what the initial issue was, and can you say for sure if it was the latch or the fan blades that fixed the problem
Click to expand...

Thanks for asking, the initial problem was the old Mini (not the Mini-A) unit was not burning very well at all on heat level 1. The burn pot was filling up to much, and unburned pellets were flying out and the flame was lazy.
Most people have to run it on 3 or higher to make it work well.

Adding the latch certainly helped the lazy flame because it stopped room air coming into the ash pan and being pulled up around the burn pot, not thru the burnpot like it should go!

However there still was not enough air on heat level one to stop pellets from overflowing and not burning fully, so the higher current exhaust blower with the large fan blades was the total cure!
I still think added the larger blades to the Mini-A would help that unit too.
 
Ease of cleaning the p series is as easy as flipping a hold lever and pulling the fan plate. Brush the fan blades and run a brush carefully down the exhaust path care being taken not to damage the ESP. Less than ten minutes for the whole stove. Several posts on youtube.
 
Bioburner said:
Ease of cleaning the p series is as easy as flipping a hold lever and pulling the fan plate. Brush the fan blades and run a brush carefully down the exhaust path care being taken not to damage the ESP. Less than ten minutes for the whole stove. Several posts on youtube.
Click to expand...

Not so easy to change the exhaust blower if the set screw is stripped or too frozen.
See my pics. LOL
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...cannot-get-fan-blade-off-for-cleaning.130324/

However if you take the blades off once a year and oil the set screw, then no problem. :-)
 
donovansn585 said:
Thanks everyone for your replies I am now also looking a a piazetta monie, any thoughts?
Click to expand...
I would look at who is going to service your stove too!
 
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Only had 1 season with my Harman - loved it! (and you know what last season was like!)
 
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