HI300 Handle Broke!

[18PiecesofFlair]

We've had the HI300 for a couple weeks. Got the oversized surround installed Friday and everything looks great. Ran it all day Saturday without incident. On Sunday, the wife came home and wanted to start a fire. She was struggling to open the door (the latch is very tight) and snapped the handle right off! Looks like the bolt that attaches the handle broke, and half of the bolt is still inside the latch. Is this a common problem with these units?

The dealer was very responsive and is coming out today to repair it.

 

[Fsappo]

Glad to see you have a good dealer. Let us know how the repair goes. I've sold a few HI300s and havent had to replace a handle yet.

 

[wkpoor]

Generally you can look at the break area and tell wether it was cracked prior to the failure or if was a clean break all at once.

 

[stejus]

Hmmm, sorry about that handle. Mine is going on 4 years now and no signs of breaking. I do know you are suppose to take out washers after the first few burns and I wonder if this was the result of the hardness to open and close. The handles are replaceable so it should not be too much of a hassle. Read that manual about taking out the washers to adjust the door latch.

 

[Defiant]

I guess nobody messes with your wife.

 

[18PiecesofFlair]

Well the dealer came out yesterday afternoon and replaced the whole handle assembly. He said he thought the door was a little tight when they originally installed it, but they were hoping the latch would loosen a little as the gasket got compressed. The new handle opens much easier than the original. I'm happy they were so responsive. Guess I'll have to wait til Fall to get it running again. 70+ degrees today!

I did see that section in the manual about the washers. I'll have to look into that more closely once we get this thing broken in.

And you're correct... no one messes with the wife! Maybe I should give her the chainsaw and splitting axe!

 

[velvetfoot]

On the other hand, if it's still stinky when fired up, the windows can be opened without getting too chilled.

 

[NewZero]

Wow. Just had the same thing happen to me this week Had an enamel Hi300 with oversized surround with blower put in a couple of weeks ago. We got about 5 fires out of it before the handle broke off in my wife's hand.

I wasn't home when it was installed, but the installer told my wife it would "loosen up" over time. It actually seemed to be doing just the opposite.

They are coming out today or Monday to fix it.

The service manager commented that that have had this happen more than once recently and are contacting Regency to see if they changed anything.

We've had the HI300 for a couple weeks. Got the oversized surround installed Friday and everything looks great. Ran it all day Saturday without incident. On Sunday, the wife came home and wanted to start a fire. She was struggling to open the door (the latch is very tight) and snapped the handle right off! Looks like the bolt that attaches the handle broke, and half of the bolt is still inside the latch. Is this a common problem with these units?

The dealer was very responsive and is coming out today to repair it.

 

[tfdchief]

My H200 (same handle I believe) is fine. No issues yet.

 

[SeñorFuego]

Hi Folks,

I need some input from the community on this one....

2 things:

Regency warranty woes
HI300 Door Latch replacement tips

HI300 installed new last year (Fall 2015). My wife broke the handle about a month ago. The door is "locked" shut and I can't get it open,

I've been in an annoying scenario with a dealer and Regency to get the part replaced under warranty. Manual says parts and labor covered for 3 years on this door latch.

(broken link removed to https://www.regency-fire.com/Customer-Care/Lifetime-Warranty/RegencyWarrantyWood2016.aspx)

I recognize I'm in a unique scenario where I purchased the unit at a CT dealer, but I live in MA. All the local MA dealers want nothing to do with me and the CT dealer is useless since he's not authorized to do work in MA. I've spoken to Regency several times in hopes that they would assign a local dealer to assist with part warranty claim at a minimu.Basically I'm finding out that the Regency warranty is BS which is extremely frustrating. I'm also finding the stove dealer network is also a joke. I am concerned about future parts that that are listed as lifetime warranties. The whole month long scenario has been about principal more than cost to fix.

It's now 3 degrees in MA and I miss our toasty home. I'm tired of hearing the furnace fire up.

I need a new and improved door latch which I can get for about $100 +/-. Reading here they improved the design of the latch.

Does anyone have any input on how to replace the door latch? There appears to be a pin that needs to be removed. I've tried to knock it out, but won't budge. I can't get the door open

I may need to get someone out here to replace it.

I'm frustrated as I've spoken to several local dealers and most have claimed Regency is not fun to work with. I should have saved a ton of $$ and just gotten a used unit.

From the warranty section of the manual:

"The authorized selling dealer, or an alternative authorized FPI dealer if pre-approved by FPI, is responsible for all in-field diagnosis and service work related to all warranty claims. FPI is not responsible for results or costs of workmanship of unauthorized FPI dealers or agents in the negligence of their service work"

I'm just wondering why a local dealer can't handle warranty claims?

Any input is appreciated.

Thanks,
Sr.NoFuego

 

[jophysx]

Can you slide a short section of steel tube/pipe over the stub and use that for leverage to open the door? How about a pair of vise-grips?

 

[rwhite]

Can you slide a short section of steel tube/pipe over the stub and use that for leverage to open the door? How about a pair of vise-grips?

I'd already have a set a vise grips on there so I could at least argue when it's warm!

 

[SeñorFuego]

If it was just a matter of the handle being broken I would be have been using with vice grips to open, but the door is virtually locked shut. I've had a 5lb hammer with wood block on it attempting to bang it open with no luck. The pipe leverage option might work, but I do fear additional force might mess lead to other damage. i.e. bending the latch catch mechanism on the interior

I'm thinking I need to somehow pop out the pin holding the latch to the door to loosen things up. That piece needs to be replaced regardless. I attempted that but couldn't get the pin to come out.

 

[SeñorFuego]

Update:

After leaving a message for the installer hoping to get an estimate on cost for replacement I made one more last ditch effort to get the door open. I went with the leverage approach.

Using a small crowbar with a towel wrapped around it to protect the stove I gave it a hefty pull.

Attempt #1 - The door didn't open and the I ended up pulling the stove out about 2". That made me a little nervous. I pushed the stove back into place.

Attempt #2 - POP! The door opened!

I'm back in the burning business!

The latch catches just enough to keep the door semi-securely shut. I don't want to push it in b/c I'm afraid it will get "locked" again. It's most likely not a fully sealed door, but it will do for now until I figure out the latch replacement and adjustment situation. I have a feeling it's a combo of latch quality and the washer adjustments. I'll need to play with it.

The only way to remove the latch is with the little pin as seen in the pic. If anyone has experience with that let me know. I think I need a tap the size fo the pin to hammer out.

Thanks for the feedback. Happy Holidays to all!

 

[rwhite]

Seems like there's an issue which led to broken handle. Curious how it went from working to jambed so tight the handle busted. What did they change on the new design?

 

[begreen]

Is that latch adjustable? Seems like it may be closing a bit too tightly.

 

[cableman]

You need a punch all the size of the pin cause the pin is hollow. I would drill that sucka out and retap a threaded rod in it.