Is this the right place to ask for sanity check on Jotul F 55 Install Price?

[Vorpal]

It seems wood stove prices are one of those things they like to obscure online, so I thought I'd ask here.

Bought a new 2,500 sq ft home on 10 wooded acres. There is an old (cracked on both sides from overfiring according to the chimney inspector we had come out) wood stove on a spacious stone hearth there. (Looks like a Nashua NFP-1). Additionally the flue only goes partially inside the chimney, inspector suggested installing full liner and insulation. Jotul seems like a good brand, the F 55 seems like a good stove and I like the look of it and it seems sized appropriately to our house size. The chimney is exterior, on the ground level of the house. No basement, 2 stories (8 foot ceilints) , tall attic (over 6 feet)

They are listing 2,679 for the Jotul F55 stove, 1k for labor. Another 1500 for the liner (1k for liner,100 for 'armor mesh' and 300 for a foil flexwrap). Then some various other odds and ends such as fittings for the flue. Total comes to about 5.8k pre tax. Is this roughly reasonable? (give or take a thousand)? If it's slightly higher than you might expect I'll chalk that up to being in Northern Virginia but if someone says "Oh hey, no that should only cost like 2,000" then I'd like to know before I fork out all that money. Thanks in advance for your help. I'm new to the wood stove scene and this site has a lot of great resources.

 

[begreen]

It's a little on the high end, but this is peak season. Will this include a block-off plate in the damper area or will they be using one already in there for the old stove?

 

[EbS-P]

I paid about 5400 to get a Jotul F400 installed. Parts came to 4600. We are in a pretty pricey area for stoves and chimney work.

 

[webby3650]

It's a little on the high end, but this is peak season. Will this include a block-off plate in the damper area or will they be using one already in there for the old stove?

I think it’s just a thimble and a stone hearth, not a fireplace.

 

[webby3650]

It sounds a little high, but we don’t know much about the job either. Those little components can be costly and time consuming. Sometimes the clay tile needs to be removed to make room for the insulated liner. Is that the case here?

 

[kennyp2339]

One thing I have learned over the years working for a contractor, having friends that are self employed contractors and being with a large utility that hires contractors for specific jobs is that every single one of them has there minimum price built into the job, depending on the person who is doing the work they may try to do it in a half day or full day and your paying them to cover that time / labor. There maybe a small mark up on the materials (handling fee) but your really covering the person's co expenses like insurance, fuel, payments for equipment then finally a profit. I know when I was working with my friend George doing boilers (circa 2005) he said that he needs to cover a minimum of $1000.00 a day to keep going, if he's not doing that then he's just better off keeping the truck parked in the driveway and sleeping in, ie: running a small business is expensive and tough

 

[rosem]

I was quoted about $4,500 to install a Jotul 55 just about a month ago.

That didn't include the chimney liner. I was quoted about $2,400 to do that, including knocking out existing clay tiles.

$2,800 of the cost was the stove itself. They had to order it so no deal to be had on it. I found a dealer in Pennsylvania that had two in stock and was letting them go for $1,850. So I saved $1,000 there.

He did have one more in stock if you feel like taking a ride. Haha.

 

[Kevin Weis]

That price sounds to be in the ball park to me. BTW Vermont Castings does post they're suggested retail prices on they're web page last time I checked. Found the dealers are very close to that.

 

[begreen]

I think it’s just a thimble and a stone hearth, not a fireplace.

Yes, for some reason I had this visual picture of the stove in a fireplace. Probably due to the late hour and something from another thread stuck in my head.

 

[lml999]

To install my Enviro 1200 insert, I got two quotes from CSIA certified installers in my area, $3,000 and $2,200. This included labor, miscellaneous parts, stainless liner, and block-off plate. Straightforward installation, expect to have it done within two weeks...

I got a third quote from an independent chimney sweep for $1,100. That one scared me.

 

[webby3650]

To install my Enviro 1200 insert, I got two quotes from CSIA certified installers in my area, $3,000 and $2,200. This included labor, miscellaneous parts, stainless liner, and block-off plate. Straightforward installation, expect to have it done within two weeks...

I got a third quote from an independent chimney sweep for $1,100. That one scared me.

If you are using a reputable dealer, don’t expect it to be within 2 weeks this time of year. With any trade, if they can be there right away in their busy time, be worried!

 

[Bad LP]

I’ve managed property for 30 years. It costs money to stay in business plus house and feed a family.
I’ll never take low bid and high bid within reason gets a good solid look.
In the end it boils down to my gut feelings about the company and who they hire.

 

[lml999]

If you are using a reputable dealer, don’t expect it to be within 2 weeks this time of year. With any trade, if they can be there right away in their busy time, be worried!

Perhaps I should have said "hope" to have it done within two weeks. I have been talking with the installer for a couple of months; they've already conducted a full (paid) inspection of my chimney, hearth and stove. I would agree that if I had called out of the blue, a two week turnaround would be concerning. The low-ball guy could have done it within a week... Yikes!

 

[Vorpal]

It's a little on the high end, but this is peak season. Will this include a block-off plate in the damper area or will they be using one already in there for the old stove?

There is an existing block off plate in the fireplace (it's a big fireplace, looks like it has some of the mounting points for a swing hook ). I'm not sure if it's the right size for 'modern' flues.

If you are using a reputable dealer, don’t expect it to be within 2 weeks this time of year. With any trade, if they can be there right away in their busy time, be worried!

Indeed, the company (seems to be thought of highly locally) said they probably couldn't install until February at the earliest.

 

[Woody5506]

It's never "cheap". Plenty of these guys will cut costs if you pay cash though.