I decided it was time to upgrade from our old 2009 Englander 25-EP, so I found this 5 year old Harman P43 in very lightly used condition. I was set on Harman, either the P43 or the XXV and had been searching the marketplace for a while until the right one came up.
According to the original receipt it was installed new in late 2016 and the guy used it for 3 years before removing it, storing it, and moving south. It couldn't have been used for more than supplemental heat and not 24/7 since the burn pot and auger were like new. The burn pot holes were still sharp and shiny, as was the rest of the burn pot when cleaned without the hint of cracks starting between any holes. The auger and tube looked practically new also after removing it to clean and inspect.
It did have a couple spots of surface rust on the top and sides from sitting in a garage for well over a year, so I decided to clean it up and paint with Stove Brite satin black
The stove had the stainless trim kit that I re polished but no louvers. Since I liked the look of the louvers, but choked at the $149 cost for something so simple I made my own from 3/16" stainless steel rods and some steel plate to make the brackets to hold the rods and hang it on the vent holes like the OEM version. Welded it together and I think it looks great.
I also made my own custom insert. Instead of tile I used my scroll saw with metal cutting jewelers blades to cut the compass design out of 1/8" aluminum plate. After a few different design ideas, my wife and I decided on a compass due to it having some personal meaning to us. I also made a custom handle out of some Spalted Maple to replace the stock black one.
In addition to the cosmetics, I also added the side heatshields, replaced the ESP which was working, but a little bent, and replaced the Igniter so I would start fresh. I kept the old ESP and igniter for emergency spares which I like to have for winter. Also replaced the door gasket for good measure. I also used a magnahelic to set the draft at around .38-.40 per the manual.
Last night it happen to get down to 49 degrees so it was a good opportunity for a test burn and burn off the new paint smell with the windows open.
Wow, is this a different beast than the old Englander EP-25! I already love the Harman and can see the benefits after just the one evening testing it out. Love the radiant heat that reminds me of the woodstoves I grew up with. It will take a bit to get used to the difference in operation, but this forum has already answered numerous questions just by me reading tons of previous posts with questions & answers from others. I never had a bottom feed and got a bit worried about back burn when I shut down and saw the auger still feeding and after that, pellets burning in the first turn of the auger, but after looking up on here, I see that's pretty normal.
Here's some pics:
![[Hearth.com] Meat my new (to me) Harman P43 I just finished overhauling and customizing.](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/279/279743-889ef4776ee94a53bb9cecdfed166ac9.jpg?hash=Dgt-3tX5-t "[Hearth.com] Meat my new (to me) Harman P43 I just finished overhauling and customizing.")
![[Hearth.com] Meat my new (to me) Harman P43 I just finished overhauling and customizing.](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/279/279744-52e13b34be67da25cda6956ba34f7770.jpg?hash=qjbAcfYSkH "[Hearth.com] Meat my new (to me) Harman P43 I just finished overhauling and customizing.")
According to the original receipt it was installed new in late 2016 and the guy used it for 3 years before removing it, storing it, and moving south. It couldn't have been used for more than supplemental heat and not 24/7 since the burn pot and auger were like new. The burn pot holes were still sharp and shiny, as was the rest of the burn pot when cleaned without the hint of cracks starting between any holes. The auger and tube looked practically new also after removing it to clean and inspect.
It did have a couple spots of surface rust on the top and sides from sitting in a garage for well over a year, so I decided to clean it up and paint with Stove Brite satin black
The stove had the stainless trim kit that I re polished but no louvers. Since I liked the look of the louvers, but choked at the $149 cost for something so simple I made my own from 3/16" stainless steel rods and some steel plate to make the brackets to hold the rods and hang it on the vent holes like the OEM version. Welded it together and I think it looks great.
I also made my own custom insert. Instead of tile I used my scroll saw with metal cutting jewelers blades to cut the compass design out of 1/8" aluminum plate. After a few different design ideas, my wife and I decided on a compass due to it having some personal meaning to us. I also made a custom handle out of some Spalted Maple to replace the stock black one.
In addition to the cosmetics, I also added the side heatshields, replaced the ESP which was working, but a little bent, and replaced the Igniter so I would start fresh. I kept the old ESP and igniter for emergency spares which I like to have for winter. Also replaced the door gasket for good measure. I also used a magnahelic to set the draft at around .38-.40 per the manual.
Last night it happen to get down to 49 degrees so it was a good opportunity for a test burn and burn off the new paint smell with the windows open.
Wow, is this a different beast than the old Englander EP-25! I already love the Harman and can see the benefits after just the one evening testing it out. Love the radiant heat that reminds me of the woodstoves I grew up with. It will take a bit to get used to the difference in operation, but this forum has already answered numerous questions just by me reading tons of previous posts with questions & answers from others. I never had a bottom feed and got a bit worried about back burn when I shut down and saw the auger still feeding and after that, pellets burning in the first turn of the auger, but after looking up on here, I see that's pretty normal.
Here's some pics:
