My recent experience w/ my "new" Hearthstone Homestead wood stove.

[Poppafixit]

I posted about this experience on a different thread and was asked to start a new thread so here goes. I rewrote my comments so that they would be more precise and more detailed. I really don't expect much help with my problems but post this more to inform those thinking about purchasing a new wood stove what a disappointment my "new" Hearthstone has been.
I'll preface my comments by saying that I've been burning wood for home heating since moving to Oregon in 1981. I've had Fisher, Schrader, Craft Stove, Frontier & LOPI airtight stoves in that time and never had a complaint. Over a year and a half ago I decided it was time to try to go as "green" as possible by lowering my "carbon footprint". I literally spent months researching stoves on line. Then drove to every legitimate wood stove dealer within a 75 mile radius of where I live in Eugene, Oregon. With all that said I think I did all I could to make as wise of a choice as I could. In January of 2013 I made the decision to buy a new Hearthstone Homestead wood burning stove from a local dealer (xxxxxxxxxxxx) about 10 miles from home. I'll repeat my reason to buy a new wood stove was to try to lower my "carbon footprint". Since I started burning wood in this house in 1982 I've got a pretty good idea of what it takes to keep this house warm & comfortable, burning anywhere from 4 to 8 cords a year depending on the weather. Already this year I've used almost 6 cords of wood and our winter hasn't been that cold and It's only the 1st of January. With all that said, I have to say that I HATE my current Hearthstone Homestead. This is the first stove I've ever hated! The local dealer (xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) that I bought from is of almost no help. The factory/manufacturer (Hearthstone) is absolutely no help. Just a few of my complaints are that it's damn near impossible to start a fire in the stove cold, then it smokes and soots and last but not least it pukes fly ash all over the house when ever you open the door, every time. My wife loves this feature..... NOT They (Hearthstone) claims it takes "21 inch logs". Not if your "log" is bigger than a 4X4 though. They also claim a "burn time" of "up to 8 hours" which I've found to be an impossible number to achieve. Forget about trying to keep an overnight fire due to the tiny firebox. This stove has been a huge disappointment. I paid the dealer over $4,000. for the stove installed and they couldn't even get the 2' extension of pipe added after their last visit plumb/straight. As for wood, I started out burning white ash seasoned 1 1/2 years in an open sided shed. Within two weeks I had to clean the screen on the chimney cap. I switched to some old growth douglas fir seasoned 2 1/2 years that I was saving for use in my shop heater (my "old" Craft Stove) due to its storage location nearer to the shop. Same soot/creosoting issue. Hearthstone tells me to contact my dealer, the dealer (xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) claims it's the wood. I call bullshit. The stove is not right, plain and simple.
Now to answer a few questions before you ask, the stove is vented into a masonry chimney with a 6" s/s insulated liner. The masonry chimney is in the middle of our single story ranch style house. When the stove was first installed the dealer/installer ran the liner about 6" above the top of the masonry chimney with a screened cap on top of that. Recently they added the 2' section of pipe mentioned above to try to aid in the cold starts. Funny thing is when they did this they took the screen out of the cap and left the pipe about a half a bubble out of plumb. It was so bad that you could see it was crooked from the ground! I've since gone up on the roof and straightened the pipe myself. Total pipe length is now about 18' which is a good 4' above the peak of the roof. My last stove was the airtight LOPI installed w/ an 8" s/s insulated liner in the same masonry chimney caped at the top without the extra 2' of pipe we now have. AS for how I burn the stove, I burn the stove 100% as per the owners manual and the Hearthstones website info. Oh, on a side note just to share a little about how incompetent the dealer (xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) is I was told by them to leave the ash drawer open/cracked just a little to aid draft! It says on the Hearthstone website and in the owners manual repeatedly not to do that It's a huge safety issue resulting in "over firing". Now how stupid would I have to be to follow the advice of the dealer (xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx) on that one? I don't think so! I will never buy another Hearthstone product or anything for that matter from xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxin Eugene, Oregon, the local Hearthstone dealer. PERIOD

 

[BrotherBart]

We get this rant from every old stove owner that buys a new EPA certified stove. Went through the same thing myself when I made the switch to a new stove from the old one. It ain't the stove it is either the wood or it is how you are running the stove. A lot different than how you ran the old one.

If you aren't ready to learn the difference and how to get the best heat from it, don't just come here to crap on Hearthstone and the dealer.

Lot's of people make'em, lots people sell'em. To learn how to burn in them there is hearth.com.

Other than that. Welcome to the site. And rest.

 

[BrotherBart]

By the way. If you liked the other stoves so much, why did you change stoves more often that I have to buy a battery for my car?

 

[Cynnergy]

BB has lots of experience with this so definitely listen to him. Stick around and the members here should be able to help.

Do you have a moisture meter? It is the only absolute way to tell if the wood is seasoned. If you're at less than 20% (along the grain of a freshly split piece) that can be ruled out right away. If not, there are lots of tips and tricks for making burning wet wood easier.

 

[Poppafixit]

WOW..... Sounds like BB needs to lay off the coffee and have an adult beverage to me. It's ok if you kick me out for being blunt, I'm a big boy.
As for why I changed stoves more often than he bought a battery for his car, my wife likes to change the look of the house every few years and I try to keep up w/ her since we married for life. Some people change wives more often than I change stoves but I won't dwell on that one since it's not my cup of tea. We used the LOPI the longest because she liked it the best. It really was a pretty stove w/ solid brass doors and etched glass. We'd still have it if I hadn't gotten a guilty conscience about doing my part for the environment.
As for moisture in the wood yes I bought a moisture meter several years ago when I first started thinking about what I might be doing to the environment w/ wood that was too wet. A General Brand meter, model # mmd4e (broken link removed to http://www.generaltools.com/MMD4E--Pin-type-LCD-Moisture-Meter_p_636.html) and check the moisture on almost every wheelbarrow load that comes out of the woodshed. I split my rounds down to about 18 to 24 inches before they go in the woodshed. Then split them again into stove size pieces before bringing them into the garage one wheelbarrow full at a time. This is when I check the moisture, as I split it down to come into the garage in the wheelbarrow. I usually get 17% to 18% and occasionally get as low as 14%. Since getting my meter I've never burned wood w/ a higher moisture content than 19% thank you very much.
Funny part is nobody wants to address the fact that it pukes smoke & fly ash out into the house whenever, every time the door is opened. Everybody just dives into it like BB did above. They just keep telling me it's the way I'm burning it or it's the wood. How about the difficulty of starting a fire in the cold stove? I use wood (cedar) that's been in one if my sheds (I have 4 of em) since 1988 so believe me when I say it's d r y. It's dry enough it almost lights itself. Now you've got me wondering how dry it is, next time I go out to that shed I'll take my meter and check it for moisture content.
Like I said above in the first post of this thread, I don't really expect help or valid answers that work. I just know that w/ the lack customer service I've gotten from either xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxin Eugene, Oregon or the manufacturer, Hearthstone I won't be spending any more money with either of them. When I do change out this stove I'll most likely buy a LOPI again from a dealer who actually does provide real service after the sale!
You old timers have fun now ripping on the newbie's.

 

[weezer4117]

I know you mentioned you were not looking for answers but ill make a suggestion anyway.... When lighting a fire in a cold stove, are you doing anything to reverse the draft? I dont mean to make suggestions to you like you just started burning but this is important, esp with new EPA rated stoves. In my Buck, I cris cross my kendling, lay news paper on the top (for quick blast of heat up the flu, reversing the draft) then use a propans torch to light the wood. We all have to learn each appliance, just because the Hearthstone doesnt fire off like the others doesnt mean its the problem. These stoves are fussy, esp when it comes to fuel. $4000 is a lot of money spent to just throw your hands up and give up on. Be patient bud, it sounds like you have a good set up you just need to learn and play with the features of the new appliance. For being a "big boy" your feelings sure got hurt, obviously!! We are all here to help, THAT'S IT!! You can't be stubborn, try/do different things, ask questions. Trust me, the fellas on here will be able to help since your deal/manufacturer can't.....

 

[Charles1981]

So how does the stove work when it is burning? Obviously you are upset about the cold start draft problem and the fly ash upon reloading (both on initial interpretation would seem to be draft related), but when it is going is it putting out heat? How long are your burn times? you said you had to clean the screen after 2 weeks. Was it completely clogged? what about the liner? If the cap was that plugged I would expect some significant build-up along the entire liner length.

Was the liner new installed or a previous insulated liner from another stove?

 

[fire_man]

Take a look at this thread: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/defective-hearthstone-heritage-nightmare-please-help.39681/

I know it's not the same stove as yours but is seems Hearthstone has had problems with the air supply linkage. It seems to me you are having some kind of restriction, either air supply or exhaust.

I remember when I first loooked at EPA stoves a few years back I looked at Hearthstone and I hated the way the air lever worked - it felt like something was rubbing or not working properly.

 

[pen]

I don't really expect help or valid answers that work.

This site is to help those looking for advice / willing to experiment to try and solve problems as you have. Not for the airing of grievances.

If you honestly want help, then start a new thread free of attacks and be willing to take advice of those here who want to help you. If you just want to complain about companies or businesses, there are resources for that, but this isn't one of them.

Your thread is closed due to a lack of understanding what this site is for.

Don't pollute any other threads with rants. Ask questions in a new thread if you are willing to have folks try and help you. If you are not here to learn, then you have no business here.

It is possible that there is a problem with your stove, but by the sounds of it, you have burned several bridges already and about to burn this one down as well.

I and many others who have changed stoves over the years understand your frustration but your approach needs to change if you hope to get different results. Tread lightly.

pen