Need opinions for a "Work Horse"pellet stove

[tony58]

Not wanting to start a brand war,just need some ideas for a real "work horse"pellet stone.I've had my Harman P38 for nine years,bout ready for something different.I don't need gold trim or fancy bells and whistles and such.I need something that throws a lot of heat and easy for an old man to maintain.Several come to mind .One being a Harman P61A and Englander 25 .I'm know there are a bunch of others.I've had great service from my Harman but I'm not brand loyal.Just want a plan Jane "Work Horse".

 

[JDenyer236]

Any reason your getting rid of the P38? At 9 years old it's only middle aged. If you need something that's bigger I would go with the P43 or P61. Englander makes a great stove if your budget conscious, but in my opinion they are harder to clean.

 

[Pellet_Pete]

Having both the XXV & P61A, I can attest to the "work horse" nature of the P61A. When my XXV was down last year for a day of repairs in January, the P61A (in my basement) cranked away and kept all 1300 square feet upstairs in the lower 60's (probably 75+ downstairs, ~800 sq. ft.). I put about 2 tons out of my 7 through it each of the last 2 years, and even totally neglected all regular cleaning and maintenance the first year, and it's still chugging away with no issues. As a measure of appreciation, I gave it new gaskets this year.

 

[tony58]

Mainly just wanting something newer and bigger.Thats why I like the P61,just a bigger and meaner P38.Never had a minutes trouble from the p38.

 

[SidecarFlip]

6039 HF. No chrome, no stainless, just high temp black paint and a plain jane door, huge ashpan and the ability to burn anything but saw logs and did I mention a control board with so many varibles, you will never use them all. At a price about half of a Harman

 

[adam6979]

I personally love the 55TRPAH that I have. It holds about 120# of pellets. Puts out great heat and was a refurb from AMFM Stove and was a bargain price compared to the Quad CB1200 I bought. It is harder to clean than the quad and needs cleaning more often. But I can say if I had to do over I would have bought 2 Englanders and not a quad, but I bought the quad first because I was told cheap pellet stoves suck...(which in this case is false) I recommend the Englander to any one who is budget conscious and the 120# hopper is awesome. The only thing I wish on the 55TRPAH is that the front door was solid steel with only a view glass. The glass gets covered in ash and then is not see through any more. The quad has an air wash and is stays very clean. I consider it this way - Harman = Cadillac / Quad = GMC / Englander = Chevy.... all are descent but it's mostly about looks and how much you have to pay for parts....

 

[heat seeker]

I would suggest a St Croix. Well made, simple to run and repair, very well designed.

 

[bags]

You can get the P61 Plain Jane in all black. That's what I did with the P68. Hard to beat them. They throw out some serious heat. Very simple to clean and maintain when you have to. The hardest thing I do is put 40 lbs. of pellets in it.

A lot depends on your budget and how much you want to shut down and clean with other stoves. I'm doing 2,350 SQ FT on two levels and it does it well. I also have vaulted ceilings and a bunch of windows and glass doors. It was a no brainer for me.

Good Luck!

 

[oliveone]

Look at the Enviro Maxx heats my house 2000 SF in upstate NY. I also like the P61a.

 

[tony58]

Lots of choices here.Looks like the 6039 HF is made about 75-80 miles from me.Maybe they have a scratch and dent outlet?Are most exhaust outlets the same height off the floor?Don't want to cut any more holes in the wall...
Thanks All

 

[Doug Doty]

Is the 6039 made in the states, I was happy when I thought my 5660 was then I saw the made in china on the box it was in !! Pissed me off bad but too late.....

 

[F4jock]

Not wanting to start a brand war,just need some ideas for a real "work horse"pellet stone.I've had my Harman P38 for nine years,bout ready for something different.I don't need gold trim or fancy bells and whistles and such.I need something that throws a lot of heat and easy for an old man to maintain.Several come to mind .One being a Harman P61A and Englander 25 .I'm know there are a bunch of others.I've had great service from my Harman but I'm not brand loyal.Just want a plan Jane "Work Horse".

After almost six years with my Harman I'd never switch.

 

[bogieb]

P61A is great of course since it is set and forget (except for pellets and occasional cleaning). I don't know about other St. Croix's, but the one I have is very picky with the damper (changing winds and even changing pellets etc) and I have to take more apart to clean it than I do with the Harman. Of course the Hastings is too small for your use, but if other SC's are of similar nature, I would pick the Harman.

 

[Bioburner]

Maybe I should scrape up some of the 6039s as they sell used around here for under $500 used. Was one going for $350 yesterday.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

New
Is the 6039 made in the states,

the 6039 from what im thinking is US made

 

[tony58]

Lots of choices here.Looks like the 6039 HF is made about 75-80 miles from me.Maybe they have a scratch and dent outlet?Are most exhaust outlets the same height off the floor?Don't want to cut any more holes in the wall...
Thanks All

Anybody know the answer to my question about the exhaust outlet?Are all different or is this a standard?
Thanks,
Tony

 

[Bioburner]

Not at all standard on stoves. Some are even on top.

 

[Bioburner]

the 6039 from what im thinking is US made

Has been replaced by the 6041.

 

[bogieb]

Anybody know the answer to my question about the exhaust outlet?Are all different or is this a standard?
Thanks,
Tony

My experience from researching stoves in the last couple of months is that almost every brand is a different height - anywhere from 7" to almost 17". Even among one brand, you will sometimes get differences (Lennox did that - an inch difference between stoves). It might also make a difference if you get a pedestal versus legged stove. I was able to find all that info in user manuals which you can find on the net (plus it will tell you dimensions of stoves).

I ended up with a strange pipe configuration to not cut more holes in my literally new sheetrock (up 2 months) and siding.

 

[tony58]

My experience from researching stoves in the last couple of months is that almost every brand is a different height - anywhere from 7" to almost 17". Even among one brand, you will sometimes get differences (Lennox did that - an inch difference between stoves). It might also make a difference if you get a pedestal versus legged stove. I was able to find all that info in user manuals which you can find on the net (plus it will tell you dimensions of stoves).

I ended up with a strange pipe configuration to not cut more holes in my literally new sheetrock (up 2 months) and siding.

I have a brick home,so that will limit my options.I aint cutting more holes in my brick.
I'II check the manuals out.The P61 might be the same...
Thanks

 

[bogieb]

The brick would definitely be bad to cut more holes into. My new sheetrock went up and was cut for the existing stove. Then the stove went kaput (after 3 startups- it was a used stove), so I got rid of it and had to buy another stove. Was adamant that I would not get another Englander (what went kaput) because it also scared the cr*p out of me when it shut down the last time and the auger started bringing burning pellets back inside. Anyway, that is why I ended up with a strange configuration to avoid cutting more holes.

 

[Jennm]

We have a Harman pellet insert, and would never go back. We looked at a ton of them...this had consistent quality construction, great heat output, fairly quiet, and really easy to maintain (we clean it once a week). Best of luck.