Older Jotul 3 vs Vermont Castings Intrepid I

[michoujordan76]

Hi all,

I hope this is not a question you hear all the time. I am looking for a used stove and am debating between a VC Intrepid I (non cat) and a Jotul 3. They are both at least ten years old; I think the Intrepid I is from the 80s, the Jotul is from the 90s. They are both around 350$.

I am looking to replace an ugly little Drolet that is in my fireplace now. I am limited by the size of my fireplace opening to only a few models. It would be to heat a 700-800 sq ft area.

Any opinions on which stove would be better?

Thank you.

 

[begreen]

Do you know which model of Jotul 3 this is? There are several variations.

 

[michoujordan76]

Do you know which model of Jotul 3 this is? There are several variations.

I ended up getting the Vermont Castings Intrepid model 1302. The Jotul was sold. I just brought it home yesterday. After looking more closely I realize it needs some repairs. I ordered a new upper fireback, door handle, damper handle, one door hinge pin (there is a screw doing the job now). The door gasket looks OK but the griddle gasket is pretty flat, so I order a new one. When I removed the flue connector piece to change the orientation to rear exit, the gasket fell apart, so I will change that one too. It has several small chips in the enamel. I paid $375! (plus 108$ for the parts I just ordered) Maybe too much? Only a few stoves will fit in my fireplace opening - this one, the Jotul F100 and F3. I haven't figured out how the three fire bricks fit in, from the diagram that was supplied with the stove, it looks like they go in behind the upper fire back. They had been removed and one won't fit now that the fire back is warped. I tried to find an image online. I hope it will help with our heating bill this year. Here is a picture.