As noted above, I've got 16 years experience heating with pellets and corn, 5 years with the 6039 and 11 years and counting with the Magnum 3500. Given the age of these stoves and the tax credit I did some shopping, first thing I found was the old reliables like the Magnum 3500 aren't efficient enough to get the tax credit and a lot of the small American manufacturers have disappeared or are sold out for the year. What I found at least theoretically available by the end of the year was the PelPro, Pleasant Hearth, and Comforbilt stoves . This set off a bunch of red flags for me- None are made in the U.S. or at least a country known for modern technology for a start. All rely on computer controls and software too much, I like at least separate controls for feed/fan speed and stirrer. Heck, none of them even have a stirrer- I've run without a stirrer and even with a deeper burn pot I had to manually agitate and sometimes clean the clinkers out of the burn pot long before the hopper was empty. Then there's the auto ignitors- I'm quite capable of lighting the stove myself and would at least like that option.
So as Menard's 11% off and TSC's "Black Friday" sales end (for now), I decided to pass on the new pellet stoves. Has anyone found these new stoves to work as well as the old standbys, and did I make the righty choice?
So as Menard's 11% off and TSC's "Black Friday" sales end (for now), I decided to pass on the new pellet stoves. Has anyone found these new stoves to work as well as the old standbys, and did I make the righty choice?