purchase ?

[muzzy]

Hi , My story goes like this . Back in October I ordered my Regencey I2400 and at the time was told it would be ready for instal in 3 weeks. Well than it got moved to Thanksgiving than a couple weeks nothing. I than call the store talk to the sales person who then put me in contact with the instal/order people who tell me they are having trouble getting certain stoves...Ok Then I'm told that mine is on the way from dist. Instal date Dec 20, great! Dec 19 no phone call I call and I'm told no stove , but "I talked to our dist and explained your situation and they are going to Emergencey ship one to us" my dealer and it will be here no later than Dec 27 , and installed the 28th . well no phone call from dealer or instal/order office. I procede to call both offices leve message on both lines. I get no replys. I than finnaly get in touch with the sales person directly and tell my story and he replies I'm not privey to information about what comes in or not , and that he'll try and reach install people tomorrow and I should call back in the morning.... By now I'm just a tad frustrated with this whole ordeal. In the morning I went to the store and canceled my order and was refunded my 1500 down payment. So now I have no stove and am concidering ordering a Lopi Revere. I talked to the dealer yesterday and he said they don't have any in stock , but I could order one and he felt it would be about 3 weeks and a couple weeks for installation. So I'm looking at somewhere in around end of JAN begining of FEB. I just don't know what to do. Feb install won't give us much use this season or much of a return. Will the prices be the same next season ? Can we save some money purchasing our unit out of season next year ? What would you do?
Thanks in advance for any thoughts / information
Muzzy

 

[begreen]

Buying the stove and fuel off-season can save quite a bit. I am seeing woodstoves locally going for about 20-25% more than in summer. On the internet I have seen some new stoves selling for as much as 33% more than last summer. Both our stoves were bought over the phone by checking for the best local price in August. On each, the savings was about 25% over prices in November of that year. This year is an anomaly because the demand has been so high. It may be harder to tell how the market will settle down. But in general, you'll find few people thinking about woodstove purchases when it's 85+ outside. When I picked up our Quad, the store was totally dead and the dealer was really happy to make a sale.

 

[Corey]

That would be my vote as well...work the numbers and see if you can wait till summer, pick up a better deal and hopefully a more accurate install time. From what I hear, this has been a pretty hectic season for alternate fuels in general. May also talk with the dealer and see if he would order the stove with a small or no deposit and let you pay when it is installed. My thought is that once a retailer has your money, they can go at what ever pace they feel like...however, if they need to finish a job to get paid, that might put a little hustle in their step.

Good Luck,
Corey

 

[roac]

Put your money in a money market account and wait. With the way this year is going you'll get it installed in March/April and you'll be kicking yourself for not waiting. Bottom line the dealers have no idea when a stove will be in or when they'll be able to install it. Save your money for June/July.

 

[webbie]

I predict that prices will be 5-10% cheaper in May. Whether it's worth installing now is a numbers call on your part. That assumes, of course, that you can depend on the new dealer, which, in my opinion, is questionable.

If you have the wood ready to go, then any savings on the unit might be less than fuel savings this winter.

Any Dealers want to speak to potential savings buying in Summer?

Some dealers are what I call "price snobs" and rarely discount at all - ever!

But, when I had my stores I based my selling price upon the price I paid, so when I got a deal (which was a good % of the time), then customer also got one.

My feeling is that popular stoves like Lopi and Regency will see no more than a 10% decline in spring. Prices also often go up about March 1 or abouts.

Sure, there may be some off-brand deals, but a Lopi or Regency should not come down too far.

It amazes me that you were treated that way....passing the buck. I don't see why truth has gone out of fashion. If they didn't know in the first place, that is what they should have said!

 

[mtalea]

Where do you live?

There are no stoves in stock in your area?
I live in CT and I was just at a stove place and they have pellet stoves in stock.in fact he said they are alil slow right now..

I dont know much about wood or pellet stoves, and i do have a pellet stove I just bought..but I would think it shouldnt be this difficult for you to obtain and get installed.

Sorry Im not much help

Good Luck

 

[muzzy]

Thanks for the replies. I live in central Maine. There are free standing units available at both the dealerships I was at. The dealer I talked with yesterday just recieved a shipment. Of course there were no inserts on that shipment. I was told that it's just been one of those years with inserts. They told me that as of last week Travis was 1800 stoves behind on orders. He is going to talk to the manufacture next week and get back to me... I'm still not sure which way to go. You guys had some great thoughts.
Thanks!
Muzzy

 

[wg_bent]

I ordered my stove in early October, and It finally arrived a few days before Thanksgiving. BUT...I still don't have all the parts. I'm still missing the metal surround trim piece and the gold door trim. I've been calling Obadiahs almost daily. Finally they found a surround and it should be here yesterday. (yes.."should" and "yesterday") Not their fault I don't think, I believe that Osburn should ship complete stoves to the suppliers. The word I get is that they severely underestimated the number of inserts vs. freestanding stoves that would be ordered.

The local dealer here ran out of all stove pipe. You'd think with 25 years in business they would know how much to order on average for the stoves they sell, but nope...They had stoves, no pipe to install with.

I guess the bottom line is that it's a wierd year and everyone is scrambling. I know that doesn't help much when your waiting and frustrated.

 

[rudysmallfry]

I don't know about other brands, but I know that Hearthstone has their sales in January. I tried the spring shopping thing last year, and nobody was offering discounts on anything. Check the manufacturers' websites for the specials, since some dealers will not offer up the discount.

 

[Shane]

Man I think alot of people are getting jerked around by dealers this year. It's been very hard to get stoves but I have not run into problems getting stoves by the date I have been told by my distributors. I have ordered several stoves with a 1-2 month lead time and every one has been delivered on the promised date. Some have come the day before the install was scheduled bu they were there. Accessories have been a different story, I did get jerked around on some remotes earlier this year and it seems that almost every insert I order is missing a trim panel and face plate a blower etc. But I still show up and install the unit, I've not yet had some one tell me to go away and come back when the trim panel arrives. They've been more than happy to burn the insert without a trim panel for a week or two. It's been a tough year but hearing several stories of folks being told next month for three and four months sad. I hope everyone catches up next year so we can actually deliver more. I stopped counting how many people were walking into our store checkbooks in hand and turning right around and walking out of my store when I would say 1-2 months to get this stove.

 

[rudysmallfry]

I'm glad I beat the rush and got my stove in November. I just got my first oil heating bill. It would have been twice as much as last year were it not for my new baby.

I doubt dealers can go wrong by overstocking next season if oil prices are still where they are now. You can always warehouse the left overs and still sell them for full price the next year.

 

[DavidV]

Hmmm. Gotta put in a good word for my stove manufacturer. I am burning a 16 year old Appalachian and I need to replace a couple pieces. I have called the manufacturer 2 times in the 3 years I have owned the stove. They are always fast very helpful. Even offerening to look at a digital pick I email them if I am unsure of what the piece is that I need. Now I can only assume they are at peak production like most other manufactueres out there but I have been very pleased with their level of service.

 

[hearthtools]

Dont bet on lower prices in the summer We sell at list price and DO NOT raise our prices in the winter to make extra money.

manufactures give us dealers price increased in March but in the past few years we have seen several price increased through the year because of steel prices.
Enviro just gave us a price increase last week.

In our case we keep our stoves the same price until we run out of the stoves we bought last season but this year they will not be much left for the shortages on wood and pellet stoves. I have been waitin for months for some woodstoves from Avalon and Enviro.

You may find discounts one DOGS that do not sell and the dealer wants to get rid of them but I dont think there will be to many this year.

 

[paulgp602]

Hi , My story goes like this . Back in October I ordered my Regencey I2400 and at the time was told it would be ready for instal in 3 weeks. Well than it got moved to Thanksgiving than a couple weeks nothing. I than call the store talk to the sales person who then put me in contact with the instal/order people who tell me they are having trouble getting certain stoves...Ok Then I'm told that mine is on the way from dist. Instal date Dec 20, great! Dec 19 no phone call I call and I'm told no stove , but "I talked to our dist and explained your situation and they are going to Emergencey ship one to us" my dealer and it will be here no later than Dec 27 , and installed the 28th . well no phone call from dealer or instal/order office. I procede to call both offices leve message on both lines. I get no replys. I than finnaly get in touch with the sales person directly and tell my story and he replies I'm not privey to information about what comes in or not , and that he'll try and reach install people tomorrow and I should call back in the morning.... By now I'm just a tad frustrated with this whole ordeal. In the morning I went to the store and canceled my order and was refunded my 1500 down payment. So now I have no stove and am concidering ordering a Lopi Revere. I talked to the dealer yesterday and he said they don't have any in stock , but I could order one and he felt it would be about 3 weeks and a couple weeks for installation. So I'm looking at somewhere in around end of JAN begining of FEB. I just don't know what to do. Feb install won't give us much use this season or much of a return. Will the prices be the same next season ? Can we save some money purchasing our unit out of season next year ? What would you do?
Thanks in advance for any thoughts / information
Muzzy

I have the Regency I2400 and am very happy with it and the performance I get from it. Burns incredibly clean for a non-cat stove. I live in Southern CT and ordered mine from a local dealer in mid- September and it was installed by the first week in October.

 

[HarryBack]

I guess I am one of those "price snobs" Craig spoke of above. We as well dont discount units in the spring....wouldnt that basically mean thay we raise the prices in the fall? We live in a rural area, and mark our stoves up from cost with a reasonable margin we feel we can live with. Our stoves cost us the same whether they come in in August or January. The one thing to note is that yes, on or about March first, our stove company, Harman, comes up with their "new" pricing.....and since we've never seen that "new" pricing come down, in our case anyways, i can pretty safely say that the price will be HIGHER after March. The only pricing "deals" we give is we sell our burn units in the spring and of course discount them as they are a "used" unit. That only amounts to a few stoves, and they always go fast.
I dont see the reason to discount units in the spring if your prices are reasonable at the other times of the year. When I see folks discounting new units in the spring, I tend to think they are overpriced the rest of the year, or, worse yet, are having cash flow problems.

 

[webbie]

I guess I am one of those "price snobs" Craig spoke of above. We as well dont discount units in the spring....wouldnt that basically mean thay we raise the prices in the fall?

When we had our stove store, we kept as many os 200+ units in the warehouse. This meant we always had "dogs" although the customer would not see them that way - maybe a blue resolute acclaim or something like that.

Also, we often took advantage of early buy programs (buy now, pay later) and some companies...in certain years....gave us 10% or MORE extra for buying at the end of the winter. Remember a few years back, VC, Jotul and others all had big sales in Jan/Feb.

So we took advantage of every decent offer in order to buy right. Then we sold right - yes, at a discount from list price on 90% of our stoves. This is but one business model, and probably not a smart one for most dealers. You see, we owned all our inventore since we had spent 15 years reinvesting into the business - so for us, it was money in the bank as opposed to "how many turnovers" per year.

Things are different today and most dealers will not buy big qualtities without a very good reason....and, if they don't, they surely can't afford to lower any prices!

Let me tell you one of our best closeout stories. In the early 80's, Sudiac was getting rid of their Wood model - the Le Marquis. Actually a great stove, similar to the early Efel Wood, but all cast iron firebox. They originally cost the dealer about $625. - First they lowered the price to $200 each...they really wanted to get rid of them! We bought a bunch and sold the heck out of them for $599......

Then they lowered it even more - I forget the exact figure, maybe $125 or something like that - Wow, we bought an entire tractor trailer load! They might have hung around the warehouse for 3 years, but customers got an amazing deal at $499 and we made a larger profit than any other stove!

That's my nature - can't pass up a good deal! One year VC was having financial problems and had some kind of incredible late winter buy - we "backed up the truck", although I felt bad that all these stove companies were in dire straights, we were once again able to provide our customers with a great deal....

Bottom line as said earlier in the thread - if you want a certain model you probably are not going to save any money by waiting til spring - actually, the only sales in this industry that I know of happen in Jan/Feb...and they probably will not be going on this year since there is a shortage of products!

 

[muzzy]

After scrapping my first plan and walking. I then talked to another dealer and was looking at mid-late Feb install. Might as well wait till next year. Then I find another Lopi dealer in another town. I called last Sat and to my surprise tells me he has a couple in stock...So I went up met the owner told him of my whole ordeal. I told him I couldn't believe he had them in stalk. He said well that's the advantage of having warehouse space to keep a good stock on hand and meet demand. Then I asked what we were looking at for an install date. He asked if I worked during the week I said yep , but I can get a day . He said no problem how about Sat. So needless to say I plunked down a deposit. As of yesterday , I'm the proud owner of a Lopi Revere! Wow! I cant believe that I have been strung along by the original dealer from Oct - Jan and they couldn't even return a call let alone get my stove. With in one week I ordered and had my new stove installed! The dealer was great and they did a great job with the installation.
Thanks again for all the advise and thoughts !
muzzy.

 

[Willhound]

That's great news, Muzzy! Congratulations.

OK, now we need a pic!

Willhound

 

[elkimmeg]

MZ I think it worked out for you the better. Who would want to have to deal with the retailer that lied and strung you along all this time? What if warranty work was required? You will still have about 50% of the heating season a head of you to save some.
If one noticed the gas pumps gone up quite a bit from the week before Christmas to now about $,30 an.

I have followed this thread and except for the big box stores discounting winter or seasonal stock, I doubt one will see much if any discounts on short supplies of huge demand stoves. What will probably happen is price increases. If you waited you probably would have spent even more. Nobody predicted the demand for inserts, Good luck and post updates

 

[annette]

muzzy, I'm so glad that you got your insert! Be sure to name that Lopi dealer (and the one who strung you along) in your stove review!

And Craig, I really wish we could have a spot for reviewing dealers, apart from that line in the stove review.

 

[muzzy]

Willhound , I'd love to post a picture but I'm not sure of how just to do that. I'll look into it . Thanks

 

[Willhound]

Craig posted some info on specs for shots at: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/27/

It is a bit involved, though. Good if you happen to use, or want to use Picasa to re-size your images, but basically, it goes like this:

1) Take a digital picture, or a scan of a hard copy, and open it in any image editor that will allow you to re-size it. Most do.

2) Re-set the image to no more than 600 D.P.I. wide. If you have "Maintain Aspect Ratio" or something similar set, the height will automatically adjust. Usually to 450 D.P.I. for a standard horizontal shot. Just reverse these figures if you shot it vertical.

3) Re-set the resolution to around 90 - 100 pixels. Most computer screens and web browsers don't allow any better than 90 D.P.I. resolutioln anyway.

The reason for the re-sizing and lower resolution is that it will upload much faster, take up a heck of a lot less room on Craig's server, and ensure that just about any browser can view it within a regular screen setting.

4) Save as...Whatever filename you want, and save it as a .jpg By using "Save as..." and using a new filename you can keep the original at regular size in case you want to use it again down the road.

5) At the bottom of the post editing window (the one you get when you click "New Post") there is a button that says "Browse" with Attachments beside it. Click on Browse and select whatever directory you saved your new .jpg file in and double click on the image filename.

Click Submit Post, and that should be it.