Quadra-Fire 4300 Millennium- Need an updated Review

[HawksViewFarm]

Hey good folks of Hearth! I have been lurking over the last several weeks in the run up to my decision to purchase a new wood stove. I have found some great information, but wanted to check in regarding the Quad 4300. All the reviews are from the 90's early 2000's. Does anyone know why?

Anyway, I have 1600 SQFT cape. Stove would be primary heat source and reside in the main, large living area with 3 bedroom upstairs. I live in Vermont so the winters get cold. I am a first time wood stove user and am jumping in with both feet. Wood splitter and chain saw, along with some gracious neighbors expertise have already been secured. The stove is on sale for $1400. Price is an issue as we just purchased a home and capital is a bit low! I just want to make sure I am making the right choice so my family (wife and 2 year old) don't freeze their butts off this winter!

So tell me, will this thing get the job done? Why hasn't anyone reviewed one in 10 years?

Thanks for all your help in advance!

 

[Grisu]

Hello fellow Vermonter and welcome to the forum!

I guess the review section has generally been neglected as most people like to post their experiences in the forum instead. A quick search produced those threads about the 4300 but there are probably more posts to search for: https://www.hearth.com/talk/search/...0&t=post&o=date&g=1&c[title_only]=1&c[node]=6

The stove has a 2.4 cu ft firebox which sounds about right for the size of your home if the insulation is good. If not you may need to either supplement the heat a little bit or go for a stove in the 3 cu ft firebox range. Since money is tight, I also want to point you to the new Englander Madison stove that will be coming out this summer. It also has a 2.4 cu ft firebox. Here is a recent thread about it with some pictures and hopefully a video soon: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/madison-in-my-burn-trailer.128150/ It should be available at places like HomeDepot at the end of the summer and price is supposed to be under 1K. You will also get great customer service from Englander.

Since you already have all the tools, do you also have some dry wood? No matter which modern, EPA-approved stove you buy they will all need dry, seasoned wood. That means you should already have about 4 cords split and stacked in your yard. If not get that going ASAP and take care of the stove later.

 

[HawksViewFarm]

Hello fellow Vermonter and welcome to the forum!

I guess the review section has generally been neglected as most people like to post their experiences in the forum instead. A quick search produced those threads about the 4300 but there are probably more posts to search for: https://www.hearth.com/talk/search/36535299/?q=quadrafire 4300&t=post&o=date&g=1&c[title_only]=1&c[node]=6

The stove has a 2.4 cu ft firebox which sounds about right for the size of your home if the insulation is good. If not you may need to either supplement the heat a little bit or go for a stove in the 3 cu ft firebox range. Since money is tight, I also want to point you to the new Englander Madison stove that will be coming out this summer. It also has a 2.4 cu ft firebox. Here is a recent thread about it with some pictures and hopefully a video soon: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/madison-in-my-burn-trailer.128150/ It should be available at places like HomeDepot at the end of the summer and price is supposed to be under 1K. You will also get great customer service from Englander.

Since you already have all the tools, do you also have some dry wood? No matter which modern, EPA-approved stove you buy they will all need dry, seasoned wood. That means you should already have about 4 cords split and stacked in your yard. If not get that going ASAP and take care of the stove later.

Hey thanks Grisu! How up the creak am I if I don't have anything put up yet? That was the plan for this weekend. We just moved in and the to do list was long! I was going to get "seasoned wood" delivered and ( I have read some of your posts regarding how far along you are each year). stack it in single rows and cover.

I am hoping to not have to supplement as the secondary would be propane. I think it's a pretty tight little cape. Cross my fingers or bump up to something bigger? Not to open a can of worms, but does Home Depot actually sell a good stove?

Thanks again! I've enjoyed reading many of your contributions.

 

[Grisu]

Hey thanks Grisu! How up the creak am I if I don't have anything put up yet? That was the plan for this weekend. We just moved in and the to do list was long! I was going to get "seasoned wood" delivered and ( I have read some of your posts regarding how far along you are each year). stack it in single rows and cover.

Trying to buy seasoned wood can be a challenge although some guys around here actually do sell seasoned wood. Maybe its similar in your place. I would suggest to be there when the wood gets delivered. Take a few random pieces, split them lengthwise in half and press the pins of a moisture meter in the fresh surface along the grain. (Here is a cheap one that does the job: http://www.harborfreight.com/http-www-harborfreight-com-digital-mini-moisture-meter-67143-html.html ) Seasoned usually means less than 20% internal moisture content; less than 25% would also be good with the summer still to come. Above that you got green wood and should either only pay for that or reject the load altogether (but discuss that before the delivery!). You can also ask specifically for ash wood as that has a relatively low moisture content to begin with. Also, look for softwoods like pine; people like to throw it away around here. That can dry over just one summer and once dry it burns great and not with more risk of creosote than any other wood.

For fast drying make small splits, single rows, raised from the ground, top cover and stack it in a sunny and windy spot in your yard. My guess is you will need about 4 cords per winter with the stove as primary heat source.

I am hoping to not have to supplement as the secondary would be propane. I think it's a pretty tight little cape. Cross my fingers or bump up to something bigger? Not to open a can of worms, but does Home Depot actually sell a good stove?

The right stove size is hard to predict without you having to heat the house for one winter already. My guess is you will be ok but if in doubt always go bigger since you can make a smaller fire in a large stove but not vice versa. And Englander stoves are good stoves whether you buy them at HD or somewhere else. You could also take a look at the Englander NC30 currently on sale at HD for about $800 delivered. I think you need to put in the zip of Bristol, VA to get the best pricing. The NC30 has a 3 cu ft firebox. Its main disadvantage is the hearth requirement of 1.5 in r-value while the previously mentioned Madison requires only ember protection. Two other budget stove manufacturers are Timberwolf and Drolet if you want to look around a bit more. All those stoves can heat but their clearance requirements may be higher than the ones of the 4300.

 

[Cynnergy]

Watch out for the automatic combustion control (ACC) on the Quads too - some people hate it, others like it. My dad loves his 4300 with ACC. You can see some videos of how it works on the Quad website. I picked a PE (one-lever control) because I wanted it to be easy for others to run - I thought the ACC would be too finicky. However, I'm not so sure it's that big a deal now - I don't really want anyone other than DH and me running the stove anyway!

 

[begreen]

That was my concern. For a first time stove I would keep the stove simple. The 30NC is a simpler stove. For the money saved you could afford to get a premade hearth pad that meets the stove's requirement.

 

[HawksViewFarm]

Thanks for the great advice folks! I hear your concerns about the ACC, I'm largely a proponent of less is more. However couldn't I just not use that feature and start the stove as I would with a stove without it? Or just figure out how to make it work? Any tips on ACC starts?

I am generally skeptical of any product home depot puts on their shelves! Big Box stores are not the way I want to go. I have seen to many come in and close down local mom and pops, I'd rather spend a little extra (the quad is $1400 vs $800 30NC and I would definitely need to do some work to make the clearances) and know that I am putting food on some local families table. But again, that's a personal view that I'd rather not muddy the waters with.

Do folks really think the Quad is a bad way to go for a first timer? Also, does the quad, being steel put out any radiant heat?

Thanks again folks!

 

[stovelark]

Hi Hawks- Don't think anyone is dissing the quad. The millennium series from Quad have been good heaters and remain good. The ACC has been out now for years and seems to be working just fine. It is pretty simple and was meant to conveniently help out starting or reloading your stove, so you didn't need to wait around for the stove to get up and go, then readjust the air control. We sell plenty of them each season, they have gotten a bit pricey, 1400 for a 4300 mill is a good price. This stove is one of the many fine stoves available out there, namely Enviro, PE, Regency, Napoleon all good heaters. Yes the stove gives off plenty of radiant heat through the glass and surface areas of the stove, along with enhancing convective flow through its convection shells on the sides and back. If you got your eyes on a quad, it will provide plenty of warmth- If you give it nice seasoned wood. Of course, no stove today will work well with wet wood, get that going asap. Good luck.

 

[JA600L]

It's a great stove unless you feed it wet wood. I've been running one for two years and my problem has always been wood not stove quality. I filled it to the gills with really dry skids a few times and she was a heat monster. I could control the heat almost to fully closed.

 

[AllysFarm]

Hey good folks of Hearth! I have been lurking over the last several weeks in the run up to my decision to purchase a new wood stove. I have found some great information, but wanted to check in regarding the Quad 4300. All the reviews are from the 90's early 2000's. Does anyone know why?

Anyway, I have 1600 SQFT cape. Stove would be primary heat source and reside in the main, large living area with 3 bedroom upstairs. I live in Vermont so the winters get cold. I am a first time wood stove user and am jumping in with both feet. Wood splitter and chain saw, along with some gracious neighbors expertise have already been secured. The stove is on sale for $1400. Price is an issue as we just purchased a home and capital is a bit low! I just want to make sure I am making the right choice so my family (wife and 2 year old) don't freeze their butts off this winter!

So tell me, will this thing get the job done? Why hasn't anyone reviewed one in 10 years?

Thanks for all your help in advance!

Where did you buy your Quad 4300 from? We are looking at buying one but it runs about $2,400 here. I do live in Mississippi...so maybe that is why. They are not used a lot here.