The Hearthstone "Heritage" model Pellet stove

[Chain]

In my never ending quest to decide what brand of new pellet stove to purchase to replace my old Lopi, I'm wondering if any members here are familiar with the Heritage pellet stove sold by Hearthstone? It's a very pretty looking stove but I'm wondering about build quality, dependability, ease of operation and cleaning, frequency of cleaning, noise level, cost, and customer service. Any information, suggestions, etc. anyone can provide is most appreciated. Thanks...Here's a link to their website for those unfamiliar with this stove:

(broken link removed to http://www.hearthstonestoves.com/pellet-stoves/stove-details?product_id=37)

 

[jtakeman]

firecracker_77 has one. Hang in a bit. Or send him a PM.

Neat looking stove! ;-)

 

[whlago]

In my never ending quest to decide what brand of new pellet stove to purchase to replace my old Lopi, I'm wondering if any members here are familiar with the Heritage pellet stove sold by Hearthstone? It's a very pretty looking stove but I'm wondering about build quality, dependability, ease of operation and cleaning, frequency of cleaning, noise level, cost, and customer service. Any information, suggestions, etc. anyone can provide is most appreciated. Thanks...Here's a link to their website for those unfamiliar with this stove:

(broken link removed to http://www.hearthstonestoves.com/pellet-stoves/stove-details?product_id=37)

A beautiful stove! When I was thinking wood stoves the heritage was my target....then when I decided on a pellet stove the pellet version of the heritage was the one I wanted but my dealer, who sells lots of hearthstone wood stoves, said he wouldn't sell them. He had one in the shop for a while and couldn't get it to operate correctly. I'm not sure of all the issues he had with it but he was really against them....I moved on and am happy with my stove. I would also be interested in hearing what a Hearthstone pellet owner thinks of their stove. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Chain]

That's not very encouraging to hear that a dealer won't even sell them. My closest Harman dealer also happens to sell Hearthstone wood stoves but not their pellet stoves. Maybe this attitude is common among Hearthstone dealers? I think I'll quiz him a bit about the Heritage as I've already been speaking with him about buying a Harman P68 from him. He's kind of a bullshitter (about every subject and not just stoves) and so I'll be curious to hear his thoughts on this. The thing is, what should be a 15 minute conversation always turns into 45 minutes and inevitably entails every subject under the sun. I love the guy, but you have to be prepared to spend an hour in his shop to get the info. you're looking for. Thanks for the info. thus far.

 

[whlago]

Found some information in this thread that might help you in your decision.

https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/75127/

Something to consider is that the Cast Iron pellet stoves (at least with my Enviro M55), it is basically a steel stove (firebox) within the cast iron outer body. I am assuming that the Soapstone stove doesn't rely on the cast/soapstone body to be the air tight firebox. One of the posters in the attached thread indicate that the stove is basically a Rika Integra II inside a soapstone body. That may be a good thing but not sure.

 

[Chain]

Thanks, Really Hot for the link. From what I can gather exploring the Hearthstone website, the Heritage body is cast iron and the soap stone material is layered over the body. If you've ever looked at their wood stoves, the same is true. I'm really liking the looks of this stove, but I'm far more concerned about performance, reliability, etc. so unless the Heritage is somewhat close to a Harman or comparable brand, I won't be buying the Heritage. Again, thanks everyone for all the helpful info. thus far.

 

[stoveguy13]

they had some blower issues with the first group but worked through that now the only real down side to the stove i found running it was the hopper size it just holds 40 lbs and for a 50 k stove it is a bit small the guts are astroflame so they are from a good company

 

[DAKSY]

IIRC, they are WAY more pricy than anything
on the market of a comparable size. When
they first came out they were in the $4500
range, WITHOUT venting or installation. Pretty,
yes, but for that kinda price, they'd better be
indestructable. You can get a Harman P61A,
with venting & installation for THAT price.
The company I used to work for sells both Harman
& Hearthstone & they WON'T sell that Heritage Pellet
unit...

 

[Chain]

Thanks for the info., gang......It's a pretty stove, but as I said in my initial post, I'm far more concerned with other issues than looks. Sounds like it's best to put the Heritage in the "not interested" pile along with the other brands I've decided against. Appreciate all the comments, everyone.

 

[The Village Idiot]

I bought one and had it installed in September 2012. Higher price? Yes. (You always get what you pay for.) Awesome stove? You better believe it!

 

[kladdie]

In my never ending quest to decide what brand of new pellet stove to purchase to replace my old Lopi, I'm wondering if any members here are familiar with the Heritage pellet stove sold by Hearthstone? It's a very pretty looking stove but I'm wondering about build quality, dependability, ease of operation and cleaning, frequency of cleaning, noise level, cost, and customer service. Any information, suggestions, etc. anyone can provide is most appreciated. Thanks...Here's a link to their website for those unfamiliar with this stove:

(broken link removed to http://www.hearthstonestoves.com/pellet-stoves/stove-details?product_id=37)

Disgusted with the cost of running my propane furnace (keeping the house at a mere 67 degrees), I purchased the Heritage just over a month ago and have burned through nearly a ton of pellets. A long-time burner of wood, this is my first experience with pellet fuel, so I have nothing to compare it to. Overall, I am quite happy with the Heritage, though it has its pros and cons.
Pros:
1) Cost of fuel. In less than a month of use, I saved about $30 on propane and $140 on electricity. (Appalled the cost of propane I immediately enlisted the services of three electric heaters. Another shock arrived with my electric bill.) But I spent $163 on pellets. The upside to the break-even is that I am now keeping the house at a balmy 72 degrees rather that 67. So more comfort for roughly the same cost.
2) Ease of use. While the Heritage requires more frequent attention than I anticipated, it is not time-consuming or labor intensive. Emptying the burn pot and ash pan, then a quick vacuum of ashes and glass cleaning takes less than 10 minutes a day. (*See "cons" for exceptions to ease of use.)
3) Attractiveness. The stove (I have the grey soapstone) is very appealing visually and offers not only warmth, but the ambiance of a fire in the hearth.
4) Warmth. Using the included room sensor, the stove is able to maintain a consistent temperature throughout the day and remains warm long after it has shut off. Using the auto mode and manually setting the desired temperature, it will run on its own all night and keep the furnace at bay.
5) Quiet operation. But blower is kind of loud. And my wood stove was virtually silent.

Cons:
1) Cost. Expensive at nearly $5000 with all installation parts. Install was additional. It will take a very long time for this stove to pay for itself.
2) Difficulty of use. The control panel (as well as the accompanying instruction manual) is a mystery solved only by trying to follow the instructions but ending up pressing buttons randomly in hopes that I'll get lucky. After more than a month with the stove it's not really any easier. Though the troubleshooting section of the owner's manual is very helpful. Also, auger access plate is tedious to remove. Hand cramps from trying to keep the wrench in place.
3) Burn pot. Daily cleaning is recommended but often needs to be emptied twice a day. A simple task, but not always easy to catch it at a time when it's cooled down enough to empty. Also noticed today that there is a small break in the bottom of the pot.
4) Start-up time. Takes at least 10 minutes to start up, but then, so does a wood stove.
5) Requires frequent attention. Though it's usually brief. Usually it's because the burn pot is clogged and the stove isn't getting enough air to ignite.

Overall, I am quite happy with the Hearthstone Heritage pellet stove and would recommend it, if you're willing to part with $5K. I'm not sorry I got it, but my expectation of saving a lot of money has been diminished. Daily maintenance is quick and easy but seems to be required more often than was expected. I hope this was helpful.

In my never ending quest to decide what brand of new pellet stove to purchase to replace my old Lopi, I'm wondering if any members here are familiar with the Heritage pellet stove sold by Hearthstone? It's a very pretty looking stove but I'm wondering about build quality, dependability, ease of operation and cleaning, frequency of cleaning, noise level, cost, and customer service. Any information, suggestions, etc. anyone can provide is most appreciated. Thanks...Here's a link to their website for those unfamiliar with this stove:

(broken link removed to http://www.hearthstonestoves.com/pellet-stoves/stove-details?product_id=37)

 

[The Village Idiot]

Disgusted with the cost of running my propane furnace (keeping the house at a mere 67 degrees), I purchased the Heritage just over a month ago and have burned through nearly a ton of pellets. A long-time burner of wood, this is my first experience with pellet fuel, so I have nothing to compare it to. Overall, I am quite happy with the Heritage, though it has its pros and cons.
Pros:
1) Cost of fuel. In less than a month of use, I saved about $30 on propane and $140 on electricity. (Appalled the cost of propane I immediately enlisted the services of three electric heaters. Another shock arrived with my electric bill.) But I spent $163 on pellets. The upside to the break-even is that I am now keeping the house at a balmy 72 degrees rather that 67. So more comfort for roughly the same cost.
2) Ease of use. While the Heritage requires more frequent attention than I anticipated, it is not time-consuming or labor intensive. Emptying the burn pot and ash pan, then a quick vacuum of ashes and glass cleaning takes less than 10 minutes a day. (*See "cons" for exceptions to ease of use.)
3) Attractiveness. The stove (I have the grey soapstone) is very appealing visually and offers not only warmth, but the ambiance of a fire in the hearth.
4) Warmth. Using the included room sensor, the stove is able to maintain a consistent temperature throughout the day and remains warm long after it has shut off. Using the auto mode and manually setting the desired temperature, it will run on its own all night and keep the furnace at bay.
5) Quiet operation. But blower is kind of loud. And my wood stove was virtually silent.

Cons:
1) Cost. Expensive at nearly $5000 with all installation parts. Install was additional. It will take a very long time for this stove to pay for itself.
2) Difficulty of use. The control panel (as well as the accompanying instruction manual) is a mystery solved only by trying to follow the instructions but ending up pressing buttons randomly in hopes that I'll get lucky. After more than a month with the stove it's not really any easier. Though the troubleshooting section of the owner's manual is very helpful. Also, auger access plate is tedious to remove. Hand cramps from trying to keep the wrench in place.
3) Burn pot. Daily cleaning is recommended but often needs to be emptied twice a day. A simple task, but not always easy to catch it at a time when it's cooled down enough to empty. Also noticed today that there is a small break in the bottom of the pot.
4) Start-up time. Takes at least 10 minutes to start up, but then, so does a wood stove.
5) Requires frequent attention. Though it's usually brief. Usually it's because the burn pot is clogged and the stove isn't getting enough air to ignite.

Overall, I am quite happy with the Hearthstone Heritage pellet stove and would recommend it, if you're willing to part with $5K. I'm not sorry I got it, but my expectation of saving a lot of money has been diminished. Daily maintenance is quick and easy but seems to be required more often than was expected. I hope this was helpful.

Listen....you don't have to "empty" the burnpot on a HearthStone Heritage.
The stove was designed in such a way that calls for you take the multi-use tool (that HearthStone provided you with when you purchased the stove) and send the ash/clinkers through the grating at the bottom of the burnpot by using a back-and-forth sweeping motion until the pot is cleared of the unwantables.
The ash/clinkers that you sift/crush through the burnpot bottom grating quickly end up into the ash pan, and you're ready to light-off again. No need to even touch the burnpot until you vacuum (2-3 days of use) or whever warranted. While vacuuming, simply pull up on the burnpot, set it just to the side and then send your vacuum hose down into the ashpan.
No need to even pull out the ashpan, and you also shouldn't even have to put your hands on the burnpot until you vacuum the firebox.

 

[smwilliamson]

Hearthstone has one of the best fit and finish of any maker it there. I was amazed by it, love it. Has the same type of room sensor as a Harman but can be used with a regular tstat also. Little wacky in the programs and not very intuitive unless your very linear or German. Only 4k. Rika (austroflamm) makes the back end guys of that thing and the Manchester which is the cast model

 

[The Village Idiot]

An Heritage owner becomes accustomed to the HearthStone concept of stove controls. They provide a flowchart diagram that shows the proper path to get to the differring portions of the controls. It is no less worse than having to learn your way around a new television, or automobile audio system. It's all about the learning curve.
Scott is right, the fit and finish of HearthStone is unmatched. I have absolutely NO regrets on my purchase from over 2 years ago with this stove. It rocks, and is built like one.

 

[dave2112]

I love the looks of these stoves. But for that amount of loot they should have made the entire thing cast not just the outside. And they should garentee everything in the stove forever.

 

[smwilliamson]

I love the looks of these stoves. But for that amount of loot they should have made the entire thing cast not just the outside. And they should garentee everything in the stove forever.

They cost less than a M55 cast or a Harman XXV.

 

[Lake Girl]

Disgusted with the cost of running my propane furnace (keeping the house at a mere 67 degrees), I purchased the Heritage just over a month ago and have burned through nearly a ton of pellets. A long-time burner of wood, this is my first experience with pellet fuel, so I have nothing to compare it to. Overall, I am quite happy with the Heritage, though it has its pros and cons.....Overall, I am quite happy with the Hearthstone Heritage pellet stove and would recommend it, if you're willing to part with $5K. I'm not sorry I got it, but my expectation of saving a lot of money has been diminished. Daily maintenance is quick and easy but seems to be required more often than was expected. I hope this was helpful.

Welcome to the forum kladdie! Glad to hear you are happy with your stove even though it may take a long time to recoup. Everyone goes through that learning curve so your not alone on that. Enjoy the heat ... surprised no one mentioned we like pics of stoves

 

[kladdie]

Listen....you don't have to "empty" the burnpot on a HearthStone Heritage.
The stove was designed in such a way that calls for you take the multi-use tool (that HearthStone provided you with when you purchased the stove) and send the ash/clinkers through the grating at the bottom of the burnpot by using a back-and-forth sweeping motion until the pot is cleared of the unwantables.
The ash/clinkers that you sift/crush through the burnpot bottom grating quickly end up into the ash pan, and you're ready to light-off again. No need to even touch the burnpot until you vacuum (2-3 days of use) or whever warranted. While vacuuming, simply pull up on the burnpot, set it just to the side and then send your vacuum hose down into the ashpan.
No need to even pull out the ashpan, and you also shouldn't even have to put your hands on the burnpot until you vacuum the firebox.

Thanks Village Idiot. That was not explained to me when the multi-use tool was demonstrated by my installer. Though I should have thought of it myself.

 

[The Village Idiot]

You're absolutely welcome, kladdie. Enjoy your new HearthStone Heritage.
If you have any questions or issues in the future, don't hesitate to send me a message.

 

[radiorental]

I'd like to bump this thread, there's very few reviews available for this model, wondering if anyone has an update now that it's been out for a little while

A floor model has come up at an end of year sale for $3870 (msrp 4300) and I'm seriously considering it.

thanks!

 

[Vader]

Stay away from the Heritage model it is nothing but trouble as is Hearthstone. Nothing but one issue after another and then a hopper fire.

 

[Peterfield]

IIRC, they are WAY more pricy tha anything
on the market of a comparable size. When
they first came out they were in the $4500
range, WITHOUT venting or installation. Pretty,
yes, but for that kinda price, they'd better be
indestructable. You can get a Harman P61A,
with venting & installation for THAT price.
The company I used to work for sells both Harman
& Hearthstone & they WON'T sell that Heritage Pellet
unit...

Had a similar buying experience. I zeroed in on the Heritage and that's the stove I wanted. Ready to pull the trigger when the store owner strongly advised me not to do it. He said many stove owners were having a host of issues and the store was discouraging the purchase of that model because of the difficulties their customers were experiencing with the Heritage. There is a CL ad out there right now from an owner selling their Heritage for $500 and are open that they've had nothing but trouble with this unit.

 

[Vader]

Had a similar buying experience. I zeroed in on the Heritage and that's the stove I wanted. Ready to pull the trigger when the store owner strongly advised me not to do it. He said many stove owners were having a host of issues and the store was discouraging the purchase of that model because of the difficulties their customers were experiencing with the Heritage. There is a CL ad out there right now from an owner selling their Heritage for $500 and are open that they've had nothing but trouble with this unit.

Thankfully your dealer steered you away from it and saved you a world of aggravation and misery. With all the reported problems of this model I am surprised dealers still stock it. If I were a dealer I certainly wouldn't

 

[Vader]

I have had numerous problems with my Heritage model and spoken with Hearthstone and sent messages to no avail. Here is my experience in a nutshell. This was originally posted on Hearthstone's facebook page on Valentine weekend but they deleted it and blocked me a day later. It is long so hopefully the whole thing will post here.

Talked to someone at Hearhstone about my issues oh about a month ago, was basically told it was my fault because of lack of maintenance, which is a crock since I have read the manual cover to cover many times and followed all directions for maintenance that are in there. (Honestly I think a comic book would have better directions than their manual) We had this stove maintained by the service dept. of the dealer we bought it at in September. (It was maintained in Sept. it was bought and installed in Dec. 2013) Didn't try to light it up till a few weeks later in October and it would not light, so had him back here to figure that out. Had to replace the temperature stick thing that protrudes into the fire box, I am guessing this thing got damaged because of the high flamage we had in the fire box that I was told was "normal" (I sent a video of that to Hearthstone and got no response) Had to wait for that part to come in and once it did and was installed and the stove lit the glass on the door cracked and we had to wait another 2 weeks for that part to come in. Lit the stove up and all was well for a day or two when we started having the issue of too many pellets falling down the chute and into the fire box, I could not leave my stove on for any length of time due to risk of fire, flames going up the chute and at one time we must have had an undetected fire in the hopper because I noticed the hopper looked discolored but I didn't figure out why till I did myself see flames going up that chute. Called the service dept again and they did not know why this was happening, he came out took some pictures and sent them to hearthstone to review. It took Hearthstone almost a WEEK to review and get back to them about it and I suspect it only took a week because I got on the phone and called Hearthstone myself about it. I love the "We're busy but working on it" excuse I get all the time. If you are too busy to field calls and emails from customers and dealers then perhaps you need to hire more people, or make better products so you get less calls. When they finally did get back to me with their opinion I was told it could be caused by that temperature thing in the firebox but I informed them it had just been replaced, then he said something else (can't remember off the top of my head right now) told him that had been done, then got told it was lack of maintenance and since we did not maintain it correctly they would not cover anything under warranty. I was pretty darn ticked off to get blamed for this when I had been maintaining it according to their own manual all along and at that point probably had only burned a few bags of pellets since the yearly maintenance by the service guy had been done. I didn't really know what to say or do about that so just hung up. I fired it up again and hoped for the best. About a day later after I had refilled the stove and reset it to ignite my son noticed black smoke coming from the chimney outside, I took video of this and also noticed black smoke inside the firebox in the stove, video shows that as well. After a few min. of this I decided I better shut it down before something happened but when I went to the stove to do that there was a 'mini explosion" in it that scared the heck out of my son (who is 24 BTW not a child) and he said flames flew out the top of the door and he thought I was gonna catch fire. I did not see it as I was right on top of it but I felt and heard it. I don't know what caused it but after that the stove was lit and worked perfectly for about a week, when once again it would not ignite. Now we needed a new ignitor (or so I was told and charged for) once again the service guy came out and replaced the ignitor and did another what is supposed to be yearly cleaning on the stove, For this call I got charged a whopping $329! That new ignitor and cleaning was done less than two weeks ago and today i woke up to smoke in my living room and smoldering pellets in the HOPPER!! THIS IS NOT ACCEPTABLE! Nor is it due to a "lack of maintenance"! This stove has had nothing but maintenance done on it ALL SEASON LONG! I really am at my wits end, tired of being cold after purchasing a $3600 stove and paying for maintenance and installation. This is only our third season with it (if you can call it a season, I swear it has been sitting cold more often than working) and I assure you these have not been our first issues with it. We have actually had many issues right from the get go (ash pan warped and lost screws, burn pot warped and had to be replaced, sparks flying out the chimney so much so that passers by would knock on our door at all hours to tell us, we got told that was "normal" too after sending Hearthstone that video, "No Pellets" message when clearly there are still a lot of pellets but for some reason will not slide down the side of the hopper and go into the auger. I'm sure I could go on and will in litigation if necessary) but being as this was our first stove I chalked it up to inexperience on our part, however after speaking with many other pellet stove owners I realized that was not the case and unfortunately we have bought a lemon item from a lemon company who ignores and blames their clientele for issues. I wish I had done a little more talking to people before purchasing, I searched google for reviews about different stoves and did not see anything to deter me from this company,(oh how I wish I had) I have an engineer friend who has a Harman, he told me all his other engineer friends also have Harman and that is the only pellet stove they would go with. Also I have asked all the service guys that cross my path what they have and they say Harman. Nobody knows a whole heck of a lot about Hearhstone and now I guess I know why. From my experience I would say this stove belongs in Home Depot or Walmart rather than a fancy show room. My next course of action after posting this will be to get my notes together and notify my lawyer. Hearthstone has had several opportunities to right the situation but instead chose to hope I would go away. I won't go away till this is taken care of to MY satisfaction. #Hearthstone #tiredofbeingcold #stopblamingthecustomer

 

[smwilliamson]

Problem being is that many hearthstone dealers are wood guys and lack a bit of skill as pellets guys....it's a broad brush I know but seems to fit the picture. I have installed a few and have worked on a few and I really like the stove a lot. Honestly, it sounds like yours is installed incorrectly, dirty or both. There may be an issue with the controller, who knows. There were some issues with first year models as to be expected. If anyone can point me to the link for the heritage for $500, that would be great, I'll go buy it!