Things I wish I knew before the install of my stove....and how to avoid repair rip offs

[bbfarm]

I feel terrible they took advantage of you like that.

Im I girl and do our yearly teardown myself. Just need the mr to help muscle it outside for the cleaning

 

[rona]

Truth be known a Harman is one of the easiest stoves there is to diagnose. You can make a jumper wire and test all three motors, A piece of paper slid between door and sides of stove will determine leaks and if you start getting black on the window there is a good chance your exh is mostly plugged. I have the trouble shooting guide that the dealers get so they can diagnose problems but you will learn more by just reading some of the problems that the Harman owners have and the solutions they found. I strongly encourage every stove owner to take time to learn how that stove works and fix it themselves just so they don't get taken advantage of. Most of the replacement motors are made by a different company and can be bought a lot cheaper then something branded Harman or another popular name. It doesn't take a genius to figure out how they work so read a little and ask questions The knowledge you find here is friendly and if you have patience some of us can ask the right questions and using your answers can help you diagnose and often one of us can walk you through any problem you have so you save a lot of money plus gain some free education. and have the satisfaction of doing it yourself.

 

[RKS130]

Many thanks for all the support and welcomed suggestions. Assuming Madame DeFarge agrees (a completely unpredictable question), I will definitely see about moving the stove a foot or so further out from the back wall.

I have ordered the replacement motor and my son and I will tackle the job. Brain on my end, brawn and wiry physique on his...with the avaiability of todays phones/cameras and their ability to provide instant "before" photos so I know how it looked before I fooled around with it, I am not shy about jumping in to this repair, confident I can get it put back together the right way.

I will keep you posted.

 

[3650]

Yeh that's a hard pill to swallow. I decided many decades ago that I was going to fix stuff myself mostly because I couldn't afford to pay others. Secondly it was much less painful when I did something wrong as opposed to paying someone else to do it wrong for me...lol. I dont seem to get as frustrated at myself as I do at others...lol. The internet is probably the most useful tool in my toolbox.

On a side note, now that I am getting older I have to re think how I do my activities. Things are becoming more complicated. My son now lives on another continent so I have to be completely self sufficient. I have to have foresight to change the things I can now to make them easier for me to do in a decade or two. Getting old sucks. Its always good to carefully think things out and try to prepare for the best way to accomplish tasks present and future. Ok I'm beginning to bore myself....end of sermon and best of luck.

 

[muss]

This thread was probably the best example of what this site is all about ! I wish this guy all the best on his stove. This site is a regular encyclopedia for us . Every once in awhile , I guess someone likes to use it as their daily journal. Not saying its a bad thing as I just don't have to read it.

 

[Lake Girl]

"before" photos

Always a good thing! For more complicated wiring, sometimes a wiring diagram drawing with notations of wire colour can be more effective. Let us know how it goes...

 

[Tonyray]

This thread was probably the best example of what this site is all about ! I wish this guy all the best on his stove. This site is a regular encyclopedia for us . Every once in awhile , I guess someone likes to use it as their daily journal. Not saying its a bad thing as I just don't have to read it.

WWW.HEARTH.COM should be stamped on inside hopper of every Pellets stove sold...

 

[Cory S]

http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odk...RS0&_nkw=Harman+stove&ghostText=&_sacat=42595

 

[fedtime]

The internet is probably the most useful tool in my toolbox.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that this site has saved me well over $1000.00 in repair and part costs. And I've spread the knowledge around. A few weeks ago, I noticed an ad on our local Kijiji - a Harman owner looking for a new distribution blower. I reached out with the knowledge I've gained (run the stove in test mode, etc.). Through email, we determined that the auger was not turning - nothing to do with the distribution blower. Turns out the auger was loose from the last service call (that was way too expensive) and had jammed. Total cost to owner to fix: $0.00. Like I said, spread it around!

 

[smwilliamson]

Just add, it's only a repair ripoff when the services provided do not yield a net positive. Lots of service people people have a brad time figuring out what the real cost of a service call is and charge a little less of a little more than their competitors. Lots of service providers also don't have a clue what they are doing. When I was newby, I charged too small a fee and often comped services when I couldn't solve issues. As I got better, my prices went up. I honestly never based my prices against anyone else. Over time I started to see trends and feel the pinch of supply and demand in my time and as such the costs went up, but so did my service call success rate. I'm certain, I and around where I service, I'm the most expensive provider. Moreover, by managing my customers' expectations AND by holding myself to a set of standards and protocols I developed over a long period of time, my service call rate I would think is a value. That said, it's a shame more servicing dealers don't strive for a single service success. Sometimes I think having access to a endless supply of parts actually lowers the service call success rate, I mean you have to stay hungry and want to figure it out and still remain lean and mean. Any money made on parts is a bonus.

 

[SidecarFlip]

WWW.HEARTH.COM should be stamped on inside hopper of every Pellets stove sold...

You are joking right?

 

[BrotherBart]

You are joking right?

OK. On the front of the stove.

 

[oldengineer]

Just add, it's only a repair ripoff when the services provided do not yield a net positive. Lots of service people people have a brad time figuring out what the real cost of a service call is and charge a little less of a little more than their competitors. Lots of service providers also don't have a clue what they are doing. When I was newby, I charged too small a fee and often comped services when I couldn't solve issues. As I got better, my prices went up. I honestly never based my prices against anyone else. Over time I started to see trends and feel the pinch of supply and demand in my time and as such the costs went up, but so did my service call success rate. I'm certain, I and around where I service, I'm the most expensive provider. Moreover, by managing my customers' expectations AND by holding myself to a set of standards and protocols I developed over a long period of time, my service call rate I would think is a value. That said, it's a shame more servicing dealers don't strive for a single service success. Sometimes I think having access to a endless supply of parts actually lowers the service call success rate, I mean you have to stay hungry and want to figure it out and still remain lean and mean. Any money made on parts is a bonus.

+1 for the fact that there are lots of good guys out there. My local shop in Alburtis, PA charges $155 for a service call, but that includes 1+ hour of time doing any found repairs. They have also delivered 3 tons of pellets a year for the past 6 years with no delivery charge. When I was 21, married with a kid, and using made in Japan open end wrenches which spread and rounded bolt heads every time I tried to torque them I did things myself but I'll gladly pay for good service today, especially with a store that treats customers like that.

 

[Tonyray]

You are joking right?

ooops.
Meant to say inside Hopper Lid...

 

[CaptSpiff]

...Sometimes I think having access to a endless supply of parts actually lowers the service call success rate, I mean you have to stay hungry and want to figure it out and still remain lean and mean. Any money made on parts is a bonus.

I'm a bit confused by what you said, but I do agree that when the markup on a motor is $150 and the tech's time is covered by the service charge, the boss will be mighty happy with the process.
When the customer calls back and claims the same noise is still there, and the boss is forced to replace the auger motor (the original problem) gratis (thereby eating that $150 markup), and eating that second service call cost, the boss is gonna be a little more focused on proper troubleshooting on the first visit. Sounds like what you've done in your business.
Definitely not what happened to the OP.

 

[Dr.Faustus]

What's your automotive repair bill's been like?

$0.00 for 2014. I usually do those things myself too unless im short on time or its just too cold in the garage. 2014 was a lucky year, just needed a few oil changes.