What is better then a whitfield advantage t-II?

[DouglasCo]

My neighbor picked up this 1992 model $200. He is disabled so I am going to help him get it in. Seems to run okay, only thing is the blower gate is froze so we'll have to take that apart, looks like someone has had some pliers on it.
He would have rather had a freestanding as his hearth is not in the center of the house, but the price was right. I think that will be fine, i'm just concerned with the age, I'm sure there is more efficient units that aren't going to eat pellets so fast. I think he could swing $5-600, should he wait for something better? whats better? He doesn't use the interweb, so i'm trying to help him out.

 

[Bioburner]

Really the old Whits are not bad performance wise. Clean out all the dust bunnies from the motors(and leaves in this case) and give them a couple drops of oil. Take the damper slide out and polish and maybe use a coat of graphite paint on it to keep it moving. Download a copy of the manual and if the control panel is good and you protect it electrically from surges the stove will serve well for a long time. Be careful of dismantling the soft firebrick.

 

[Pellet-King]

See how snug around the hole that firebrick is.....all aftermarket brick, firetek etc do NOT fit like that, it's like the made the mold at the wrong height, believe me I've tried 3 different brands from various seller's and it never fit's like the good ole cerra brick...love to find it.

 

[MountainSean]

I am biased towards the old Whit IIT, but it is a fantastic stove. Still as or more efficient than a good number of current production stoves until you get into the really nice European stoves. Getting that damper unfrozen could be a project but if that is the only thing wrong with the stove then your friend got a steal at $200, a little bit of cleaning and preventative maintenance will see year and years of use from it. That stove has the newer style burn grate with the rods as well which is very good. You cannot convert it to a freestanding unit though, the body work was a little different from FS to insert models.

 

[stovelark]

Old Whitfields are still fine heaters. Finding parts for them (espec that analog control board) may not be easy and can be very expensive. A good cleaning and some tweaking, she should be heating someone's home this winter. To address the question, 500-600 isn't going to get many inserts. Some good choices used would be Quad 1200CB insert, Enviro EF3 or Meridian, Harman Accentra, Avalon Astoria, all equal heaters as the Whit, but prob more expensive. Good luck with her.

 

[DouglasCo]

protect it electrically from surges.

What do you recommend?

Getting that damper unfrozen could be a project. You cannot convert it to a freestanding unit though, the body work was a little different from FS to insert models.

It came w/a manual printed but i don't see damper dissassembly. I was just going to spray some oven or carb cleaner in there and see if that would free it up. I hadn't even though of setting it on a pedestal. I guess you could if you didn't mind the way the back half looked. Does it leak back there?

Finding parts for them (espec that analog control board) may not be easy and can be very expensive..

Should he try to snag a spare on ebay or just be prepared to sink $400 on a new digital one if it goes out?

Thanks guys.

 

[Bioburner]

Lot of stove owners go with a UPS to keep the stoves exhaust fan going for minor power outages to prevent smoke from getting into home. A well rated surge suppressor should help in most cases.

Some carb cleaner allowed to soak should help and a bunch of rapping on the offending plate with a small hammer should dislodge the damper plate

 

[MountainSean]

What do you recommend?


It came w/a manual printed but i don't see damper dissassembly. I was just going to spray some oven or carb cleaner in there and see if that would free it up. I hadn't even though of setting it on a pedestal. I guess you could if you didn't mind the way the back half looked. Does it leak back there?


Should he try to snag a spare on ebay or just be prepared to sink $400 on a new digital one if it goes out?

Thanks guys.

For a surge suppressor I would use a 1300+amphr UPS. I use one by Cyberpower which has voltage regulator and a pure sine output. Give about 40 minutes of run time if the power goes out as well as protecting from surges.

As far as using the insert as a Freestanding stove, you probably could but would need more heat protection for the floor and it isn't something I would highly recommend doing. Your (or his) insurance company would probably have a huge fit about it and deny any coverage if you tried to use the insert as a freestanding.

To get to that damper you need to remove the exhaust housing and motor which is held on by five bolts then remove the exhaust manifold (what I call it) which the exhaust motor housing bolts onto. It is held on by about 8 bolts if I remember correctly and once those are off then you can pull that off and reach the actual damper slide plate. The slide plate has a small lip on it which prevents it from being pulled out past the manifold. I would suspect that the damper plate got overheated and warped causing it to get stuck in the small gap between the manifold and the rear firewall of the stove. Pulling that all apart and cleaning then putting it all back together is good a weekend project for your average homeowner, probably a good 10 hours or so if you aren't familiar with the stove and how it all goes together.

New control boards are pricey but there are several companies which can rebuild the existing board if anything goes wrong.

 

[Cincinnati Kid]

My neighbor picked up this 1992 model $200. He is disabled so I am going to help him get it in. Seems to run okay, only thing is the blower gate is froze so we'll have to take that apart, looks like someone has had some pliers on it.
He would have rather had a freestanding as his hearth is not in the center of the house, but the price was right. I think that will be fine, i'm just concerned with the age, I'm sure there is more efficient units that aren't going to eat pellets so fast. I think he could swing $5-600, should he wait for something better? whats better? He doesn't use the interweb, so i'm trying to help him out.





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I owned one of these for several years. Only had to replace one small part on the auger motor. Sold to to a friend for $400 and it's still running well today. Truely one of the top of the line stoves back in the day.

 

[DneprDave]

To answer your question; There is nothing better than an old Whitfield Advantage TII.

Lenox really dropped the ball when they took over Whitfield.

 

[smwilliamson]

Whitfield Advantage Plus

 

[Pellet-King]

Best $1800 I ever spent 18 yr's ago!

 

[DouglasCo]

How does it compare to the profile 20 and profile 30? I am guessing they aren't that good since they only made them for 2 years.

Also according to this website the one my neighbor brought home(see post pic). Has a advantage III door on it. Or possibly is and III with a II-T controller: (broken link removed to http://whitfield-parts.com/models.html)

 

[MountainSean]

How does it compare to the profile 20 and profile 30? I am guessing they aren't that good since they only made them for 2 years.

Also according to this website the one my neighbor brought home(see post pic). Has a advantage III door on it. Or possibly is and III with a II-T controller: (broken link removed to http://whitfield-parts.com/models.html)

The II-T and III used the same control boards during the IIIs production run. Some older II-T models will have a different board but those are just earlier versions of the control board before the III was available.

 

[DouglasCo]

So If the control panel says II-T on the front, the stove might still be an III?

 

[MountainSean]

Yes it could be. The only real difference between the II-T and the III is the door and glass. Single piece of glass is a III, three pieces is a II-T, otherwise the two models were the same.