My Lennox/Whitfield Traditions T-300 has been a paperweight from the day it was manufactured. It has NEVER run as it was supposed to…Even after being re- installed by the dealer. It was taken back to the shop, cleaned, the board replaced, limit switches replaced, photo eye replaced, pressure switch replaced, and finally the combustion motor replaced. Two weeks later dropped on my doorstep saying that their “technicians” could not get it to run and that Lennox was of no help to them. NO REFUND!
From my porch, I loaded it into the back of my truck with a 4x8 For Sale sign explaining my reasons for my dis-satisfaction, the dealer’s name and my phone #. I left my truck parked at the WAL-MART located 1/8 mile from his shop. Six hours later I was phoned that the area Rep. would come re-install and “assess” the problem. This “Wizard” (who claimed to own a T-300) calibrated the feed to MIN, the air to MAX and opened the damper to FULL just to burn the pellets as they filled the box. He then said that would do the trick but I wouldn’t be able to use the LOW OR HIGH heat settings..Just MED. Aughh!
This all took over a month since the stove first “entered my life”. I spent my days on line, on the phone, and even at the courthouse trying to resolve my $3900.00 mistake. Nights were spent in a chair in front of the stove listening for the almost hourly “CLICK” telling me it’s time for a full clean (yes, the photo-eye too) and a restart. I was even told by a Lennox Rep. that yes although they had purchased Whitfield, It was considered the “Red headed step child” of the company. There was no-body to speak to that knew about “Lennox Hearth” products (as opposed to Lennox Heating). So much for spending extra for the security of name brand customer service!
Four years later…I have had the stove COMPLETELY apart on my bench. Blowers and switches out, wiring gutted you name it. With the help of a few of you, and a few…well, let’s just say warranty voiding modifications, I’ve got what could be described as a “working” pellet stove! Not perfect mind you, but with QUALITY pellets and constant attention, I have actually managed to heat my home by pellet this year!
“Maybe,I, on the other hand, will get a GOOD Whitfield/Lennox” you say?... Ponder over the research and development and design features that this company has implemented before you decide to purchase.
THE GOOD:
1. Beautiful stove.Nice enamel finish (Huge selling point for the wife)
2. Wood stove-like appearance, LARGE window
THE BAD:
1. Assembly from the factory is terrible! 11 missing fasteners, 3 missing spacers causing panel misalignment and the decibel level of a train as the unit is loose and just won’t sit squarely on the floor unless thoroughly gone through. High temp sealant was gobbed everywhere. Some even interfering with moving parts and pellet feed. Easy fix w/a razor blade. Almost ALL self tapping screws were stripped. one size larger fixed most issues.
2. THIS IS NOT A SEALED UNIT
Throw your cold air intake away! Remove the back panel, see that the intake hose ends there…And the bottom and side are open to the room. There are even slots between the door and the glass to let ROOM AIR INTO THE COMBUSTION AREA and you are instructed to keep these clear by pushing cardboard through them each time you clean the stove! ( I use my stove dealers business card as that’s all it’s good for). So much for efficiency.
3. The “petite” ash pan. We at home have dubbed it “The Brownie pan” Problem: Think about it… This pan could be 5’x5’, but at only 1 1/2 inches deep, how long can it take for your ash pile under the firebox to climb 1 1/2 inches high thus preventing your ash to fall through thus causing the firebox to start piling over with pellets? Solution: Empty the ash pan every ONE bag of pellets (Depending on the brand). Problem:The constant pulling of the “Brownie Pan” will have your home completely covered in ash in a matter of weeks. Easier to repaint than to wash..I’ve done it…Twice.
4. Like painting you say? Excellent because the soot is still flying! If you’ll notice, even on the generic units sold at Fleet & Farm, Home Depot, etc. The heat exchangers are cleared by pulling a knob or lever on the exterior of the stove. It’s almost “fun” as you can just about do it every time you walk by the stove. Lennox, not so fun. First you’d best lay something on the floor in front of the stove, because the door while fully open (yes Billy, you must open the door) is surely large enough that it extends past most hearth pads dropping soot onto the floor. With the door open, reach into the stove just above the exchanger plate, grab the soot covered hook, (or use the hole in the handle of the clinker tool provided by grabbing the soot covered head of the tool). Next, carefully pull the assembly toward you until all soot and ash are pulled forward from the exchanger tubes and onto your hearth pad and carpet. If some manages to land on the stove floor don’t worry as it too will soon enter your living space in the form of a giant dust cloud. NOTE:This method has even motivated me to paint adjoining rooms in the house!
5. Ask your sales person to DEMONSTRATE how to remove the eye AND clean it’s filter. THE filter IS NOT ON THE EYE! The eye lifts out easily as it is attached to the cover…The filter however, is hidden way down inside the auger housing held in by two tiny metric nuts that you WILL drop into the auger at least once. The whole operation is done completely blind as well as one (left) handed. The filter is amber PLASTIC. Heat resistant or not, dust and heat will leave the once smooth plastic pitted and rough causing ash to cling to it almost immediately. The photo eye then cannot sense the flame and will cut power to your auger motor. I remedied this problem by cutting my own lens out of tempered glass. I used clear but if your stove is located where direct sunlight will enter the firebox I would use amber to prevent pellets dropping in a no-fire situation. Since installing the glass eye, (We call it Sammy…Davis), I have not had to clean it as i did every Sunday.
Well, that’s as much as I have time for. Not that I’m in any way finished with the long list of deficiencies (or my remedys)on the Lennox product or its company as a whole, its just that my stove just stopped running. I'm just not used to it burning through it's little one bag hopper all @ once!
