Worth replacing a 13 yr old Whitfield Advantage insert?

[gardenhoe]

We have been using our Whitfield Advantage II insert (with a thermostat usually set at 72 degrees) 24/7 each winter since 1996 as our primary heat source. We heat 1300 sq ft (2 story condo). From the beginning, we seem to use more pellets than other stoves installed in other condo units. We like it a little warmer than them. A bag of pellets lasts us about 24 hours at most.

We are wondering if technology has improved enough to warrent replacing the insert? Today we took a serious look at a St Croix York insert. It claims the small hopper that holds only 40 lbs will last UP to 33 hours. That makes it sound a lot more efficient than what we have. We weren't looking to replace the stove, its just something we started talking to the salesperson about while there looking at prices & availability of pellets.

We love our current stove. Would never go back to our electric heat. ACK! We've never needed maintenance in those 13 yrs. We do regular cleanings and its profressionally cleaned once a year by the chimney sweep, but he seems to do about the same quality job we do on the stove. We are warm. Just wondering if we can do better on pellet usuage since the availability & price has gone up on pellets and just keeps going up.

We USUALLY burn New England or Dry Creek. This year all we could find when I finally got around to buying was Euraka pellets. We might actually be going thru less pellets with these even with this frigid winter.

Opinions on replacing?
Opinions on St Croix?
Opinions on old Whitfields versus inserts on the market today?

Thanks.

 

[Xena]

I love my St Croix and would buy another in a heartbeat
but, you have a trouble free stove that keeps
you warm and you know how to run it
and keep it clean. My recommendation is to
hang on to your cash for now.

 

[lpgreg]

Keep it, I have a Whitfield 30 insert and use 1 1/2 bags per day for 1400 sq ft. 1 story.

 

[gardenhoe]

Glad I found this forum before buying anything. Even though we've been doing this a long time, I'm learning a lot here.

 

[mgreenage1]

I don't believe that this particular claim is all that important unless you are going to be burning your stove at it's lowest setting for the majority of the time. THis claim is based off the stove's lowest settings. No doubt that today's stoves are more efficient(how much though?) and more advanced, but heat output is still largely based on the amount of btu's(per lb.) in a given pellet and the feed rate(lbs. per hr.). Actually, I have found that your stove has a hopper capacity of 50 lbs(insert). and a continuous burn time of up to 45 hrs. Please correct me if I'm wrong here, just did a quick search of your stove's specs. 33 hrs on 40 lbs. or 45hrs on 50 lbs. ? Pretty close to me. Below is a cut and paste of your stove's spec's, again correct me if I'm wrong. Hope this helps a little.



Freestanding Insert
Capacities
BTU Range *7000,-37,000 *7,000-37,000
Fuel Capacity 70 lbs. 50 lbs.
Burn time **12-55 hrs. **10-45 hrs.

*BTUs vary with pellet type.
**The burn time will vary with size and type of fuel being used.

 

[Cincinnati Kid]

I have a 1998 Whitfield Advantage insert on my first floor. I have a 2006 Harman P-38 in the basement. It appears the newer Harman burns more pellets than my old Whitfield. I had to replace the auger motor to the Whitfield a few weeks ago....cost was $140. This is the first repair I've had in 11 years.

Don't know what your financial situation is but to spend $4k or so on a new stove when your old stove is still working well seems unnecessary at this time. I personally would hold off another year or so.

 

[Mr Whitfield]

I would not replace the Whitfield Advantage II-T, This is the best stove going, the stove you have was made in the good old USA, This stove is a work horse, I have 2 in my house , and a insert in the mountains. If your stove not broken why would you replace it, As you can tell I'm a big whitfield fan, I don't think you can find a better stove out there than the one you have already... Why waste the money on a new stove when it the one you have work's great...

 

[gardenhoe]

Well, good to know we made a good choice years ago when pellet stoves were new to everyone you mentioned it to. It wasn't even something we were thinking about replacing until we were in the store getting pellets and happened to wander over to the nice new stoves. Hadn't done any research because we weren't looking.

Guess we'll be sticking with what we have, and I'll stop comparing to how much the neighbor uses. Either he's fibbing or he's cold & not admitting it. lol

Stuck with lighting it manually I guess.

 

[Mr Whitfield]

If your stove was made in 1996 lift the firepot (UltraGrate), there should be a flat plug at a angle, this is where the Fastlite igniter goes. You can upgrade your stove to a auto ignite, the kit run about 250. The kit comes with igniter, igniter tube, and wiring harness.. You can install in 30 min. http://mikesstoves.com/Stove_Parts.14.0.0.1.htm Firefox kit 225.
If you e-mail me I can help you check your stove to see if you can use this kit..

 

[gardenhoe]

If your stove was made in 1996 lift the firepot (UltraGrate), there should be a flat plug at a angle, this is where the Fastlite igniter goes. You can upgrade your stove to a auto ignite, the kit run about 250. The kit comes with igniter, igniter tube, and wiring harness.. You can install in 30 min. http://mikesstoves.com/Stove_Parts.14.0.0.1.htm Firefox kit 225.
If you e-mail me I can help you check your stove to see if you can use this kit..

Ohhh, really? I'll definitely check into that
Installed Oct 1996, I'll have to see when it was made.
Husband loaned out our owners manual & literature to someone years ago and the person lost it. I'm sure its online, but I never bothered to look. I should do that too.

 

[Mr Whitfield]

If you look at the ser# It's where you fill the hopper, E-mail me it and I can tell you when it was made... The kit also comes with a timer block..

 

[gardenhoe]

Husband is away this week, but I think I can handle getting the serial #. Thanks.
I'm pretty sure I have the right model, but not 100% sure on that. I'll check too.

 

[gardenhoe]

info emailed. thanks!

 

[gardenhoe]

I think its actually a Advantage III insert now (not II). Found invoice which states Whitfield Advantage III Insert. Sticker in hopper door says "WP2 Advantage Insert". Found a manual online for Advantage II-T.

Ours have the big glass window, not 3 windows.

Wonder if there is an online manual for Advantage III anywhere.

 

[Mr Whitfield]

It's the same stove the door has the big glass, both my stove have the big glass. If you stove is off pull the burngrate out and look with a flashlight, there will be a tube pointing to the burngrate, this tube will have a flat plug on it, you can't miss it. if you have the tube you can upgrade to auto ignite... In 1996 this was a option.. Upgrade....

 

[gardenhoe]

Guess I need to turn the stove off. Good thing its a balmy 35 degrees today. I'll get back to you on my findings. Yes, our stove looks like your avatar picture.

 

[gardenhoe]

Houston, we have a plug!

I think I'm getting an igniter for Valentines Day! Woohoo!
It will be a nice feature if we sell our condo in a year or 2 also. I know we need replacement bricks, so I'll wait for husband to get home at end of week and do a little online shopping!

THANKS.