Heating Stove Review Archive

Browse Stove Reviews Contributed by Wise Heat Visitors

NU-TEC Upland 207: Review and ratings contributed by Gordon & Mary MacDowell Ravenna, OH on Feb 08, 2012; Excellent product. We love our stove - it is a part of our family!; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Napoleon Franco Belge Normandie: Review and ratings contributed by Judith Walls on Feb 07, 2012; I have used this stove for over 16 years and am using the 2nd one now. It is hard to light unless I leave a Tablespoon of charcoal or dirt mounded in the center of the fire pot. The I let the oil flow into the pot until I see it has just surrounded that center, which wicks the fuel & I light ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Vermont Castings Aspen 1920: Review and ratings contributed by BradW on Feb 05, 2012; Here'a a thought - go online to Vermont Castings and read the owner's manual. This stove performs exactly as the manual says it will. No better and no worse. Also, pay attention to the wall and floor pad clearances in the manual. That's what your building department will be looking at. A ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Vermont Castings Aspen 1920: Review and ratings contributed by Grumpy Cat on Feb 05, 2012; We have used this stove for 6 years to heat our 500sq ft cabin in NW Montana. A lot of the prior complaints woulds seem to be due to improper operation. This is not a big stove and it's care and feeding are different. Foolow the instructions! 15" to 14" cut lengths are best and keep ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Mt Vernon AE: Review and ratings contributed by Psue on Feb 04, 2012; Have had my pellet stove for four years now. Was thinking this might be the first winter without a problem with it.....and then I had an electrical fire in the unit this morning. Anyone else ever have this? Needless to say, I am done with it......Could have lost my house. Not worth the ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Dutchwest Cast Iron Extra Large 2462: Review and ratings contributed by t23 on Feb 02, 2012; This stove is the biggest POS I have ever purchased. I think it is crap to have to replace the cat EVERY year this stove is junk do not get this one.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman P38 Plus: Review and ratings contributed by KTDM on Jan 30, 2012; has been excellent for 2 winters, but this fall would NOT light and build up enough heat to activate feed augur. Was professionally cleaned last May, used for another month, then shut off for the summer, It has always been carefully cared for- It should NOT be having this breakdown. (A sensor ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
American Energy Systems Magnum Countryside: Review and ratings contributed by Michael in Vermont on Jan 29, 2012; We are 4 months into our first season using the stove and are incredibly disappointed with performance. We burn a hard/soft mix of wood pellets. Pros: 1. The unit is very efficient and heats our 100+ y.o. house well. Cons: 1. NOISY auger and stirrer. We have to turn the stove down to ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Lopi Leyden: Review and ratings contributed by Angela Gillespie on Jan 29, 2012; We are into our thrid winter using the Lopi Leyden and we are very unhappy. We have had to replace the heat exchanger (combustor) three times. Once the stove was so hot it caused the logs in our log home to blister behind it. The heat exchanger fallls apart and blocks the air from moving. We had ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Jotul F 3 CB: Review and ratings contributed by jim o on Jan 28, 2012; Have owned this stove for four years. Will run to top of safe heat range easily when cold out,Mn., so installed stove pipe damper. Wow, whole different behavior. Of course, this years winter is warm, so stove stays on low end of safe range with much more ash generated. Stove not so efficient now ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman P38 Plus: Review and ratings contributed by vikjls on Jan 27, 2012; Great stove. Am glad I chose it over some of the other ones we looked at. We can get 43 hours of heat out of 50 lbs of pellets, when the stove is set on 1. It just sits there and runs and runs. Every 100 sx of pellets I shut it down and clean it and fire it back up for another 100 sx. Lowered ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by Marco on Jan 27, 2012; I've had this stove for 3+ years. I've had nothing but problems. Always at the most inopportune time. Replaced the control board, pressure switch, and igniter. My newest igniter just went out. I'm having to start the stove manually which is a real PITA. Since I'm over 120 miles from my dealer, I've ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman Advance: Review and ratings contributed by Stoveguy on Jan 27, 2012; I sell these stoves. I cannot tell you how many times we receive calls from people saying that their stove is smokey and making creosote. When asked if they have cleaned the burn pot. Their response is ALWAYS, " of course we have"!! Sooooo, we drive to their home and 99% of the time we ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Dutchwest Cast Iron Extra Large 2462: Review and ratings contributed by jamey on Jan 26, 2012; leaks smoke all the time I grew up with wood stoves all my life and know what im donig. but this wood stove is junk it will heat your home but you will smell smoke all time and it back puffs bad.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Jotul F 400 Castine: Review and ratings contributed by Th King on Jan 26, 2012; Had this stove installed on 12-19-2012. This is an excellent stove and I have no complaints. This stove is easy to use, has a long burn time,( I get between 6-7 hours), and looks great. The complaints on this board are releated to one or more of the following. 1-green wood 2-poor draft 3-operator ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Napoleon NPS40: Review and ratings contributed by kateflynnh on Jan 24, 2012; I agree with the majority of these reviews stating that this stove is really just a piece of junk. We bought ours in Sept and it worked for an entire month before we needed a rep to come out and assess why the stove stopped working. They just willy-nilly order parts before sending someone out to ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Pacific Energy Alderlea T4 Classic: Review and ratings contributed by Steve on Jan 24, 2012; Has no trouble heating my 1300 sqft ranch well even when its only -5 outside. Still works well with junk wood like cottonwood or red pine. This stove has cut my heating bills by at least 50% and the whole house is warm. The fan kit is a good call on this stove. I have used it for two winters now ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Avalon Astoria: Review and ratings contributed by bill on Jan 23, 2012; eight years running overall a very good stove , easy do it yourself repair; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission Changes Rebate Program for Residential Bulk-Fed Wood-Pellet Central Boilers and Furnaces: Review and ratings contributed by J Dahlstrom on Jan 23, 2012; Bought the Big e 2 years ago and replaced the auger motor 3 times, what a piece of junk for the price, bought it at farm and fleet. Would like to sell it but who wants a big e pellet stove anymore.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
American Energy Systems Magnum Countryside: Review and ratings contributed by gail on Jan 23, 2012; I purchased mine in 2004. So far I've gone though 6 auger motors and just now the stir motor is shot on it too. (fyi: Don't go to american energy systems for motor replacements!). The stir motor runs to often and it's noisy. I've had to replace the stir rod and the pot. When I run corn, it messes ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Breckwell P24FS: Review and ratings contributed by Sal on Jan 21, 2012; Getting used to it after 1 month, hopefully everything will come together...... soon.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Classic Bay 1200: Review and ratings contributed by Sam on Jan 21, 2012; If you are looking for a pellet stove stay away! The blower doesn't work. Have had it worked on several times and I am still cold! Stay AWAY!!!!; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Napoleon OS10: Review and ratings contributed by Larryb2020 on Jan 19, 2012; I have had one ten years. Love the heat and effeicincy. Do not like replacing the $300 burner which burns through every five years and is misleadingly NOT covered under warranty. Also when the burner burns through it can drip burning oiil out into the room.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Regency F2400 Classic: Review and ratings contributed by trollmother on Jan 19, 2012; I replaced my Kent Tile stove which served me exceedingly well for 25 or so years. This is my second winter with the Regency & to say I am disappointed in it's performance is an understatement. It will not heat my 1500 sf home. Last winter it wouldn't go above 63º. I changed wood suppliers ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Dutchwest Cast Iron Large 2461: Review and ratings contributed by judy downard on Jan 19, 2012; A great stove. Performs wonderfully, but after five years, every part in it needs to be replaced. My old Ben Franklin lasted 20 years.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Sante Fe: Review and ratings contributed by John on Jan 18, 2012; I bought my Sante Fe in September of 2008 and have burned about 6 tons of pellets. I find the heat output very low to the point I think something might be wrong with it. Since this was the first pellet stove I have ever had I just assumed that this was the amount of heat it gave off until I felt ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
NU-TEC Upland 207: Review and ratings contributed by Laurie Wojnarowski Bristol, CT on Jan 18, 2012; My husband an I have had our Upland Pellet Stove since 1997 and we bought is used. It is the only way we heat our home and the best way we heat our home. We love it! There isn't much maintenance other then once a week take out a coffee size can of ash and we clean the pipes yearly. Sometimes if the ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by jebloui on Jan 17, 2012; I have had my Harman XXV for 6 yrs now and feel it is one of the best investments I have ever made. I clean my stove about every 3 weeks, the stove is definetly more efficient when it is clean, a good cleaning of the stove takes about 1/2 hr. I had (1) issue with the stove in 6 yrs. the issue was ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman Advance: Review and ratings contributed by bcb1 on Jan 17, 2012; We purchased our new Harman Advance in Dec 2011. It works great, heats great. My issue is the very loud auger motor, it makes an irritating grinding, low-hum noise every time it feeds pellets. It's much louder than the auger on my eight year old Quadra Fire stove! The dealer swapped out my auger ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Classic Bay 1200: Review and ratings contributed by Doug on Jan 16, 2012; Just purchased the Classic Bay 1200i for our lakehouse. We've had the Mt Vernon for our regular home for about four years now. Only one service call on it. The Classic Bay is amazing. Starts in less than two minutes (our Mt. Vernan, about 7-10 minutes). We've only burned twice so far, but it ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Enviro Empress: Review and ratings contributed by emay on Jan 16, 2012; We have loved this stove for five years and this year needed the blower replaced. First, they sent the wrong one to our repairman. THEN the one sent required a mounting bracket which can't be found by the manufacturer, not listed as a part and our repairman has now disappeared! What good is a ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by Lynn on Jan 15, 2012; have the XXV for 5 seasons, works well, has saved me hundreds on heating oil, but the distribution fan sounds like it is not running steady, i perform routine maintenance and have insure there is nothing blocking the air flow... it does not look very easy to replace... any pointers?; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Dutchwest Cast Iron Large 2461: Review and ratings contributed by Roger Houston on Jan 14, 2012; The first year we ran this stove it was a complete disaster. Back puffing and it almost required running with the ash door open. We replaced the gaskets and sealed the glass on the door and it mitigated most of the back puffing. I then noticed the oval flue had a 1/4" gap around the insert and ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Mt Vernon AE: Review and ratings contributed by pioneer on Jan 14, 2012; these reviews and local dealer as well demonstrate ignitor problems. my personal experience confirms this, and the manufacturer needs warned. common sense knows exceptions to any rule.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman Advance: Review and ratings contributed by Robert K. on Jan 14, 2012; I have spent over 700 dollars on igniters alone in the past 4 years. Dealer says out of warranty and thats the nature of the beast. Between the wasted pellets and all the noises that emmite from this stove I say save your money and DO NOT buy this stove. Worst decision we ever made!!!; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Sante Fe: Review and ratings contributed by Irene Hernandez on Jan 12, 2012; Does anyone have a problem with noise coming from the this pellet stove? Pellet stove is downstairs. Bedrooms are upstairs and it sounds like a very loud car and the noise keeps me up. We do have a longer than average chimney, so I'm not sure if that may have anything to do with it. In the past we ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Jotul F 400 Castine: Review and ratings contributed by happy f-400 unser on Jan 11, 2012; As with any woodstove there are factors to consider. Quality of wood, draft, and of course user habits. I think it is a tad unfair to blast a stove or any product for that matter with out knowing all the facts. When you buy this stove there are ratings on the lit that the stove shops share with ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by mike on Jan 11, 2012; we are a harman and quadra fire dealer and sell many pellet stoves and inserts both products are the top of the line in the industry the main thing for any pellet unit is to burn quality pellets and the proper install from the dealer.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Lopi Liberty: Review and ratings contributed by debby on Jan 10, 2012; purched our wood liberty one year ago. Rebates were quite strong on this model. While most efficient, the capacity ratings are a joke. given bevels, which are good for efficiency, it compromises the capacity of the stove for wood content. We can get no less than 3 big pieces of wood, or lots of ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Sedore Model 3000: Review and ratings contributed by D.Osborn on Jan 09, 2012; I Have Been Running The Sedore for about 5 months, and over all I am pleased. I heat my tri-level, high ceiling home with a Lopi Revere insert on the middle level, and hot water baseboard that heats the rest of the home. I installed the Sedore in my attached garage. The Sedore has two water coils ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Mt Vernon AE: Review and ratings contributed by Radd Raynor Sandpoint, Idaho on Jan 09, 2012; Purchased this Mt. Vernon used from original owner after they owned it for one year. We replaced ignitors once a month company sent new redesigned firepot. I know only have to replace ignitors abour every 6 weeks. It constantly shuts down no matter how clean it is, because auto clean does not work ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Bixby Energy Maxfire: Review and ratings contributed by gary on Jan 09, 2012; I have had my maxfire stove 3 years.have had 2 other brands of stoves over previous 17 yrs.I use 6 ton of corn or pellets per year ,which ever is cheapest.and the stoves run 24 / 7. It burns corn very well and if I get the air set good on corn it only needs cleaning once per month , but if air not ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Sante Fe: Review and ratings contributed by macryan on Jan 08, 2012; My first pellet stove, I got the Santa Fe on December 6, 2011. I have an old house with lots of heat loss but this unit heats part of the downstairs and all of the upstairs. It certainly likes some pellets better than others. Burning Barefoot and I get lots of heat with very little ash. It's in ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Drolet Classic Model DB03080: Review and ratings contributed by T.C. Ballard on Jan 07, 2012; good looking stove,... that's about it. need to feed it wood all the time...doesn't make enough heat.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by George, NS on Jan 07, 2012; That crunching grinding noise and a load snap and bang once in a while. We had the same thing, the chain drive needs to adjusted, there is a nylon wheel it rubs aginst the ubderside of the chain as it rotates, adjustment screw is located on the inside of the bracket (top) holding it, it will fix ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by George, NS on Jan 07, 2012; Thought I solved the problem with the squeal, but its back like a bad sequel. It sounds like the cog on the auger or the bearings in the auger? This sound has plague us for several years with no resolve, great stove, but annoying.; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Napoleon Savoy OS11: Review and ratings contributed by Lloyd Haggerty on Jan 06, 2012; We had our stove located in a basement apartment, since day 1 we experienced problems with the stove not lighting and flooding, the stove 'puffed 2-3 times nearly blowing up once, this resulted in the glass cracking. After 3 years the stove rusted so bad on the interior we stopped using it, (after ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Harman XXV: Review and ratings contributed by Buyer Beware on Jan 06, 2012; Pellet Stove never has worked since installed 7 months ago... It appears the Harman dealer is just as upset with the quality and lack of support from the Harman product. It is very efficient... it has only gone through 2 bags of pellets in 3 months (mainly because it has been waiting on a Harman ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Classic Bay 1200: Review and ratings contributed by markcski on Jan 04, 2012; Second year for my 2010 and stove performs very well, quick starts and execellent heat. Only problem is exhaust fan and convection fans have very noisy bearings. My stove has sealed bearing and cannot be oilde ( per manual ). Bummer, I'm on my second set of motors for the exhaust and convection. ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...
Quadra-Fire Classic Bay 1200: Review and ratings contributed by captain midnight on Jan 04, 2012; Has run reasonably well for 5 years but is 1. very slow to get started (10 minutes) 2. must be hand-primed because auto-feed doesn't get it going 3. Therostat is useless because of #2 (above) 4. Blower motor is very noisy 5. Very inefficient...costs much more to run than a wood stove...and produces ...; Complete review & ratings...; Follow this thread...