Cracked stone on Tribute.

[jeffman3]

I agree, but the dealer I bought the stove from, and who did the install, has sense gone out of business. The dealer I'm taking to now, is half again as far away, and I got their contact info from the Hearthstone web sight. They are being great to work with me at all, sense I didn't buy the stove from them, and they are probably to far away for me to do any real business with anyway. They are the closed HS dealer to my area.

 

[johnnywarm]

Direct from Jim at Hearthstone:

“Hairline or surface cracks are natural and do not affect the integrity
of the stove. Even a crack all the way through can be sealed with stove
cement and the stove can be burned in this condition indefinitely. The
stone can also be replaced with some tear down and reassembly of the
stove."

How much are theses stoves?

 

[wellbuilt home]

That's different If your dealer went under and you are asking for help from some one else .I would start talking to hearthstone in a big way .I think the dealers fix the units and hearth stone forks over the parts . I would start pushing for a new hearth stone stove from HS . Your door should not warp and your stove should not crack like that in one season . If you over fired it ,that another story . I have a new HSEQ now because my son left the flue open and cracked my old VC DW . He was helping me . You could have received the same type of help. John

 

[jeffman3]

Direct from Jim at Hearthstone:

“Hairline or surface cracks are natural and do not affect the integrity
of the stove. Even a crack all the way through can be sealed with stove
cement and the stove can be burned in this condition indefinitely. The
stone can also be replaced with some tear down and reassembly of the
stove."

How much are theses stoves?

With out looking it up I say I paid about $1500.

 

[Shane]

We always put the installation date down as the "purchase date". Figured that was the fairest way to do it. Having the warranty clock ticking before posession has been taken doesn't seem right.

 

[Nic36]

Too bad Hearthstone isn't doing more for you, even though they are basically sticking to their warranty rules. I came very close to buying a Tribute or Jotul, but changed my mind because I did not think soapstone was what I needed. And, the Jotul dealers were too far away. Keep on them and maybe they will fix it for free. I hope they realize that peoples' experiences with their products and customer service, good and bad, are posted on the web. Maybe you should remind them of that.

Don't punish yourself for the purchase. I have just done worse lately, and I am finding out warranties are only as good as the company that backs them. I won't say for what, but you're not alone.

If it does not work out and you choose to ultimately go with another stove of the same size, you might want to look at the Vista Classic. It's not as cute as the Tribute, but you can pick from several colors. It has close close clearances and you will not have to alter your hearth like you will with the Jotul. I've been happy with it.

 

[jeffman3]

Too bad Hearthstone isn't doing more for you, even though they are basically sticking to their warranty rules. I came very close to buying a Tribute or Jotul, but changed my mind because I did not think soapstone was what I needed. And, the Jotul dealers were too far away. Keep on them and maybe they will fix it for free. I hope they realize that peoples' experiences with their products and customer service, good and bad, are posted on the web. Maybe you should remind them of that.

Don't punish yourself for the purchase. I have just done worse lately, and I am finding out warranties are only as good as the company that backs them. I won't say for what, but you're not alone.

If it does not work out and you choose to ultimately go with another stove of the same size, you might want to look at the Vista Classic. It's not as cute as the Tribute, but you can pick from several colors. It has close close clearances and you will not have to alter your hearth like you will with the Jotul. I've been happy with it.

I really don't want to buy a new stove, but if the difference is a couple hundred bucks, then I might as well go ahead and do it. We need to heat our house this winter. Then my wife and I could rebuild the Tribute next spring/summer for the basement project. Hopefully I will get a response from Jim at Hearthstone tomorrow. I know allot of companies shut down for the holiday, so I'm being patient. I'd like to step up a bit in fire box size to get a bit longer burn. I have been moved to the grave yard shift at work, and am no longer here to load the stove at 2:00 am. (I'm not happy about that, but at least I'm still working, there are allot that aren't)

I have done some looking at other stoves, and I'll check out the PE Vista Classic next. Thanks for the head up.

 

[Nic36]

This is a bad time of year for service of any kind, that is for sure.

Hopefully, it will not cost you too much. It probably will not. Even if it costs you a few hundred, you will have a good as new stove that you will be able to sell if you decide you need to upsize next year.

I didn't realize you were thinking about upsizing. If you do look at the PE stoves, maybe the bigger Classic would be better.

Hope it works out.

 

[jeffman3]

Well I got the definitive reply from Hearthstone. They will not be covering the labor shipping of the parts or mileage to fix the stove. I didn't get a reply to my question about if the gaskets and cement would be covered, so I guess not. My next step is to find out how much we are talking about to get this done, and deciding just how to move foreword. I can't believe that they are taking this stance. I will not be doing business with them again! I will post up more when I find out more about the specifics of just what I am going to have to put out of pocket to fix the premium stove, that if falling apart in less then a year.

 

[johnnywarm]

Well I got the definitive reply from Hearthstone. They will not be covering the labor shipping of the parts or mileage to fix the stove. I didn't get a reply to my question about if the gaskets and cement would be covered, so I guess not. My next step is to find out how much we are talking about to get this done, and deciding just how to move foreword. I can't believe that they are taking this stance. I will not be doing business with them again! I will post up more when I find out more about the specifics of just what I am going to have to put out of pocket to fix the premium stove, that if falling apart in less then a year.

no soapstone for me.good luck.

 

[jeffman3]

Talked to the dealer about what it will cost me to fix the stove. I won't have pay them a dime! The reason is that "They won't touch it"! (That is direct quote) I was told that their repair/ install guy won't work on them because they will never seal up right again. So now I am stuck with a damaged stove that they won't fix, even if I pay the labor! I just can't believe this! I thought Hearthstone was the premier manufacturer. I was wrong! I have a call in to Brian Herzfeld the Hearthstone rep, to talk about getting the parts delivered to me so I can try to fix it, or cutting me a check for the parts to help replace the stove. I will never do business with them again after this, and I encourage others looking at a Hearthstone stove to put them-selves in this situation and ask the question what the hell do I do now?

 

[lazeedan]

Was the warped door allowing air in? Was this the cause of everything?

 

[jeffman3]

I don't know what caused the problems, but I do know that the stove has never been over 550*(and that only once or twice) and it doesn't over-fire till 600*.

 

[johnnywarm]

Maybe if we all email the company a nice letter.

 

[Nic36]

Maybe if we all email the company a nice letter.

Or the link to this thread.

 

[jeffman3]

Maybe if we all email the company a nice letter.

If folks feel so inclined, have at it!

I am just sick to my stomach :sick: >:-( and trying desperately to figure out how I am going to heat my house. I am considering a cheap stove (vogalzang Defender?) to try to get me through the winter. I need to find a smoking deal on an EPA stove fast! I hope that Hearthstone will just cut me check for the parts. If the dealer won't replace the parts because they won't seal up, the chances of me being able to do it are slim to none!

 

[Nic36]

Maybe you can do the work yourself? I know nothing about doing stuff like that. But it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to figure out, especially on a new stove. If Hearthstone quality is so good, the new parts should interchange and fit together with no problem. But, you seem to be having a Hearthstone quality problem as it is, so I don't know.

The dealer may be saying that mostly because he simply does not want to do the work and involve himself any further.

 

[wellbuilt home]

The bottom line is We are all sitting on soap stone time bomb and need to do something about it . Fast I would be disappointed if my new stove turned to S--t in a year and HS wont lift a finger to help . I think this is so wrong . If nothing else I think we need to save any unsuspecting stove buyers the aggravation that jeff is going thru . I will be sending a message to hearthstone in the AM. John

 

[jeffman3]

The bottom line is We are all sitting on soap stone time bomb and need to do something about it . Fast I would be disappointed if my new stove turned to S--t in a year and HS wont lift a finger to help . I think this is so wrong . If nothing else I think we need to save any unsuspecting stove buyers the aggravation that jeff is going thru . I will be sending a message to hearthstone in the AM. John

Thank you John!

 

[Highbeam]

What's your last name Jeff? Maybe just the initial for the sake of reference.

Paging Tom the chimneysweep. What's up with this? Perhaps there is another dealer that is willing to do the work? Can the dealers simply choose not to provide service?

Honestly, I got out the flashlight and checked my stove for cracks last night. I didn't find any and my stove is performing superbly, for now. What if it cracks? what then? It's one thing if I have to buy the parts or pay for labor but if a CERTIFIED and LICENSED HEARTHSTONE dealer is NOT willing to work on the product then that speaks volumes. Quite frankly, if that dealer wants to remain a hearthstone dealer then they ought to be able to fix them or the company should revoke their dealership status.

Let's hope that hearthstone does the right thing here.

 

[gyrfalcon]

Talked to the dealer about what it will cost me to fix the stove. I won't have pay them a dime! The reason is that "They won't touch it"! (That is direct quote) I was told that their repair/ install guy won't work on them because they will never seal up right again. So now I am stuck with a damaged stove that they won't fix, even if I pay the labor! I just can't believe this! I thought Hearthstone was the premier manufacturer. I was wrong! I have a call in to Brian Herzfeld the Hearthstone rep, to talk about getting the parts delivered to me so I can try to fix it, or cutting me a check for the parts to help replace the stove. I will never do business with them again after this, and I encourage others looking at a Hearthstone stove to put them-selves in this situation and ask the question what the hell do I do now?

I've lost track here, Jeff. What is it they won't fix because it doesn't "seal up right" again? The warped door or the cracked stones?

And is he talking about the Tribute specifically, or all Hearthstone stoves?

This is really horrifying.

 

[jeffman3]

I sent you a PM Highbeam.

 

[wellbuilt home]

I checked my stove out also, and there are no cracks yet . I did find that i am missing the gasket material on the bottom of the side door . It must have come from the factory like that . I will talk to my dealer and see how the warranties work is done there. I do lots of business with them and i know they rebuild stoves all the time . Ive seen them replace a stone on the top and it seemed kinda easy .They used a grinder to cut the stone up . Then tap out the pieces with a hammer clean up the stove with the grinder and scraper . Cleaned the stove with alcohol and glued in the new piece . They did need to cut the stone to fit. I would try to find a new dealer . John

 

[Highbeam]

The dealer that won't work on them is just being a bozo. Might not need the work, might be afraid that his techs are bozos, afraid of the risk, etc. You probably don't want them learning on your stove anyway. You need to call the next closest dealer and get a price. Add that price to the mileage/shipping to get a cost to repair. Compare that to the value of the repaired stove and make a decision about whether it is worth it or not. It might be "totalled". It might be extremely reasonable.

This sucks. Maybe gyrfalcon can get over to to the HS HQ and open a can of whoopa$$. Of particular lameness is that they are expiring the warranty based on sale date vs. install date and the dates are reasonably close.

 

[jeffman3]

Talked to the dealer about what it will cost me to fix the stove. I won't have pay them a dime! The reason is that "They won't touch it"! (That is direct quote) I was told that their repair/ install guy won't work on them because they will never seal up right again. So now I am stuck with a damaged stove that they won't fix, even if I pay the labor! I just can't believe this! I thought Hearthstone was the premier manufacturer. I was wrong! I have a call in to Brian Herzfeld the Hearthstone rep, to talk about getting the parts delivered to me so I can try to fix it, or cutting me a check for the parts to help replace the stove. I will never do business with them again after this, and I encourage others looking at a Hearthstone stove to put them-selves in this situation and ask the question what the hell do I do now?

I've lost track here, Jeff. What is it they won't fix because it doesn't "seal up right" again? The warped door or the cracked stones?

And is he talking about the Tribute specifically, or all Hearthstone stoves?

This is really horrifying.

He was talking about the tare down and replacing the stones, and the top casting. They have done a similar jobs before and it never sealed right, in fact it was worse then before they took the thing apart. I don't know if he was talking about the Tribute, or all Hearthstone soapstone stoves. I am a handy kind of guy, but if a professional can't get it right, to the point that he just won't do it, what chance do I have at getting it right?

Horrifying is right! I don't know what I'm going to do. :sick: :shut:

I'm looking for replacement stoves now, but I don't know if I can put the scratch together. I am going to need a sweet deal to make this swing.