Lopi Evergreen vs Quadrafire Expedition II

[Danmation]

N00b here and have been reading up on the Lopi Evergreen NexGen-Fyre Insert. The local installer says it's a great model but my wife doesn't really like the way it looks. Another installer is offering the Quadrafire Expedition II, which looks nicer but is more flush into the fireplace and seems to be slightly less efficient and boasts shorter maximum burn times. I like the idea of a 10 hour burn for the Lopi but if in reality they are never that long, then perhaps it doesn't matter that it is advertised as longer than the 7 hours advertised by the Expedition II.

Does anybody have advice on which unit is superior or any serious deficiencies in either one? Thank you in advance.

I have a 2100sq ft house with open floor plan. This would be a primary/secondary heating source during the winter months and pretty much unused during the shoulder seasons, as we have both a heat pump and a natural gas-fired boiler for baseboard heat.

 

[begreen]

The Lopi is a good heater. It has the advantage of a user-controllable air supply. The Quadrafire Expedition II doesn't. There is no user control to adjust the burn rate. As a general rule, inserts that project a bit out onto the hearth will heat better during a power outage than one that is flush. However, sometimes a flush insert makes the installation easier due to hearth extension requirements or is the aesthetic preference. If that is the case, look at the Lopi Medium Flush Arch insert.

 

[Danmation]

Thank you for the feedback!

 

[Hoytman]

Check out where they are made and who owns them.

 

[begreen]

Check out where they are made and who owns them.

Both are made in the US, though the Hearthstone castings may come from Spain.

 

[EbS-P]

Personally I’d would not want a single burn rate stove. Sure if everything was perfect. Draft, wood moisture, needed heat. I probably get 3-4 weeks like that a year, but most of the time I need to use a different air setting than those weeks.

 

[Hoytman]

Both are made in the US, though the Hearthstone castings may come from Spain.

Did I miss something? I didn’t see Hearthstone mentioned. I was commenting about Lopi and Quad. I thought the latter was made across the pond. Maybe I’m mistaken.

l forgot about that style of Quad being cast. Was thinking about their steel stoves. I thought their steel stoves came from China??

 

[bholler]

Did I miss something? I didn’t see Hearthstone mentioned. I was commenting about Lopi and Quad. I thought the latter was made across the pond. Maybe I’m mistaken.

l forgot about that style of Quad being cast. Was thinking about their steel stoves. I thought their steel stoves came from China??

Nope quads are made here. Both are from Washington. There actually are very few stove brands imported to here from anywhere but Canada.

Lopi is owned by Travis industries an American company from Washington

Quads are owned by hearth and home technologies out of MN

 

[Hoytman]

You know what…I had visited their history page before but hadn’t recalled seeing it until BHoller’s post which encouraged me to go to their website.

I’m not sure who told me that or maybe I read somewhere they were assembled in China.

Either way, I’m not sure why I even believed it after having studied their brochures many times a few years back and ultimately deciding not to buy one.

Seems I may have heard or read some bad information which is ultimately why I bought a Lopi. Could it be that the source of information may have been intentionally misleading? Seems I’ve heard Regency and Lopi don’t mix well at dealers. Maybe it’s the same with Quad and Lopi. I don’t know. I just know I heard that somewhere. Glad to know they’re made in the U.S.A.

I wonder where they source their steel? Hopefully here as well.

 

[Hoytman]

Nope quads are made here. Both are from Washington. There actually are very few stove brands imported to here from anywhere but Canada.

Lopi is owned by Travis industries an American company from Washington

Quads are owned by hearth and home technologies out of MN

Yep I knew they were part of HHT. Several brands under that company if I recall, like SBI has brands under them. Don’t recall if HHT’s brands though. Easy enough to look up I guess. Also knew about TI’s owning Lopi which also made Avalon before discontinuing that line.

 

[bholler]

You know what…I had visited their history page before but hadn’t recalled seeing it until BHoller’s post which encouraged me to go to their website.

I’m not sure who told me that or maybe I read somewhere they were assembled in China.

Either way, I’m not sure why I even believed it after having studied their brochures many times a few years back and ultimately deciding not to buy one.

Seems I may have heard or read some bad information which is ultimately why I bought a Lopi. Could it be that the source of information may have been intentionally misleading? Seems I’ve heard Regency and Lopi don’t mix well at dealers. Maybe it’s the same with Quad and Lopi. I don’t know. I just know I heard that somewhere. Glad to know they’re made in the U.S.A.

I wonder where they source their steel? Hopefully here as well.

I don't know where they source their steel honestly but I would bet it is us steel.

 

[bholler]

Yep I knew they were part of HHT. Several brands under that company if I recall, like SBI has brands under them. Don’t recall if HHT’s brands though. Easy enough to look up I guess. Also knew about TI’s owning Lopi which also made Avalon before discontinuing that line.

Vermont castings, Harman, heatilator, quadrafire, and others I don't remember

 

[begreen]

Did I miss something? I didn’t see Hearthstone mentioned. I was commenting about Lopi and Quad. I thought the latter was made across the pond. Maybe I’m mistaken.

l forgot about that style of Quad being cast. Was thinking about their steel stoves. I thought their steel stoves came from China??

No, brain fart here. Quadrafires are made in WA state, same as Lopi, but on the east side of the mountains. Their parent company does get some parts from China, but last I heard that was for some BBQs.

 

[vbu]

I have the quadra fire and I can tell you that the burn time is not 7 hours. In the winter I run mine as hard as I can usually, using medium size splits. I'll get 2-3 hours between reloads. You could probably go 4 or 5 but I need the heat. I usually let it burn out overnight so it'll burn the coals up. They tend to accumulate from burning it so hard