New Harmon P68 not happy.

[forest63]

Hello.
I just purchased a new Harmon P68 pellet stove.
It heats my home well, but the noise is unbearable.
The auger motor is very load. It sounds like the winch on my truck undervheavy load. And the pellets sound the same as being dropped into a metal pet bowl when the auger is operating.
I am very surprised at the amount of noise considering the price I paid. Anyone else experience this?
I also noticed half the heat is going out the chimney. I was expecting this stove would utilize all the heat, like a modern gas furnace does.

 

[johneh]

Welcome to the forum
Pellet stoves are inherently noisy
Some make less noise than others.
But noise is inherent to pellet stoves.
Fans, augers, and air movement by a fan all cause noise
People learn to live with it (turn up the volume of the TV)
or go to a wood stove

 

[Shank]

Is this stove brand new? My 2008 XXV definitely has some auger noise but it certainly is not similar to a winch.

 

[forest63]

Is this stove brand new? My 2008 XXV definitely has some auger noise but it certainly is not similar to a winch.

Brand new!! 2 weeks old.

 

[johneh]

Brand new!! 2 weeks old.

Talk to your dealer
Can you make a video with sound for us to hear?

 

[Montecarlossfan]

I would be talking to your dealer… I have a 2014 insert and my parents have a 2008 insert .. both make some noise but nothing more than blowers and the sound of the pellets dropping which shouldn’t be loud at all, similar to food in a pet bowl but more muted … I’m betting you got a bad auger motor

 

[Dataman]

I got Harmon XXV in May 2018. Some fan noise, but on Medium Speed it's not loud. When new we had Buzzing when warm. Screws impacting fan.

 

[mtnbiker727]

You can hear the auger and the pellets drop in the stove for a while, but you'll get used to it, just like a grandfather clock chiming. After a while you will barely notice it.

As far as the heat going out the chimney, what settings are you running it on?

I run mine on Room Temp, igniter switch disabled, with the room temp fan on as high as it gets. Once the room temperature is satisfied, it'll go into a maintenance mode, where the pellets just trickle out slowly to keep the fire lit. When the room calls for more heat, the fan will kick on.

 

[forest63]

Talk to your dealer
Can you make a video with sound for us to hear?

P68 Noisey auger video.

 

[johneh]

Something rubbing in the auger
If it's new it is warranty
Complain to the dealer

 

[ABusWrench]

I listened to it twice. Sure sounds like my P61a, normal. You've got the stove in a tight corner with "bright" surfaces, which is amplifying the sounds. I thought the same thing when we first got our stove, boy this thing is noisy! You get used to it. All pellet stoves make noise. To me now, it's a sound of making heat. Imo

 

[mtnbiker727]

P68 Noisey auger video.

That's what my P68 sounds like... like I said, after a while you won't even notice it.

My stove is in the basement, and we used to hear the clink of every pellet and every spin of the auger on the 1st floor. Now I have to go down there to check to see if it's still running.

 

[johneh]

really guys that little squeal before the pellet noise is normal?
Glade I don't own a Harmon. My old Enviro is a lot quite than that
Pellet dropping noise yes auger noise NO

 

[bogieb]

I listened to it twice. Sure sounds like my P61a, normal. You've got the stove in a tight corner with "bright" surfaces, which is amplifying the sounds. I thought the same thing when we first got our stove, boy this thing is noisy! You get used to it. All pellet stoves make noise. To me now, it's a sound of making heat. Imo

Sounds pretty much like my P61a too. That auger noise might be a bit louder, but mine isn't a corner install . Come to think of it, when the noise was bouncing off the block foundation, it was noisier. Now the foundation has rigid foam insulation, reflectix, a 1" air gap before the sheetrock, so I would think that would help keep deaden the sound a bit (work with me here, I'm making this up as I go along ).

 

[scajjr2]

Our P43 makes what I consider normal sounds. If I'm right next to the stove I can faintly hear the augur turn, over in the living room, nope. You get the clinking as the pellets get dropped but as others have said over time it just becomes background noise you don't notice. Yes the fans make noise, again over time it's just white noise.
When we first got the P43 in 2013 I too thought " man this makes a lot of noise". But over time it all becomes just background, white noise. So much so that now if I stir up in the middle of the night I have to wait a second to let my ears & brain zone in to hear that the pellets are dropping as it's become a normal winter sound. A comforting sound saying all is well and heat is being produced. At a lot less cost than our electric baseboard heat. The savings more than makes up for a little noise.

sam

 

[Dataman]

I found the Harmon XXV I have the noise is way less at 1/2 speed. Box fans we use to push some heat down the hall make lots more noise. Quieter than the 2 fans my BK King had. Those were terrible. Left them off most of the time unless it was Sub Zero.

 

[bogieb]

Our P43 makes what I consider normal sounds. If I'm right next to the stove I can faintly hear the augur turn, over in the living room, nope. You get the clinking as the pellets get dropped but as others have said over time it just becomes background noise you don't notice. Yes the fans make noise, again over time it's just white noise.
When we first got the P43 in 2013 I too thought " man this makes a lot of noise". But over time it all becomes just background, white noise. So much so that now if I stir up in the middle of the night I have to wait a second to let my ears & brain zone in to hear that the pellets are dropping as it's become a normal winter sound. A comforting sound saying all is well and heat is being produced. At a lot less cost than our electric baseboard heat. The savings more than makes up for a little noise.

sam

My P43 makes way less noise than the P61a. I rarely hear the auger and only hear pellets clinking occasionally even though it is in my livingroom. At times, I can hear the P61 pellets clinking from up on the main floor (when the P43 is off), and if I'm in the basement, it is a normal noise which I notice, but it is more of a "good, it's doing its thing and I haven't let the hopper run out" type of thing .

 

[nh-jjyy]

Hello.
I just purchased a new Harmon P68 pellet stove.
It heats my home well, but the noise is unbearable.
The auger motor is very load. It sounds like the winch on my truck undervheavy load. And the pellets sound the same as being dropped into a metal pet bowl when the auger is operating.
I am very surprised at the amount of noise considering the price I paid. Anyone else experience this?
I also noticed half the heat is going out the chimney. I was expecting this stove would utilize all the heat, like a modern gas furnace does.

I got a brand new one, it scared me the first day I used it..... omg, just like some saw cutting some metal thing.......

definitely something not right with my stove and I have to wait tomorrow to call the dealer, I cannot believe over $5000 for this......

 

[Mt Bob]

I got a brand new one, it scared me the first day I used it..... omg, just like some saw cutting some metal thing.......

definitely something not right with my stove and I have to wait tomorrow to call the dealer, I cannot believe over $5000 for this......

Did you have the dealer install it??

 

[gfreek]

Welcome...The P68 sounds normal to me, I've listened to the newer P series at my dealer.. the sounds from the stove will be amplified being in the corner...... yes the drop of pellets ( "dropping into a metal pet bowl" ) takes getting used to and possible auger rotation noise can be annoying, but we got used to it.. Then again it is not in our main living sitting area..

 

[SciGuy]

Hello.
I just purchased a new Harmon P68 pellet stove.
It heats my home well, but the noise is unbearable.
The auger motor is very load. It sounds like the winch on my truck undervheavy load. And the pellets sound the same as being dropped into a metal pet bowl when the auger is operating.
I am very surprised at the amount of noise considering the price I paid. Anyone else experience this?
I also noticed half the heat is going out the chimney. I was expecting this stove would utilize all the heat, like a modern gas furnace does.

My partner obtained hearing aids a couple of years after I installed a P-43 in her house. She'd never noticed the various pellet stove noises before that point and was suddenly overwhelmed the racket that I'd long ago learned to ignore. Two years later and she still finds the hearing aids completely unwearable around the pellet stove. Do you by chance wear hearing aids?

Good luck,

Hugh

 

[nh-jjyy]

Did you have the dealer install it??

no, the dealer wont be able to install until Feb since they are fully booked so I had some chimney company to install for me

 

[MrJitters]

My P43 is 15 years old and literally cannot hear the auger turn. There was a time when that was not the case. I popped the seal on the bearing to discover it was bone dry. Not a bit of grease or oil to be found. I packed the bearing with a good grease and it quieted right down. Even 4 RPM bearing need some lubrication. Apparently the factory did not agree with me. Always will hear the pellet tinkle but that is inherent to the Pellet Pro feed system.

Moral of story check that bearing and get used to the tinkle. Merry Christmas.

 

[MrJitters]

My partner obtained hearing aids a couple of years after I installed a P-43 in her house. She'd never noticed the various pellet stove noises before that point and was suddenly overwhelmed the racket that I'd long ago learned to ignore. Two years later and she still finds the hearing aids completely unwearable around the pellet stove. Do you by chance wear hearing aids?

Good luck,

Hugh

Never, ever and I mean never wear hearing aids in the house. There are sounds I just do not want to hear. The roof rafter nails popping at -35F, those two spots in the dining room floor that only creak in the winter for some reason. I'll never forget the first day I had them and the oven door slammed shut behind me and I swear I jumped 3 feet in the air and normally I cannot jump 3 inches. If you can't hear it it did not happen. LOL.

 

[Edrrt]

For everyone that says that sounds normal, that sounds terrible. If that's normal I would never buy a Harman.

I was standing next to a the El Cheapo, anchent, gold standard the Quadrafire CB 1200 the other day at a friend's house and couldn't hear hardly anything. Def no auger noise, no pellets tinkling, and the fans were pretty quiet... I think this is because it's all encased in its own standalone housing that blocks the transmission of sound to the outside pretty well.

I'd pitch a fit now and get your dealer to exchange it for something quiet as clearly it's important to you.

Did you not hear it in the showroom?