Greetings all, I'm new here. My name is Sean and I live in Charlottesville, VA. We just moved into a new house which was built in 1966. The house was designed to heat with baseboard heat but the previous owners ripped out the baseboard heaters and installed a wall mounted mini split to help the heat pump in the winter. Unfortunately for us all the registers are in the ceilings of the first and second floors. Upstairs is not too bad, about 64-66 but downstairs on the ground floor it's probably 55ish. I have been following the Hearthstone Clydesdale thread for a while and when I have the money saved up I hope to purchase one in the summer. In the meantime I found a 1979 Vermont Castings Resolute for sale and I'm wondering if I should buy it. The seller says that he has never used it. He was told it functioned properly from the person he bought it from. He wants $500. Is that a fair price? Is there anything I should be aware of with this model or when buying an older wood stove? We are intending to use this to supplement the heat pump for the remainder of the winter and possibly next winter if we can't save up for the Clydesdale or something similar. There are two fireplaces in the home which faces almost SSE. I am planning to put this stove in the fireplace/hearth (its a shallow fireplace with a slate hearth but it seems tall enough to fit the stove; will push it as far out into the room as the hearth will allow for maximum heating) on the WNW side of the house which sits in an open living room. I think the ceilings are eight feet tall and we have no ceiling fans. We'll be putting one in this room and at the opposite end of the home at time and money allow. I think that's enough info for now. I'm glad to be part of the club after lurking for a while. Pics below... Cheers, Sean
That is a pre-EPA stove. If it is in good shape it will heat but will eat wood like crazy. The price seems high for what the stove is. I would look for something with some secondary burn or cat technology, probably from the mid-90s or later. This time of year you might be able to get a new Englander nc-30 for not much more than that smoke dragon will cost you. Check Home Depot, Lowes, or the other box stores for end-of-season floor model sales. KaptJaq Ps: Welcome to the site...
Welcome to the site Sean Help is on the way, there are many experienced wood burners here that can steer you in the right direction
Hi KaptJac, That's good to know. I figured it would not have any secondary burn technology but right now the most important thing is heat. I don't want to spend too much money on something that will be replaced in a year or two. I have a good supply of wood that should get me through the early spring and then I can reassess our needs over the summer. Assuming that it's functional, what would a fair price be for this stove? Sean
Hi all, I think I need to move this thread to the pre-EPA Forum. I can't find a way to do that. Could a moderator help? BTW, I've been looking at various craigslist sites around the country and I think $500 might be a fair price if it is indeed working properly. Hopefully I can talk him down. Sean
Welcome to FHC! Vermont Castings has always made stoves that looked great aesthetically and I love the look of that stove. That being said I personally would pass on that for a couple of reasons. One its not an EPA approved stove meaning the efficiency of the unit won't be that great and it is much harder to burn clean with. Second most of those older Vermont Castings stove need some TLC such as torn apart and redoing all the cemented seams. Third Vermont Castings has been through a lot of changes lately and been slightly difficult to deal with. Not sure what you situation is but you can most likely find a decent no thrills secondary combustion stove for just a couple hundred dollars more brand new.
Remember that you will also need do something with your chimney. A liner can easily cost as much as that stove.
Based on the cosmetic damage and rust on the exterior I would be suspect that the stove has had a rough life. Several of the seams look like they have the enamel chipping off. Could be signs of overheating or water damage. Without a very good examination of the seams and internal components I would not go more than a few hundred for it if that much. Does he include any pipe? KaptJaq
KaptJaq hit the nail on the head. I have an old VC Resolute. If I could get $500 for it I'd have a party and invite all my friends. Fair would be $150, not a dollar more. The value of the cast iron as scrap would be fair. Seriously, I hate to tell you this, but do some more shopping. That stove will most likely be much more trouble than it's worth, which is why it's not been used for years. These stoves were very prone to over-firing causing warpage and breaks/cracks of internal plates. They are far too complex and parts are not readily available. I hate to throw water on this buy, but be prepared for additional problems and expense if you do buy.
Thank you Oldhippie, KaptJaq and Certified106. That makes my decision easier and saves me a drive over the mountain this weekend. I really appreciate your honest assessments guys. Money is tight right now but I think we may just have to tough it out for the next month or so and pay the electric company until we can save up for a newer stove. Paul, yes I have taken into account the cost of the chimney reline. It looks like it will cost me about $1500-$2000 for a full SS liner based on a rough estimate of my chimney height which I believe is in the 25' range. I'll keep looking and hopefully the two local dealers will be willing to move some inventory in the summer. Cheers, Sean
x2, We did that last fall. I think the extensive cleaning costs plus the new liner was more than what we paid for the new stove. And we did most of it ourselves.
FHC made it possible to reach out to an owner of CL stove I was ready to pull the trigger on. I am so appreciative that he shared his unbiased experience, he had the same model stove. I threw water on that buy Thrilled I didn't waste money , WTG old hippie.
Welcome to FHC, Sean. Although I have no experience with VC stoves, I'd trust the judgement of those who have and steer clear. You can pick up an NC30 or maybe a Myriad for just a bit more. I got my 30 last March when they went on sale for $650 plus $99 shipping to my driveway. I think the total all in was $784. If you haven't already, you should soon start hearing a bunch of talk about your firewood supply. How is it? Does it exist? You need to start getting firewood now for next winter, and then possibly more for the following year depending on your drying conditions. This is the number one complaint that's heard when folks start burning......the wood won't catch or burn well, the stove isn't putting out much heat, etc. How big is the house and how well insulated?
You are getting great advice on this thread. I recently sold my 1983 VC Resolute for $200 and I was thrilled. $500 is WAY too much unless it had been completely rebuild by someone who knew what they were doing. I would put more money towards a newer stove EPA stove.
I just picked up a Myriad http://firewoodhoardersclub.com/forums/threads/new-drolet-myriad.10623/page-2#post-272982 . So far I'm really happy with it and you'll find quite a following for them here as well. $761 shipped to my local Menards.
