It takes two hands to operate my stove door

I don't feel like we have given her a hard time here...
The stove is old enough that it can't be taken back...and apparently ESW has washed their hands of it...so no help there.
It would be nice to lower the door, but that is going to require grinding and possibly welding depending on how far one goes with the repair...and that's not happening inside the house...and she was bemoaning having to figure out how to get it outside...or even worse, to a shop...so that leaves a very obvious (in my mind) solution...mod the rod. A little 22* bend on the tip would be very easy to do, and quick...as far as working the AAS...why would bending the tip of the rod mess that up? It should make it easier to set if anything...think about it...whats easier to work, a small round knob that you just spin, or a small round knob that you kinda twist...a bend starts to put a little "handle" action to it.
But I'm not the one that has to deal with this issue, so she can do whatever she wants obviously (or not, as the case may be)

 

Wendy's, home of the square patty on a round bun as if that makes any sense.

 

Was it the smaller one or the larger one? it seems they have plenty of the smaller ones in the stores, but none of the larger models like Kimberly has

 

Maybe I'm missing something here but from the pictures it looks to me as though she can remove the door and grind the top hinge that is attached to the door and get the lower hinge on the door to set down on the stove hing properly
Grind a little, check it, grind a little more check it again, when it gets close start using a file and keep checking.
That's probably not going to solve the problem of a gap big enough to see fire around the door with it closed property.
That can probably be fixed with a thicker door gasket but definitely needs to be fixed because it can cause control issues, seems like this should have been noticed a long time ago

 

Yeah, you're right, the door could be ground...I don't know that I would be comfortable taking all the material off the (cast) door though...I'd tend to want to take some (all?) from the stove side of the hinge being that its steel and probably stronger.

 

I got an interesting email from ESW. They stated they discovered the damper knob issue after they designed the stove and built them. I answered them back stating "You did not build a prototype after the design?" I find their statement strange and I think it ties into my earlier statement about the issue being there were too many stoves built or doors cast so it stays as is. I trained as an engineer and this is off. You make a design and then you build a prototype and then test the prototype and test for issues; whether it is an electronic device or a mechanical device. Say it is a mechanical device needing lubrication of a part and you find out in testing the prototype that an oil port needs to be enlarged because a part failed or sustained wear too quickly due to improper lubrication. It is no different even with a simpler unit as a wood burning stove. You design the stove and then build it and put it in use; testing to see what the burn is like and if there are issues such as the glass become loose or the door not shutting due to hitting the damper knob. You only eat the cost of the prototype and it saves you money in the long run. Then you send your findings back to the designers so they can correct the issues and then you build a new prototype on the design changes and test again. Then you can say that you are good to go and set up a new production line and start building the stoves for sale.

I wonder if in this new world you skip such things as prototyping. Instead you put things out there and let the end users find the issues. Of course ESW does not seem to be interesting in fixing any of the design flaws with this stove as far as I can tell. I have gotten no feedback from ESW that they are making any changes to the production of the stove; such as better glass retainers.

 

If you still have the receipt, Lowe's will take it back and refund all the money, no matter how long ago you bought. It might be worth a try

 

I am sort of wishing I had gone with the 30NC but it was the hearth R requirements that came into play.

 

You forgot that this process entitles more vehement expletives before and after said “toddy” is consumed and more to add when you jam or inflict some kind of pain to said fingers all whilst finding out that if our wives or significant others are watching they’re gonna be wondering what in the blue **** were we doing in the first place and calling it some kind of entertainment.

 

I have a pretty bad mouth, I'll admit. But even I couldn't get too many expletives in in the 7 seconds it would've taken me to bend that lever a half inch. I was just trying to calm her nerves before, during, and after

 

Sorry but I am going to disagree and hijack this here.
Lowe’s will Not waste their time. I will demonstrate an example as this rang closely. I read a good bunch of reviews before getting my DHT splitter and looked at the price of it when they went on sale in the spring. Good timing and I wanted to go ahead on it. When I bought it, I couldn’t find someone who specialized in the equipment or tell me a legitimate answer for their products like it. I love my splitter but nobody could back up the product or tell me about it.
Lowe’s will sell a product but they will not carry an expert in their employee line for such things like this and putting them on the floor is the reason why they have you buy that protection plan. They may stand by the product they sell but they do not take it off the shelves if they are starting to notice issues.

They had problematic garden hoses that were guaranteed for 10 years that were able to “deflate” and roll for storage during this summer, I bought two at different times. I returned one for another of the same length...with issues. What happened to them both? The end connections would squirt water back and lose the seal. When I returned the last one, I saw there was another guy who turned in two 50 foot sections with issues. I told them I would like a full refund as this was the second hose I bought and within a day of use of both of them they failed. So much for a 10 year guarantee.... 100% fail rate of product in my experience.

I don’t want to turn this into a slamming of Lowe’s but I cannot say this is going noticed as they rotate products in way too Quickly for them to inspect it and sell it. It gets assembled(if needed)put on the floor, priced and then sold. They won’t pull it off the shelves as any return they get, they send back to the supplier for evidence or the like. Their guarantee is just backed by trying to put good lines of products in their store.

If there is an issue with the product, the customer must follow through, take a receipt and acknowledge they they have a problem within 30-90 days of purchase depending on the policy. The sad fact is that when a stove like this is sold, they put it on sale during the springtime, basically when the burning season is over. By the time it is installed and burned in a few times, the policy has expired. Any issues that arise are then considered the customers and a new line of products have replaced the formers which protects the company as they no longer have the exact product.


Too sad of a truth but I had to beat around the bush about this as big box stores are the reason why we don’t get great products unless we buy direct from the source. The source is what is more likely to hold their end up because their reputation is on the line. Box stores just refund and sell again if they can.

 

Yeah we all are, Im not slamming Kimberly at all, its unfortunate. Some of us try but not sure how to put the basic fix on something because we’re worried we will make it worse. Looking at her situation, I am calling myself F@ <!ng lucky in the stove department. I don’t get a guarantee, price was highway robbery...the list goes on. I should give my stove to Kimberly as I want her to have a great stove and no disappointment. One wood burner to another, I’m more than willing to share.

We also know this is likely a very simple fix and she is trying to have ESW take notice to this in scrutiny as this would likely be great to have the company take this stove back, give her a new one (offer for trade in value) and fix and resell hers after the issue has been resolved. That sounds like be backbone of a good company, not whitewashing with the response they gave her “ the door is ok to rub on the knob”. A couple of better questions from their service dept would have been a legitimate response. A sign of former has only given evidence that they have gone more policy driven to protect their @SS-ets. Basic crony business 101: if your product is failing, come up with an off hand excuse and continue to sell until a new product that comes into the line that is changed just a little bit. It protects the company, not the customer.
I hate to hit reality on this,guys but the world we live in is getting more with products we replace because they fail and no longer can be fixed because the product is worth less than that of the labor. Its like the guys who traveled and sold roofing one year and then siding for another. You come across the guy if your roof leaked but because he wasn’t backed by the company, he’s just a salesman.

 

I totally agree. I'm self employed, so the "time is money" thing hits hard. In the time that it would take me to remove, return, and replace my wood furnace, I could have made the decision to be on the job making enough extra to buy one that worked perfectly, which is probably why I'd opt for the quick, effective fix.
But I also understand how it burns when you buy something new and feel it should work correctly, only to find the opposite is true

 

That there is huge issue and all of us be dammed if we dont go through something of that in our lives. Big lessons.

 

If you can get the door to seal, I might be inclined to leave the hinges alone. I would take the spring handle off the rod, drill a horizontal hole through the rod, then stick a piece of welding rod or similar through it and use that to open and close the air.