Reading Swatara Coal Stove? Any Good?

mpkinsley · Post by **mpkinsley** » Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 9:28 pm

Was thinking about buying a Reading Swatara Hand fired coal stove thats rated at 85k btu. The stove is used and the price is really good. But has anyone had any expierence with this stove. I really want it to be the full time heat source for 1800 square feet. I like the cast iron top but havent been able to find any reviews from users on this stove.

Stoker6268 · Post by **Stoker6268** » Thu. Mar. 27, 2014 10:03 pm

Swatara is a hand fired. Should post under handfired section. Most people here seem t frown on reading. I had a Allegheny a while ago and liked it. Very well built. Stoker mechanism could have better design, but you don't have that with a Swatara.

Starting Out · Post by **Starting Out** » Fri. Mar. 28, 2014 10:20 am

My nephew has a Reading Lehigh, it throws a lot of heat. It's an automatic fed stoker stove. The only problem he has is it constantly needs to be adjusted for the weather. If you get one with a thermostat it will be better. The other problem he had was the powervent moter went bad and he had a hard time to find one. When he did get one it was around $200. This year was brutal for weather, and he had to go outside for about two hrs. to fix it. The powervent needs to be cleaned at least two times a winter.

Starting Out · Post by **Starting Out** » Fri. Mar. 28, 2014 10:23 am

My nephew has a Reading Lehigh, it throws a lot of heat. It's an automatic fed stoker stove. The only problem he has is it constantly needs to be adjusted for the weather. If you get one with a thermostat it will be better. The other problem he had was the powervent moter went bad and he had a hard time to find one. When he did get one it was around $200. This year was brutal for weather, and he had to go outside for about two hrs. to fix it. The powervent needs to be cleaned at least two times a winter.
Use you're own judgment, if you like it and the price is right go for it. Keep in mind a new one is around $2500-$2800 so make sure you get a good deal, sometimes a couple hundred more buys you new. Good luck.

titleist1 · Post by **titleist1** » Fri. Mar. 28, 2014 12:35 pm

I did a quick browse through a search of 'swatara' threads and it doesn't get glowing reviews. Seems to be a smallish firebox which limits run time when you need high heat output.

There are probably better options if you are patient and watch for other used stoves. There are a couple hand feds for sale in the forum classifieds.