What Brand of Stoker Stove is Best

I have a keystoker made in Schuylkill Haven PA. I don't know if I'd buy another....trouble with the firebox catching fire. Harmon is an excellent stove. Alaska stoves and Leisure stoves are good to. If I were to purchase another I'd by a hand fired Harmon. Burns wood or coal, many burn chestnut coal and some either pea coal or chestnut. Have you considered an outside wood furnace. My son has one and loves it. No chance of chimney fires, no wood dirt or bugs in the house. Several kinds are mfged in PA. Mahoning is one. You can heat the house, domestic H2O as well.

Doug

mcrchap wrote:I have a keystoker made in Schuylkill Haven PA. I don't know if I'd buy another....trouble with the firebox catching fire.

Huh? Do you mean the hopper?

I have a Keystoker 90K (Direct Vent) 4+ years old and a LL Hyfire I (1995?) and both run excellent! Never had a hopper fire, melted cam or anything even close, keep them cleaned out every spring, lubed, etc.....a few small issues, combustion blower motor and new gaskets, etc...but they are wear items and that is expected. A Harmen Boiler will be next to be installed.

I didn't read anything about anyone posting on the AHS units. I have heard they are the cadillac of coal stokers and I am also looking to purchase a coal stoker to bypass my middle east money-sucker oil furnace. I havent done much research but the harman SF130 is hand-fired and alot less costly, however theres the tending issue where you have to tend it probably twice a day... I priced them around $3000. The Harman HF3000 is right around $4900, Keystoker $5100, and I'm still looking for priceing on the AHS S130.

My dad has a Hitzer hand-fired coal stove and he loves it. In his opinion the best coal in PA comes from BLASCHAK.


thanks in advance for any info you can reply....

TOM.

Tom, I am assuming the prices you quoted are on uninstalled furnaces? Thanks for info on prices.

yes, un-installed. I did my fair share of plumbing and the add-on install to a oil furnace of one of these units is fairly simple. Aside from that its already a 4yr payback with the cost of $5100 or so.... with heating oil now at $2.25.... The dealers are pushing them because they said once heating oil goes over $3 they will be out of stock. The question is, whats heating oil going to do in the next 5-10 years? The price of coal remains relatively stable. My house is 4 zones of oil hot water baseboard, built in 2004, 2x6 walls, and i'm heating 2340 sqft plus a Modine heater heats the 660sqft attached garage. We like it 70 degrees in the house. The stoker dealer tells me I'll burn about 5 tons per year and in the summer when its just heating the hot water the stoker will be on standby most of the time useing very little coal. My main goal is to tend the stoker as little as possible and still save money in the process. They tell me I can get away with filling the 300# hopper twice a week in winter, and maybe once a month in summer. thats not too bad. A hand-fired unit requires much more attention, and I dont have that kind of time.

The numbers look like this for my house...
OIL $2.25/gallon x 1100 gallons per year = $2475/yr
COAL - $171/ton x 5tons = $855
$1620/yr saved

$5400 (with tax) for the stoker / $1620 = 3.3 years for the payback. After that its all saved cash, how long does a stoker last? I'm guessing 25 years minimum. Aside from that the personal gratification that you give zero dollars to the middle east.

Tom, don't overlook a rebuilt EFM, AA, or AHS. About half the money as a new one, ready for another 30 years. If you have 10 minutes twice a day, you are good to go. All you have to do is a quick check, perhaps change an ash bucket and maintain the fuel level. No stress, and Abdul won't be able to order as many 'Rolls' next year. You will have much more time in tending a hand fed boiler or stove.....get a stoker boiler.

correction, the AHS S130 is $7000 with a water coil and the ash temp sensor. That puts it $1800 more than a keystoker, and I was quoted $4000 today on a HARMAN VF3000, so that makes the S130 $3000 more than the harman. Hmmmm. That S130 better one dam good boiler for that much more money.

Id be VERY Interested in a rebuilt AHS S130 for half the money , WHERE oh WHERE may i find such a unit ? I got cash, and its burning a hole so-to-speek. haha. I plan on putting this animal in my attached garage to keep the dust outside of the finished basement and make for easier loading/emptying and pipeing it to the other end of the basement to bypass the oil-sucking furnace.

Is Royall Coal Stoker model 4150HE in production for Anthracite coal use? And has anyone ever seen it in production. http://www.royallfurnace.com/products/coal-stoker.html And any idea on price?

EnergyManager wrote:Is Royall Coal Stoker model 4150HE in production for Anthracite coal use? And has anyone ever seen it in production. http://www.royallfurnace.com/products/coal-stoker.html And any idea on price?

They made three prototypes did some testing and are working on modifications to improve it more seen one of the prototypes it needs some changes but will be a real nice unit .

The engineer Kevin they had out there left and went to another company different field the owner Matt is looking for another engineer once he has found one then modification & more testing can be completed then should be out on the market

anyone want to guess what these will cost?

I'll say $7500........

i just re-looked at the website $10541.... it will be more like $13000 by the time someone installs one, thats total insanity! for the average home owner this will be a 6-8 yr payback minimum, NO thanks..... they wont sell many.

I am looking to replace my Hand fired furnace with a Stoker. I have been looking at an Alaska 140 and the Leisure line Hyfiree II. Does anyone have any experience with these? Is one better than the other?

johnstar wrote:I am looking to replace my Hand fired furnace with a Stoker. I have been looking at an Alaska 140 and the Leisure line Hyfiree II. Does anyone have any experience with these? Is one better than the other?

I like the Hyfire II , But then again I am a little biased . . Actually both are great units you won't go wrong with either but I do like the coal-trol on our Hyfire which is standard . Which ever way you choose you will be happy burning coal. Dave