Used Shaver good deal or not

[David Wayne]

I see a shaver pro series 250 on craigslist used three seasons, with upgrades such as fan with damper, sight glass, digital temperature control with dry well, & additional insulation. 230 gal. rated for 5500 sq. ft. for $4000. I have been reading reviews on different brands & most for shaver are not good ie too much wood not much heat. Anyone here have one? An opinion? Good deal or keep looking? It is 120 miles away so I cant just go look at it .

 

[wat648]

Keep looking. I followed all the manufacturers for cleaning, water testing, ect and mine lasted 5 seasons. The firebox corroded through to the water jacket. The Shaver company is an absolute joke to work with and eventually would not return calls or e-mails. Needless to say, I bought another brand and kept the Shaver around to see if I can fix it one of these days.

 

[flotek]

The shaver company has got to be the absolute worst reputation in the wood boiler business . Over the years there has been countless people online who took the bait and regretted ever buying one . I'd run not walk from that

 

[David Wayne]

From the reviews I read, yes a bad reputation. Looking at their specifications they seem well built. Where did they go wrong? I want to buy used or build one & dont want to make the same mistakes. I know where I can get a firebox from someone that started to make their own copy of central boiler and lost interest. I will have to fab the water jacket and buy the pumps & controls. I guess that is the route i will go.
Thanks for your input
David

 

[hupte]

well their first mistake was no site glass to check your water level. then with the aquastat they just press it to the outside wall of the water jacket. so over time it corrodes and doesnt read accurately then it puts air into the fire 24/7. with no site glass it boils the water right out of the unit. then your pump runs dry and burns up. then you wake up at 2 am freezing cold, no water in the boiler, no working pump, and now you wonder what your gonna do?? if you wanna build a boiler base it off of something with a round burn chamber, (corners are the weak spots) or something thats double welded. not off a cb

pm sent!!!