10-cpm dirty stove issue

[Eric Bommer]

I was running though very similar issues and just got it fixed(I have 55TRPEP). I was dumping out my burn pot at least twice a day. I Knew it was an air issue but couldn't find any more soot to clean out. After almost 3 years of limping along this year I have really worked on making it right. Sometimes I have motivation issues.

First Fix. I realized my stove ran worse during windy days and when it was calm it ran much better. My horizontal exhaust was pointing north west and I live in a high wind area so I built a wind block.

Second Fix. The wind block only helped, with help from the Hearth I made a gasket for my burn pot and that made another big improvement.

Third Fix. Once again help from the Hearth, I talked to Mike and my stove mode was set incorrect, I was over feeding my stove by 7%. Doesn't sound like much but after a few hours I could see the flame grow and start to get lazy. After 8 to 12 hrs my pot was almost full. And as Mike explained to me its all about Air and Fuel.

Now with these 3 fixes(Mostly the controller)my stove is now running great and as of today I was able to go 3 bag with out cleaning the burn pot, I have never been able to do that.

 

[sculptor]

The OAK with removed rain guard(?) I noticed the hose clamp wasn't tightened. I think I removed under advisement to see if there was a difference?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

I have another question for you sculptor why are you using a LFF of 3 ?

With a dense pellet and perhaps an air flow issue I'd be using 1 for the LFF that will lower the fuel to air ratio.

 

[sculptor]

I have another question for you sculptor why are you using a LFF of 3 ?

With a dense pellet and perhaps an air flow issue I'd be using 1 for the LFF that will lower the fuel to air ratio.

Go back to the 1-4-1 setting?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Yes I remember someone suggested you go to inside air.

My entire take on inside burn air can be summed up in very few words, it inhales with pursed lips.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Go back to the 1-4-1 setting?

No just your LFF

 

[sculptor]

I turned off the stove for resetting. What setting are you recommending for all three?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

I turned off the stove for resetting. What setting are you recommending for all three?

1-5-1

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Now one of the other things that could be happening is metal creep. I've never run into that in going through any of the England threads on here.

That is where parts of the stove change positions relative to other parts, this can allow what are normally good gasket seals to no longer function.

I have another bit of advice change only one thing at a time. And clean between every adjustment. Otherwise you are just stepping all over yourself and going no where fast.

 

[jdempsey]

This is one interesting thread, and keeping my attention. Like a suspense novel. But I know it has got to be as aggravating as heck. Hang in there.

Alot of knowledgeable people on this site and im sure you will get it running correctly soon.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

We want to see pictures after the stove has come out of startup and the flame has stabilized.

We are looking for a nice bright yellow white almost white flame with pellet action in the burn pot and ash being ejected.

 

[jrsdws]

I don't recall ever getting pellets in my CPM to do the pellet dance. I just don't think the burn pot design allows for it. The mulfifuel pot is too wide and long with too many holes up the sides I think. With that being said, however, I never had a single issue with pellets building up or the stove not ejecting the ash. I had a couple of small clinkers with some pretty bad pellets.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

They should wiggle a bit in the pot once they get small.

ETA: I'm out of here until sometime likely late tomorrow, company coming.

 

[jrsdws]

I scanned through the entire thread. Did we ever try a control board reset and then make sure the stove was set for pellet mode?

When I got mine CPM new it arrived set in mode 3. I have no idea what that mode is for but pellet is mode 1. Everytime I reset the board it'd reset to mode 3.

It's worth a try maybe?

1. Unplug stove. After a few seconds, plug back in.
2. Within 5 seconds, push all three bottom buttons at the same time and let go. The display in the window should read F5. Wait for display to go out.
3. Unplug stove and plug back in.
4. Press blower speed up and down buttons at the same time
5. Push heat range down to display "1" in the window, then wait for window to clear.
6. Reset bottom three buttons to 1-4-1
7. Fire it up.

I'm grasping for straws here. Maybe we'll get lucky. If this was suggested and tried already, my apologies for duplicating.

 

[sculptor]

I reset the stove and fired it back up last night on the settings of 1-5-1. I went to bed and woke up with a filled burnpot. I'm going to clean it again. I'll do a board reset. I'm going to leave it off. It's going to be 55 degrees today. I'll have space heaters out if needed. I like the advice of doing one thing at a time. I feel I'm starting to lose track of what I have changed and when. Thanks again! I know you all have much better things to than this...and I appreciate it.

 

[jrsdws]

Another full read through of the thread and there is one area of cleaning that might have been overlooked.

Let stove cool and open the door. Just inside the door, reach up and you'll find an open box or shelf. Reach back and feel around on the floor of that shelf. There are 6 holes that lead down to the back of the fire box. This is the area the little ash trap doors lead to. This is exhaust path and ash can build up around these holes and restrict airflow a lot. That entire area up there should be cleaned and vacuumed out regularly. You might try running a hose or even a wire down those holes, but usually ash just builds around the opening and gradually makes it smaller.

Also, if you do the board reset, make sure to follow the steps to make sure you're in pellet mode.

Don't give up. It might truly be an easy fix.

 

[sculptor]

Another full read through of the thread and there is one area of cleaning that might have been overlooked.

Let stove cool and open the door. Just inside the door, reach up and you'll find an open box or shelf. Reach back and feel around on the floor of that shelf. There are 6 holes that lead down to the back of the fire box. This is the area the little ash trap doors lead to. This is exhaust path and ash can build up around these holes and restrict airflow a lot. That entire area up there should be cleaned and vacuumed out regularly. You might try running a hose or even a wire down those holes, but usually ash just builds around the opening and gradually makes it smaller.

Also, if you do the board reset, make sure to follow the steps to make sure you're in pellet mode.

Don't give up. It might truly be an easy fix.

I just completed the leaf blower and compressed air trick. I shot air in the ash trap doors with the leaf blower going. I could feel the air coming out of the holes on the shelf. I haven't done the board reset yet.

 

[jrsdws]

Air coming out is good but doesn't confirm there is no restriction.

 

[sculptor]

Air coming out is good but doesn't confirm there is no restriction.

Ok. I was looking for some indication to stop cleaning.
I'll be darned! I had it on corn setting #3. I remember now, I spoke with Mike quite some time ago, and he told me about burning 1/2 corn 1/2 pellets, and burn on corn setting. I tried it and liked it, but I didn't switch it back to number 1 for pellets. Do you think that the corn setting would do this?

*Burning corn/pellets was the last thing I did in the winter of 2010. My house was struck by lightening in Aug 2011. My stove was unplugged, and was covered. I was in a rental house for 9 months and didn't burn pellets in 2011. I fired my stove up for the first time this year in late Oct/ early November, and my problems started.

 

[jrsdws]

I think it might deliver less air for corn burning. Switch to pellets and try.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

I just completed the leaf blower and compressed air trick. I shot air in the ash trap doors with the leaf blower going. I could feel the air coming out of the holes on the shelf. I haven't done the board reset yet.

Not necessarily a good sign sculptor unless you shot that air up towards the top of those ash clean outs.

There should be a path from down low in that ash trap towards the combustion blower you remember cleaning from there and hitting something?

If that something was the ash trap wall it is one thing if it was before that point then you hit something like an ash plug.

 

[imacman]

Not necessarily a good sign sculptor unless you shot that air up towards the top of those ash clean outs.

There should be a path from down low in that ash trap towards the combustion blower you remember cleaning from there and hitting something?

If that something was the ash trap wall it is one thing if it was before that point then you hit something like an ash plug.

Smokey, I understand what he says he did, and it's fine. Shooting compressed air into the ash traps will result in air coming out the top holes. I'm hoping he did the "bang on the steel back wall w/ a small hammer" trick too.

I'll be curious what happens after the board reset.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Yes Pete I know it is possible for air to come out those holes if a compressed air nozzle was inserted into the ash trap opening but that doesn't mean there isn't an obstruction between that ash trap and the rest of the exhaust and the amount of air that comes out those holes should be small even with a air compressor if a leaf blower was sucking on the vent end of things at the same time.

But it has been more than 8 hours now since he coughed up the fact he was burning a corn/pellet mix the last time the stove worked right.

 

[sculptor]

Yes Pete I know it is possible for air to come out those holes if a compressed air nozzle was inserted into the ash trap opening but that doesn't mean there isn't an obstruction between that ash trap and the rest of the exhaust and the amount of air that comes out those holes should be small even with a air compressor if a leaf blower was sucking on the vent end of things at the same time.

But it has been more than 8 hours now since he coughed up the fact he was burning a corn/pellet mix the last time the stove worked right.

I have a small length of flexible tubing I attach to the vacuum hose to wrangle around behind the trap door when I vacuum behind it. I hate that it only donned on me when I saw the #3 that I had burned some corn two years ago. I hate that I didn't even think about another fuel setting. I'm a little surprised the Englander tech never thought about that while he had me testing the CB from the board. I'm not going to call it a fix until I've gone through more bags

 

[jrsdws]

I too tried to wrangle a hose attached to the vac behind that firewall. I lost so much suction I probably didn't vac anything out of there, but I did kind of bulldoze ash all the way to one side so I could get at it. It really piles up back there so you have to find a way.

I think corn mode is #5 isn't it? Mine resets to #3 and I have no idea what that is. I don't think it's in the manual. I could be wrong.

Well let's hope we're on the right track here. That's be a good Christmas present for you.

Keep us posted.