Fireplace Xtraordinair thermostat location for mod

You might check with your dealer I think they have Tstat with a lower start temp. THe summer switch would be an easy way to use the blower manually but be careful. Burning so lo low that the blower doesnt come on automatically may produce creosoteby not burning hot enough to fire off the cat.

I was just looking at the installation manual for the FPX 36 Elite and it has a procedure for checking the thermocouple that switches the fan on. You remove the right front fire brick, depress the door switch and apply a propane torch to the temp sensor metal plate. Fan should kick on within 30-60 sec. Obviously make sure a qualified tech does it for you, but it might be a quick test to make sure it's working ok before moving it.

T-stat located on the right side kinda behind the first/second bricks. Move them apart a little bit so it's not behind the bricks and more exposed directly in the box. My buddies hit it with a propane torch to help heat up, i don't though. So if from a cold start and with proper kindlin i can get it to start in ~25-30mins. at most, the key is a quick hot fire, make sure lots of good small-medium wood and get it blazen, then when burn down go for your first good load!

during a cold start, I usually place alot of kindling right in front of the right fire brick and start it from there, so that my fan kicks on sooner.

What fan speed are you using? I find when the temps are real cold using the fan on high speed cools the fire box down pretty fast and the fan shuts off. Running the fan on low speed seems to help provide more of a consistent output

Im in the process of deciding on my own ZC fireplace. What's your experience so far with 44? I'm leaning toward the 36. One thing I'm wondering though, will this FP put out heat when the electricity is out? Curious if the FP creates heat by natural convection if the blowers off. If so it may not mean anything bad that your blower isn't coming on in really cold weather.

How hard is it to put a bypass switch in? I'm going to do that next year on my Lopi. Generally the snap disk works fine but sometimes when just burning on coals and getting down in the 200-300 degree range it turns off. I'd like to be able to bypass this and continue running. This is mainly a shoulder season issue for me.

What about the blower fan variable speed knob at the lower right of the unit? Can't you dial this down so that a lower flow rate is adjusted and it doesn't cool the box off too rapidly? That way it would tend to stay on and deliver a gentler flow of constant heat instead of clicking on full blast, over cooling the box and then switching off for extensive periods of time until it reheated again. Unless it doesn't work like that and I'm misunderstanding the function of the blower switch knob?

Fahrenheit451 said:

When it is very cold outside, it will kick on and off regardless of the reostat speed control setting. It does run longer intervals with it set to low, but again, I need more air flowing through it. The firebox is plenty hot and the blowing air is warm when it shuts off. It isn't as if the air is cool when the t-stat shut it off. I think the manufacturer could have fine tuned the t-stat setting better than it did. I might see if I can wire in an additional lower setting T-stat in parallel with it.

I thought maybe, others here experienced the same problem and solved it somehow.

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It would be nice if there was a manual "ON" setting that worked regardless of temp.

One possible solution is changing out the t-stat for one of a lower temp. I saw one today on Amazon.com for $7!

Hmm. It could be that the thermocouple simply isn't properly connected to the metal firebox housing or there's a problem elsewhere in the system causing it to improperly cycle. I'd definitely call the manufacturer and see what troubleshooting tips they can suggest before making other mods. Might be a simple fix and if the unit is still under warranty they may cover it too. Please let us know the outcome because I'm thinking strongly about buying one of these units like you did.

Woodrow said:

Hmm. It could be that the thermocouple simply isn't properly connected to the metal firebox housing or there's a problem elsewhere in the system causing it to improperly cycle. I'd definitely call the manufacturer and see what troubleshooting tips they can suggest before making other mods. Might be a simple fix and if the unit is still under warranty they may cover it too. Please let us know the outcome because I'm thinking strongly about buying one of these units like you did.

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Definitely something to check.. make sure snap disk is directly touching and not attached at an angle.

Another thought: why don't these fireplaces have the option to switch the air that is used for the heat transfer air (not for combustion) to be switched from outside air (cold) to inside air (warm) that is recirculated from the heated air inside the house? Automobile heaters have this option because it improves the performance of heaters when it's really cold outside. I can see where this same feature might help with the OP's problem by raising the temp of the cooling air, keeping the switch at a higher temp (making it come on more often) and enhancing the heat output of the fireplace - especially when it's really cold out when you need it most.

Woodrow said:

Im in the process of deciding on my own ZC fireplace. What's your experience so far with 44? I'm leaning toward the 36. One thing I'm wondering though, will this FP put out heat when the electricity is out? Curious if the FP creates heat by natural convection if the blowers off. If so it may not mean anything bad that your blower isn't coming on in really cold weather.

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IMHO - any fireplace will give off some radiant heat but no where near the amount needed to heat a room or house. The blower is essential. We did have an extended power outage here after the Oct freak snow storm. I ran the FPX and it certainly helped - albiet the temps were above freezing. Certainly was better than nothing as our house was significantly warmer than others here.
A free standing wood stove is a better solution for heating during a power outage (if thats your criteria)

I love my FPX. It looks awesome and cranks out the heat.

Welcome to the Hearth. I had the same problem.... its an easy fix. Remove the temp sensor, wrap the back with some insulation and use foil tape to hold it in place. Reinstall and you will be surprised at the difference.

Fahrenheit451 said:

I slid that rightmost fire brick over two inches and it has helped the fan to kick on sooner and more frequently.

Thanks for the suggestion.

However, it still seems to me that it really does not stay on nearly enough. With the good bed of hot coals and fire burning in there, I would think the fan would stay on the whole time.

Perhaps the very cold outdoor temps are screwing with it. It has been single digits outside the last couple days. So perhaps that cold air blowing across the steel is cooling it too much.

I imagine I am losing a ton of heat right out the cooling vents on the outside. Too bad they did not engineer some sort of mechanical damper on those outside air vents for days like this. Something that automatically opens and closes depending on temperature.

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The cooling vents let air in, not out. They are what makes the unit zero clearance. They cool the box and the chimney...so you would not want to block them off or risk possible fire. They do seem to draw more air than necessary. When my unit was first installed I ran it prior to installing facing/stone and was very much amazed at how cold the box actually got. The stronger the fire the more it pulled air in and the colder the box was. At times it was nearly the same as the outside air temp. The cooling intake vents use convection and have no direct relation to the blower.

The blower is what is drawing the air into the area where the temp sensor is located. Add the insulation it will be a big improvement. Not sure if you have the ability to relocate the blower, in very cold climates outside air is not recommended. Is a basement intake a possibility?

Declaration here. What kinda of burn times are you guys getting with the FPX? I usually get 4-5 and would like to improve on this. My blower takes anywhere from 25-45 minutes, but will stay on well after the fire and beyond coals. I wouldn't worry about cooling here as coals don't produce creosote. That's what folks have said here. t talked with Travis and they informed me that the snap disk on my unit (maybe same on urs) needs to reach 120 degrees to kick on. It also seems that my draft is too great and I'm considering plugging two of the 5 air inlets in my doghouse.

Stax said:

Declaration here. What kinda of burn times are you guys getting with the FPX? I usually get 4-5 and would like to improve on this. My blower takes anywhere from 25-45 minutes, but will stay on well after the fire and beyond coals. I wouldn't worry about cooling here as coals don't produce creosote. That's what folks have said here. t talked with Travis and they informed me that the snap disk on my unit (maybe same on urs) needs to reach 120 degrees to kick on. It also seems that my draft is too great and I'm considering plugging two of the 5 air inlets in my doghouse.

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Realistically I reload every 3 hours for max heat output. Disclaimer: My wood is split on the small side and is very well seasoned. I have increased the average split size for 12/13 and 13/14 so I'll be interested to see how much difference it makes.