We bought this multifuel stove in 2009. It's a bigger one, supposed to heat 2200 sq ft. We just recently started having problems. My buddy bought some Michigan wood pellets and he said his stove didn't like them. He wanted to know if I wanted them, I said sure because between last year and this year I've burnt 4 ton of those without any problems. I got them and after a couple of days started having issues with dirty burn. Glass would turn black, burn pot would overfill in 6 hours on the lowest setting, faster the higher the setting. So, I thought junk pellets. I've now tried 3 different brands with the same issues. One might burn a little better than another, but end up with the same issue. I've contacted Englander 3 times and with me guessing and them telling me what to do this is what I've done; 1)replaced hopper, window ,door, and ash pan gaskets.2)Replaced the exhaust blower.3) cleaned it really well twice by taking everything out of the firebox, taking the little doors off that allow you to clean out the heat exchanger, hit behind the fiber board with a rubber hammer, shoved a piece of wire down each hole in the heat exchanger to make sure it was clear. cleaned everything I could reach when the blower was off.3) cleaned the exhaust pipe.checked for blockage on the intake side which has an outside air kit.5) they had me check all the factory settings after a factory reset of the unit. Had me make sure the low fuel feed was set on 1, it was. check the low burn air was on 6, it wasn't it was on 4 put on 6. Air on temp was on 1, it was. also checked to make sure it was set to pellets which it was before the reset, and after it was on 3, which is strange because that's not a factory setting for anything.5 is corn. 4 is cherry pits and 1 is pellets which I set it at.6) the burn pot and stirrer were new this fall. Right now I'm tearing it apart again. They are convinced there is a restriction somewhere in the air flow. I'm quite sure there's not, but I'm checking. I'm starting to think maybe a circuit board? When this first starts up all looks good for an hour or two, then starts to go down hill. I also noticed there are 4 small holes in the heat exchanger behind the fiber board, odd shaped and a little smaller than a pencil. Look like welds that burnt through from the other side or made the metal thin and slowly appeared. Think I might put some jb weld in those. Englander didn't seem concerned with those. Any help is appreciated. I'm cleaning it real good again, then I'm heading out to find some different pellets again, I need more anyway to finish the winter. Thanks for reading this long rant.
englander 49-trcpm/49-shcpm dirty burn issue...frustrated!
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We were planning on replacing this with a harmin before next fall and selling this one before the issues. Now for sure. I'd really like to get it fixed to finish out this winter, then I can sell it with a good conscience too.
Ok, you're off to a good start. A few more thoughts...
1. Did you do a dollar bill test on the door? Put a dollar bill between the door and the stove, and close the door. It should be really difficult to remove that dollar. If it's loose, you might try adjusting the door latch.
2. Try different pellets. It sounds like a dirty stove, but it's always worth different pellets. Michigan wood pellets have a pretty bad reputation.
3. Is it stone cold when you clean it? I've always had better luck cleaning a warm stove. The ash seems to clump up a little worse when the stove is cold, and then I have trouble getting the area behind the fire box clean. I also duct taped a old piece of garden hose onto a section of shop vac hose to get behind the wall a little better. I bet there is some ash back there.
4. How long does a bag of pellets last? Maybe it is a control board issue, feeding too fast.
I have those same holes in the back, those are normal. In the meantime, turn the LBA up. It goes all the way to 9.
Strangely enough, I have an '09 model, and I have been fighting a similar issue. Good luck. There's still something not quite right on mine, and I don't know what it is. It runs about 90% normal, but I keep running into trouble on the higher heat levels.
Good luck.
1. Did you do a dollar bill test on the door? Put a dollar bill between the door and the stove, and close the door. It should be really difficult to remove that dollar. If it's loose, you might try adjusting the door latch.
2. Try different pellets. It sounds like a dirty stove, but it's always worth different pellets. Michigan wood pellets have a pretty bad reputation.
3. Is it stone cold when you clean it? I've always had better luck cleaning a warm stove. The ash seems to clump up a little worse when the stove is cold, and then I have trouble getting the area behind the fire box clean. I also duct taped a old piece of garden hose onto a section of shop vac hose to get behind the wall a little better. I bet there is some ash back there.
4. How long does a bag of pellets last? Maybe it is a control board issue, feeding too fast.
I have those same holes in the back, those are normal. In the meantime, turn the LBA up. It goes all the way to 9.
Strangely enough, I have an '09 model, and I have been fighting a similar issue. Good luck. There's still something not quite right on mine, and I don't know what it is. It runs about 90% normal, but I keep running into trouble on the higher heat levels.
Good luck.
I've done everything you've listed. Tried 3 different kinds of pellets. I've been emailing/talking to reps all day. I'm getting really tired of burning my days off doing this. Normally on hold for 1hr+. They're very helpful when you finally get someone. The last rep told me it could be a vacuum switch issue. He told me how to bypass it and see, I just started it back up to see. He said if the room blower is overheating, something to do with that can cause issues. He couldn't tell me why, just said it does. Those two things and the stirater motor are all I haven't changed on this thing. I think they're just guessing and hoping just like me now. I would just change it all but the prices of these parts are ridiculous. If I figure it out I'll let you know. I'm about one day away from buying a harmen and knocking this one in the head.
On another note, mine has never burnt very well above setting 5. Kind of frustrating when there's 4 more settings I could use when it's really cold. Now I can't get above 1. Never burnt corn or cherry pits the way it was supposed to either. Corn was 12%(I tested it).
How is your OAK? I had an issue like that last year on my '09 CPM. The screen outside on the oak was completely clogged. Also when the ash drawer gets full this happens also. I just re read your post. Why a rubber mallet? I use a 3 lb lump hammer. I don't give a full swing but the weight of the head does a great job. I tap the wall behind the fiber board for 3-4 mins. Just when you think your done. More ash will release. Let us know.
if oak is outside air kit it's fine. I took everything apart. Nothing blocking it. I've had it plug up with ash before, it's not plugged. I just tore it down and made sure again, for the third time. It burns fine for a while, then starts to build up. I'm going to get some pro pellets in a few minutes to try them. Don't think it's gonna help. It will be the 4th brand I've tried and this thing has never been picky before. Does it make any sense at all that the room air blower could cause it? The rep said it might. I'm thinking the vacuum switch is fine since it's been bypassed for 2 hours and I'm right back to square one.
t.he room air blower has a dramatic effect On combustion. when I start my stove, the room air blower does not kick on right away.sometimes even if the startup procedure is over. The flame looks ok. when the fan kicks on the flame becomes more lively. It obviously draws more air
Sounds like you've done a ton. It's hard to believe that it can be burning fine for the first few hours and then go all sooty. Have you tried the leaf blower cleaning technique? I know you cleaned it, but it's quite amazing when I clean my stove, thoroughly, if I apply the leaf blower, there's still plenty of ash in there.
I just cleaned my room air blower and it made a huge difference on my burn. I've been having soot problems as well, never thought cleaning the room blower would change anything, but since I hadn't ever cleaned it, seemed worth doing. I'll never let it go so long again. Good luck!
tjnamtiw
Minister of Fire
This comment is kind of scary. I confess I am not familiar with the brand except from reading the operator's manual, but there is NO WAY that the room blower should make any difference in the flame by 'drawing more air'! That would mean it is sucking combustion air (carbon monoxide) and blowing it into the room.
Now, if it is kicking the exhaust blower into a higher 'gear', then yes.
Someone just started a thread over the weekend, and there were lots of explanatory youtube videos embedded. So, I'm not going to reinvent the wheel, but point you over to that thread so you can see for yourself if that may or may not be something you'd like to try.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/posts/1654773/
I do agree it's a little messy, and one has to consider where to blow the ash towards, as well as which way the wind blows.
BUBIBEAR
Burning Hunk
tjnamtiw
Minister of Fire
tjnamtiw
Minister of Fire
I thought the same thing! Are we talking about the exhaust or the OAK. Do we have an OAK hooked up to the stove????? OR is the OAK inlet on the stove blocked off thereby creating a vacuum and reducing combustion air over time? OR if the OAK truly was blocked with SOMETHING, could the path still be blocked inside the stove's shell?
I think there is a misunderstanding here....
"if oak is outside air kit it's fine. I took everything apart. Nothing blocking it. I've had it plug up with ash before, it's not plugged...
"I just tore it down and made sure again"
doubtfull, he "tore down" the oak
"if oak is outside air kit it's fine. I took everything apart. Nothing blocking it. I've had it plug up with ash before, it's not plugged...
"I just tore it down and made sure again"
doubtfull, he "tore down" the oak
I tore everything on the stove apart I could to clean. The ash I cleaned was behind the fiber board. I had snow block the oak. Thinking faster than I can type.
Just for the record, I tore down the oak as far as you can. Unhooked it from the back of the stove, unfastened from the wall, pulled it through, stuck a light in the stove facing the intake and looked. Nothing blocking any air intake. Please tell me what I'm doing wrong?
I think it was the "had it plug up with ash before" comment that made people doubtful. If you have ash in your Outside Air Intake...you have a major problem. I'm assuming you mis-typed.
Venting configuration? For the record, if you've had any part of your stove plugged up with ash before, you need to step up your cleaning, no matter what stove you use.
Have you ran anything flexible through the ash trap doors behind the fire wall? There is a little cavity that runs from one side to the other, and I get tons of ash back there. I can take my little garden hose extender from one side to the other behind that wall. Try that if you haven't yet. I use about a 15 inch piece of garden hose and run it all the way in, duct taped to a vac extension tube.
ghandy131
Member
Just a couple of thoughts: I checked blockage in the OAK by opening the ash drawer an inch, flame improved immediately - I checked the OAK screen and it was blocked with ice. Thought number 2: set your bottom buttons at 1-4-3 (yup 3) and let it burn. Let us know if it helps.
ghandy131
Member
Not yet. I haven't had time to mess with it. I did order a room blower. What does it adjust when i change the numbers to 1-4-3? Might try that tonight.
Changing the last number to 3 makes the stirrer turn faster, which helps with a poor burn. If that doesn't work, turn the LBA up till you have a decent burn.
http://www.englanderstoves.com/help/PelletStove/outside_air.html
*just to clarify, in case of definition mis-match:
*just to clarify, in case of definition mis-match:
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