Pelpro 120 stove starts but the combustion fan keeps going on and off

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.

vrosario63

Member
Mar 15, 2014
15
New York
I just purchased a Pelpro Home Heater 120...After I did my installation I started the stove as I would my older Pelpro stove and it started without an issue. After about one hour I decided to increase the auger speed to 3 and 4. As soon as I did so, it would run for about 2 minutes and the combustion fan would shut off almost as it were stalling out. About 30 seconds or so later it would come back on. I decided to check it at all feed rates and found that it does it in feed rates 2, 3 and 4...I called Pelpro and they send me a new combustion fan and a new control board, but to no avail as it still does the same thing. Does anyone have any ideas as to this issue of which I am having with my Pelpro 120...? I am about to call Northern Tool and have them come pick this thing up....
 
It's been running all night with the convection fan (Heat Exchanger) on 3 and my feed rate on 1. As soon as I try to increase the feed rate it will stall and the combustion fan shuts off. It will stay like that for about 30 seconds or more then start up. About 20 seconds or more later it will shut down again. As soon as I return it to feed rate 1 it starts to run normal again....
 
Just ran a full test on the 2 boards, one being the original and the other the replacement. I found that both boards are doing the same exact thing. I found that both boards come from the same batch from the manufacturer. I installed a toggle switch to control the 120 volts to the combustion motor and the stove is now running at all feed rates as well as convection fan rates. The short seems to be coming from the boards output to the combustion fan which is the yellow wire. This only happens once you take it out of feed rate 1 which on this board is a separate circuit. My Pelpro home heater 120 has a production date of February 2014. If anyone else has any other ideas please feel free to reply...
 
Last edited:
You should contact Pelpro to identify that both boards have the same problem so they can deal with the board manufacturer ... save someone else the same grief.
 
I have already emailed them as to this issue. Now if they decide to investigate or even test the board is another issue. When I first contacted them as to what my problem was, they were hesitant to even say it was the board. So they sent me a board and a combustion fan. All of this even after I told them that I am an electromechanical technician. I know that when I call them later on during the day, they are going to tell me to test the snap disc's as well as the wiring. All of which I have already done so...Let's see what they say. I will keep everyone posted as to this.
 
is it high temp over heating? when i run mine on max (4) with the draft not adjusted properly it cooks the stove ( i can smell the burning paint smell). i have never let it get hot enough to shut down the stove though.
just a guess really
 
I understand you are a tech. but a dead short would involve something burned up.You have an open.
I made some changes to my post as to the findings on the control board...It is not a dead short to ground or neutral but a control short as in once it comes out of the number 1 feedrate, a secondary portion of the board takes control and brings the combustion fan up to full speed...
 
is it high temp over heating? when i run mine on max (4) with the draft not adjusted properly it cooks the stove ( i can smell the burning paint smell). i have never let it get hot enough to shut down the stove though.
just a guess really
If your stove is getting too hot and not shutting the auger feed down, then your hi temp (240 deg.) snap disc is not working meaning it is staying closed. It should open on rise and turn off the auger feed...
 
it may shut it down on its own, but i don't let it get that hot. i usually only need to run it on 4(max) for a few hours at a time if its friggin cold out. That said i will have to check that snap disk to make sure nothing is broken.
 
it may shut it down on its own, but i don't let it get that hot. i usually only need to run it on 4(max) for a few hours at a time if its friggin cold out. That said i will have to check that snap disk to make sure nothing is broken.
Keep me posted on what you find....
 
Well, I talked to Pelpro customer service and they are completely lost so they had to send the information I provided them and my phone number to there technicians. The service tech will be contacting me to see if they can help resolve the issue....I am about to install a AcuTron 2 or St. Croix control board in it and be done with it.
 
Good info,let us know.Just for kicks why don't you unhook the fan hi(125) switch and see what happens.
Already did so and had the same results...Jumped out the loop (i.e. hopper switch, vacuum switch and H250) which stops the auger from feeding, same issue. It all points to a bad batch of boards, as I mentioned early in my posts. I switched out the control board with a AcuTron 2 and it works...
 
Already did so and had the same results...Jumped out the loop (i.e. hopper switch, vacuum switch and H250) which stops the auger from feeding, same issue. It all points to a bad batch of boards, as I mentioned early in my posts. I switched out the control board with a AcuTron 2 and it works...
Would be nice if you could charge them for your time!Maybe a box of new parts for spares!
 
Already did so and had the same results...Jumped out the loop (i.e. hopper switch, vacuum switch and H250) which stops the auger from feeding, same issue. It all points to a bad batch of boards, as I mentioned early in my posts. I switched out the control board with a AcuTron 2 and it works...
Same exact issue with pelpro home heater 120, Acutron IV manufacture date january 2014. Just installed it and it works fine on feed rate 1 in manual mode, but when you try and set it to 2,3,or 4 the combustion blower shuts down. Also it is only the combustion fan that shuts off, the auger and convection blower keep running as they should. One thing i noticed is if you turn the combustion fan trim pot "clockwise" when set to these other speeds the blower will kick in, having to turn it farther clockwise for each higher speed. Strange considering the manual states that the combustion fan is only controlled by the trim pot for speed 1, and that clockwise is to decrease the fan speed. A couple of other issues i noticed is when you press the start button, it turns on the blowers, auger and igniter like normal,
but only for a few seconds and then shuts back off, with just the convection blower light solid and auger light flashing.
Then press start again and it goes thru it's normal startup cycle. Also when adjusting the combustion fan trim pot while in speed 1, i noticed if you turn it all the way counterclockwise to increase, the fan stops.
I will be calling Pelpro on Monday. Let us know what they told you their going to do about this.
 
Get ready they are going to tell you to disconnect the low limit on the combustion housing. Then the will tell you that you have a bad combustion fan. They do not want to hear that there is an issue with there control board. Send me a private message and I will send you my temporary fix as to this issue.
 
Same exact issue with pelpro home heater 120, Acutron IV manufacture date january 2014. Just installed it and it works fine on feed rate 1 in manual mode, but when you try and set it to 2,3,or 4 the combustion blower shuts down. Also it is only the combustion fan that shuts off, the auger and convection blower keep running as they should. One thing i noticed is if you turn the combustion fan trim pot "clockwise" when set to these other speeds the blower will kick in, having to turn it farther clockwise for each higher speed. Strange considering the manual states that the combustion fan is only controlled by the trim pot for speed 1, and that clockwise is to decrease the fan speed. A couple of other issues i noticed is when you press the start button, it turns on the blowers, auger and igniter like normal,
but only for a few seconds and then shuts back off, with just the convection blower light solid and auger light flashing.
Then press start again and it goes thru it's normal startup cycle. Also when adjusting the combustion fan trim pot while in speed 1, i noticed if you turn it all the way counterclockwise to increase, the fan stops.
I will be calling Pelpro on Monday. Let us know what they told you their going to do about this.
Same exact issue with pelpro home heater 120, Acutron IV manufacture date january 2014. Just installed it and it works fine on feed rate 1 in manual mode, but when you try and set it to 2,3,or 4 the combustion blower shuts down. Also it is only the combustion fan that shuts off, the auger and convection blower keep running as they should. One thing i noticed is if you turn the combustion fan trim pot "clockwise" when set to these other speeds the blower will kick in, having to turn it farther clockwise for each higher speed. Strange considering the manual states that the combustion fan is only controlled by the trim pot for speed 1, and that clockwise is to decrease the fan speed. A couple of other issues i noticed is when you press the start button, it turns on the blowers, auger and igniter like normal,
but only for a few seconds and then shuts back off, with just the convection blower light solid and auger light flashing.
Then press start again and it goes thru it's normal startup cycle. Also when adjusting the combustion fan trim pot while in speed 1, i noticed if you turn it all the way counterclockwise to increase, the fan stops.
I will be calling Pelpro on Monday. Let us know what they told you their going to do about this.
Well I'm running the Pelpro 120 with the control panel from my Pelpro Bayview and it is working without any issues. This would prove to me that the control board is the issue as I stated to them and not anything else. There are going to be a lot of people out there that are not going to be happy with their purchase of any Pelpro/Glow-Boy product if this issue is not resolved....
 

Attachments

  • Pelpro Acutron 2.JPG
    Pelpro Acutron 2.JPG
    99.4 KB · Views: 535
  • Pelpro Acutron Bayview.JPG
    Pelpro Acutron Bayview.JPG
    155 KB · Views: 849
Well, just got off the phone with the tech and they are sending me yet another board. This new board should be here within the next 3 days. Lets see what happen when this board arrives and I install it...I am not taking the chance and I am purchasing a variac as a stand by...
 
I,m glad to hear that their sending you a board, I hope it works this time. Unfortunately for me, after cooling down a bit, I decided to return the stove anyway and buy a different brand. With a brand new product having two things wrong with it already, I figured where am I going to be in a year when the warranty runs out and their $300 plus board fails again. Of course any product can fail, but as far as this stove goes, I have no trust whatsoever. Then on top of that the problem with their customer service made me decide going with a different stove was the right choice. Thanks for your help and advice. Good luck with everything.
 
I am curious if anyone else has had the same problem with HHT customer service. Such as being rude, talking over you and not listening to what you have to say, trying to blame the problem on anything but their product, or trying to tell you the stove is working fine when you know it's not. I was on the phone with them for 2 hours, and it was the worst experience I have had with any company or customer service in my life, and i have dealt with many over the years.
My Pelpro 120 had a bad auger motor and a bad control board out of the box. It is one thing when you have been using your product for some time and a problem develops. When a company won't fix their product that they sent out broken from the factory, what does that tell you about the future of that company? Hopefully this isn't another case where good quality brands who's reputation were built by someone else, are destroyed by a company that buys them out, and cost cuts to the point that the product quality is ruined.
 
I am curious if anyone else has had the same problem with HHT customer service. Such as being rude, talking over you and not listening to what you have to say, trying to blame the problem on anything but their product, or trying to tell you the stove is working fine when you know it's not. I was on the phone with them for 2 hours, and it was the worst experience I have had with any company or customer service in my life, and i have dealt with many over the years.
My Pelpro 120 had a bad auger motor and a bad control board out of the box. It is one thing when you have been using your product for some time and a problem develops. When a company won't fix their product that they sent out broken from the factory, what does that tell you about the future of that company? Hopefully this isn't another case where good quality brands who's reputation were built by someone else, are destroyed by a company that buys them out, and cost cuts to the point that the product quality is ruined.
I contacted Danson and they told me that they sold Pelpro to Hearth and Home Technologies over 2 years ago. I guess when that happen they no longer care about quality being that they also own Harman Stove as well as many others. I am waiting to see if this new board will work. The board is due to be here on Thursday and as I told the customer service rep, as the boards get here and do not work I will continue to call. When they finally do get a board to me that does work, I am going to put all the bad boards in a box and ship them right back to them....The stove is working fine as of right now being that I am using a Acutron 2 board with it from my other Pelpro unit. Let see how all this turns out and sorry to hear that you returned your unit. Pelpro at one time as a Danson product did make one of the best pellet stoves on the market...
 
Well of cause as expected the new board did not work...Not only did it not work but it was worse than the others....When I first plug it in the ignite when on and nothing else. I then unplug it and tried to start it but as I pushed the start button it would not respond. I pulled the board only to find that there were 2 screws missing, these screws hold the board to the face panel. I pulled 2 screws from the other board and installed them. I then reinstalled the board in the stove. I hit the start button and it started as normal. After it completed it's start cycle I then push the feed rate button to bring it up to 3 and guess what it failed....Same issue as before and that now makes 3 board that do not work...What part do they not understand that these boards are not working from the manufacturer it self...I reinstalled my control board from the older Pelpro Bayview and presto...it works...I don't know what else to do but they are going to have to fix this one way or another.....
 
Can you return the stove,if so that is exactly what I would do if their cutomer service is that bad.I almost bought a pelpro stove my self but from the sounds of your dilema I'm glad I didn't.Either way best of luck and keep us posted
 
Status
Not open for further replies.