MT VERNON ROAR

i get that on startup on my stoves once in a while. I would say it's normal,probably depends on flameheight or something along those lines.But nothing I would be to concerned about.

We get that too - sometimes louder than others but it always stops after a few minutes. We sometimes also get a harmonic sound - like someone blowing one key on a harmonica. I figure it's the airflow through the stove mixed with the heat and metal expanding and contracting.

Mine sounds like a freight train. What it is, is too much fuel at start up and forcing the air thru less holes in the pot faster. Once the fuel level gets to normal, it quits. If I hear it, I usually pull a wire on the vac switch till it calms down. Happens more on the Sante Fe then it does on the AE. They did make a plate to put on the air intake behind the ashpan on the AE to help eliminate this. kap

Had it every day for four years on my MVAE, BUT THEN... Replaced the right side catch that holds the ash pan in place (had broken in first year), and adjusted the left. Not a single roar this year. I mean, not a peep. If air is coming in through ash pan gasket when stove is on High, it's like a train. If through OAK only, quiet.

Same here. I've been unable to locate the cause of the problem. One of these days, after a deep cleaning, when I have both side panels off I'll fire it up and try to isolate the problem. It's almost as if the combustion blower is resonating. Like all of you mine quites down after a few minutes.

Well, I can make my stove roar anytime, hot or cold. Just open the draft slide up and she roars...and eats the agitator too. Oxidizing flame...Oxygen rich and hot.

kappel15 said:

Mine sounds like a freight train. What it is, is too much fuel at start up and forcing the air thru less holes in the pot faster. Once the fuel level gets to normal, it quits. If I hear it, I usually pull a wire on the vac switch till it calms down. Happens more on the Sante Fe then it does on the AE. They did make a plate to put on the air intake behind the ashpan on the AE to help eliminate this. kap

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Kap, with all due respect, I think the ash pan gasket may be the culprit here, or perhaps a pan that doesn't seal correctly on the gasket. My dealer told me the same thing, but after getting the ash pan tight, it's been quiet as a chuch mouse for about a full ton now. I don't doubt that it's caused by a large amount of fuel at startup and an excessive amount of air, but with the ash pan seated well so that the stove can't pull air through it, the roar on our MVAE is eliminated. I do have the plate behind the ash pan installed as well (from factory) but that didn't stop the roar until I got the ash pan seated. Just some personal history with one MVAE...

Not to say that your situation isn't correct, my ashpan is seated properly, and I can still get the roar if there is too much fuel in pot. And my Sante Fe doesn't have an ashpan gasket and is nowhere close to being air tight(it is made this way). It is worse then the AE. Every home is set up differently as far as being air tight, etc. There are a lot of variables that can play roles in this situation. I am glad you found a cure for yours. kap

geez maybe I should check into this,never thought it was a big deal.I just thought too much fuel in pot for startup.

Before buying anything, I would make sure it is seated properly. May even be able to push on it a little when stove is roaring and see if it helps. Maybe Wilbur Feral has a point more then we know. kap

Well, as Kap correctly said in an earlier post, mine was only one stove, and you have to take that in to consideration, so don't go buying a bunch of stuff. But I would have bet good money that my ash pan was seated correctly even with the broken latch on the right, as those are just the type of latches used on drawers and cabinets, not something you would think of as forming a tight seal. And, the stove roared even before that latch broke, from day one. And as noted above, my dealer swore it was just normal (although I think he would have said the same thing if the stove had started whistling Dixie, but that's another story). But after replacing the latch and making sure alignment and seal of the pan was as good as I could get it, the roar just hasn't happened, and I'm about a ton in for the season with it. Try pushing in on the front of the ash pan, at the sides, when it roars. That should tell you whether that's the problem. Good luck!

Does this happen no matter what the flame height adjustment is on? It would seem to me if its a fuel issue, that if you lower the flame height adjustment that it would stop. If not then I would suggest its not a fuel issue.

Wilbur Feral said:

Well, as Kap correctly said in an earlier post, mine was only one stove, and you have to take that in to consideration, so don't go buying a bunch of stuff. But I would have bet good money that my ash pan was seated correctly even with the broken latch on the right, as those are just the type of latches used on drawers and cabinets, not something you would think of as forming a tight seal. And, the stove roared even before that latch broke, from day one. And as noted above, my dealer swore it was just normal (although I think he would have said the same thing if the stove had started whistling Dixie, but that's another story). But after replacing the latch and making sure alignment and seal of the pan was as good as I could get it, the roar just hasn't happened, and I'm about a ton in for the season with it. Try pushing in on the front of the ash pan, at the sides, when it roars. That should tell you whether that's the problem. Good luck!

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My MVAE roars if I don't push the ash pan in firmly. It has happened about four or five times over the past three years and quiets down as soon as I push the pan tight against the gasket.
The pan tends to bind because the aluminum galls where it slides against other parts. I put some lubricant on the bottom and outsides of the pan to help make it easy to seat the pan properly. I haven't heard the roaring since.

I have had my ash pan out when stove is going, and has done nothing. May have to try open just a tad and see if anything happens. kap

Hello all, I'm not a forum guy and do not get on the computer much. I have a Mt Vernon AE zero clearance pellet stove that I bought in 2009. Like many, I have had tremendous trouble with this stove working a whole season as one would suppose of a $4000 stove. My stove would not stay lit; the fire would lite but not stay lit. My thermo coupler was changed in Jan 2014. After talking with the service people again, they had no idea. I looked at the TC Fire pot thermocouple connection as well as all connections (as the online trouble shooting manual says to do) and thought that the two connection points in the plastic clip was not tight enough. I used a metal pick to carefully close up the connection openings on both sides of the plastic connector (that connects to the control board) and reinstalled the two wires into the connector. So far everything has worked flawlessly. I posted this because the service people installed the part and after speaking with them they never thought of this. I was told that I may need a control board ($530) from Amazon and ($700+) from the dealer. A service call would cost me $120 plus labor. I think you awesome forum guys should spread the word to see if this could be a reoccurring issue and maybe it will help others. Thank you all.

grampsjdj said:

Hello all, I'm not a forum guy and do not get on the computer much. I have a Mt Vernon AE zero clearance pellet stove that I bought in 2009. Like many, I have had tremendous trouble with this stove working a whole season as one would suppose of a $4000 stove. My stove would not stay lit; the fire would lite but not stay lit. My thermo coupler was changed in Jan 2014. After talking with the service people again, they had no idea. I looked at the TC Fire pot thermocouple connection as well as all connections (as the online trouble shooting manual says to do) and thought that the two connection points in the plastic clip was not tight enough. I used a metal pick to carefully close up the connection openings on both sides of the plastic connector (that connects to the control board) and reinstalled the two wires into the connector. So far everything has worked flawlessly. I posted this because the service people installed the part and after speaking with them they never thought of this. I was told that I may need a control board ($530) from Amazon and ($700+) from the dealer. A service call would cost me $120 plus labor. I think you awesome forum guys should spread the word to see if this could be a reoccurring issue and maybe it will help others. Thank you all.

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Well, I think you just did. Nice work!

LMPS said:

Does this happen no matter what the flame height adjustment is on? It would seem to me if its a fuel issue, that if you lower the flame height adjustment that it would stop. If not then I would suggest its not a fuel issue.

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Possible, I suppose. I've tried a number of settings, but generally find Auto works as well as anything for me. As Kap noted, it's really only at startup, when the stove is trying to "catch up", that the roar has occurred.

That is a good job of problem solving gramps, and one I have had to use a few times on stoves that were acting up. It is nice of Quad to start releasing more of this repair information on their site. kap

I've had my mt vernon since 2009 and mine used to make that sound too. What I noticed is when putting the baffle in I make sure it's centered evenly on both sides. Since I started doing this I haven't heard that noise on startup.

My experience matches smg64ct - it's the baffle placement. The s-clips that hold mine in place sometime loosen up, or I don't get the baffle placed exactly right after cleaning, and the stove roars like a jet engine - when the flame is high and the draft is getting going on startup, but throughout the day as well.
Yes, I have it set to medium output only and the lowest flame setting possible. But if that baffle is somehow out of alignment, the stove roars and vibrates - especially annoying at 3 a.m. I was about to take a sledge hammer to the thing this morning after yanking the baffle out and trying to get it properly replaced so the stove will run quietly. Getting covered with soot while in my pajamas was a royal piss-off. It's a hunk of cast-iron, for crying out loud, and shouldn't require the skills of a Ferrari mechanic to get placement right.

Yes, I'm stomping off to my dealer to see about a new set of s-clips. Which had damned well better solve the problem.

OK, later...

Examining the S-clips, I noticed the curved slot along one side, so stuck the big screwdriver I use to get them loose into the slot and forced it outward to widen the slot - thus making each clip fit more tightly against the baffle. My baffle is now Exactly Centered, with tight clips, so it doesn't vibrate and boom like the soundboard on a guitar whenever the firepot roars.

As to the firepot roaring like a flamethrower - this seems to be related to two things:
1) the lower moveable plate (with the holes in it) not fitting tightly enough against the pot. Seems to be connected with the self-cleaning mechanism - perhaps a piece of pellet gets stuck? Crusty ash accumulates around the edge? Whatev. If I drag out the shop vac and scrape and clean the pot, or simply feel around inside (when the stove is unplugged an cool, of course) to get rid of loose pellets and crust, the roaring diminishes. Maybe my self-cleaning unit needs new springs.
2) the blower sending a blast of air into the firepot. Not at start-up - the software programming apparently is nicely adjusted there. But during the day, the stove will get going and then roar a bit when the blower kicks in. Noisy, but nothing like the rattling, booming roar it emits when the baffle is loose and an S-clip is banging around.

And oh yeah - for those lying awake at night wondering, pellet soot does wash out of flannel pajamas.

I would try some new springs. Won't be the first one that needed them. kap