Englander 25pdv Lazy Flame, Pellet Build Up in Burn Pot

ispperformance said:

3-5-1 that's what I meant to type, but my brain seems to keep things in order.

I made the change about 10min ago.


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How full does the burn pot get at the point of ignition during startup?

ispperformance said:

Well, just got back from the rink, had the stove set on 3-3 with the new 3-5-1 setting, and the flame seems the same, doesn't look like a lot of air pushing thru the bottom of the pot.


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Did you put your hand over the outside cover of the OAK to make sure it's pulling? I'm almost inclined to say it's your combustion blower

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ispperformance said:

The OAK is definitely pulling in air, I grabbed a leaf off the ground and it would hold it on there, tried the rubber glove I had on, and no, wouldn't hold it. How much suction should I feel?


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Enough for you to notice the restriction and if it held a leaf it should be sufficient. Is there a way for you to have someone else hold their hand over it while you look at the flame inside?

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ispperformance said:

Yes, just did that, and the flame goes super lazy, like the door is open.


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It's not the oak so that is ruled out!

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ispperformance said:

I'm about to plumb an air fitting into the OAK and feed it forced air from the compressor!

Then I won't need to build a metal forge....

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Not going to recommend doing that because you could actually blow out the combustion fan. I know you're frustrated and all I'm trying to do is give you some information but we're hitting dead ends. I honestly think you need to call Englander tomorrow and let them troubleshoot it with you.

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ispperformance said:

I would never force air into the system, but thought it was funny.

I'm going to call Englander tomorrow, and see what's up. Will post back with what they say.

Thanks to all for the help, you guys are great!


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LOL... I thought you were serious!! You're welcome and let us know how you make out.

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ispperformance said:

I would never force air into the system, but thought it was funny.

I'm going to call Englander tomorrow, and see what's up. Will post back with what they say.

Thanks to all for the help, you guys are great!


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The combustion blower seems to be the only thing left. perhaps if you call Englander they could tell you a way to bench test it.

Does the stove use the same amount of pellets on any heat setting? Does the top auger turn more frequently on higher heat settings?

ispperformance said:

Two questions -
1) Is the restrictor plate in the bottom of your hopper removed/missing or was your stove designed not to have one? There is no presence of any screw holes or hardware that would have held a restrictor plate, so I am going to say that there was not one from the factory.

2) What heat range are you running it on? In the pic of the flame above thats with the stove on Heat 5 / Blower 5, if I run it at 9-9 flame looks the same but the buildup of pellets grows into an unburnt lava like overflowing pot on about 10-12hrs.

That's a big flame you got there. Without the plate, maybe it's feeding way more pellets than it should be. If there are a lot of pellets in the burn pot, it might lead to a lazier burn. The one on my stove is nearly fully closed (which leaves about 1.5" of the auger exposed). I believe this is how it was set at the factory in 2015. I'll try to get a picture if I remember and I catch my stove nearly empty.

What's the biggest flame look like if you set the heat range on like 3 or 4? It is usually a consistently large flame as pictured even when on 3 or 4.

You might also try to adjust your settings. I've set mine to 4-6-1 and it seems to keep the burn pot and glass a bit cleaner. I don't remember these settings really adjusting the behavior of the flame, however, but it might be worth a shot before you buy a combustion blower.

For reference, this is all with big box pellets. Current Stove Chows and re-branded Maine Woods Pellets from Tractor Supply.

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I've attached a picture of my restrictor plate. Sounds like yours was designed not to have one, but the pics might be helpful to someone. That's a 1.5" putty knife (which I use to clear the burn plate) for comparison .

The video you posted doesn't look awful. I tried to attached a short video of my stove running on 6-9. (Edit: this doesn't appear to be work as expected. I'll try to upload something to the Youtubes and post it).

Blocking the holes below the burn plate really should help with the "unburnt lava" once you get any other air leaks/restrictions resolved.

Also, the kind of pellets your using might contribute also. I just got done burning three bags of rebranded Curran pellets from Tractor Supply. These are easily the ashiest pellet I've encountered (but are okay in other respects). Overnight, the ash pile was enough to noticeably affect the flame, making it higher and lazier than expected. Once the burn pot was cleared the flame returned to normal. The rebranded Maine Woods Pellets from TSC didn't do this, nor do the Stove Chows from Home Depot or any of the other Energex/Premier Pellet big box stuff I've burned. The only other brand that got close to this level of ash, that I've used, was ThermaGlo.

Edit 2: Here's the video on Youtube...

ispperformance said:

So after a 32 minute on hold, I finally got thru to Englander tech support. After going thru the things I already had done, what I've changed, how I cleaned it out etc. He told me to turn the low burn air up to 9, yes 6-9-1, and run it on 1 or 2 setting to see if the flame improves. I asked him about a way to test the suction of combustion motor and he said that the do a paper test. If you can out a sheet of paper on the air inlet and it holds it then it should be good. Regardless he pointed out what I already knew, the stove is 13 years old, so the combustion motor is 13 years old. I will buy a new one and see what happens.

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Good to hear.... Our of curiosity who'd you speak to at Englander?

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ispperformance said:

I believe he said Devon or Derrick.


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Let me know how you make out with moving the air to 9.

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ispperformance said:

So with the settings on 6-9-1 as per tech support, I'm not seeing a huge difference in the flame. Maybe it's a little smaller, but still a campfire in my opinion.

Combustion motor?

View attachment 189499


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I think that you know you're stove best and that it's also apparent that you have done just about everything possible and that's why you're reached out to the Forum for some extra tips. I know that Englander changed from the Fasco motor and now they have p-tech and I will tell you first-hand that the p-tech is a quieter motor and it runs nicely. I would definitely go with a new p-tech from Englander and hopefully that will address the problem! You can also give me a call if you like and we can go over on the phone rather than texting back and forth.

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ispperformance said:

Is this the P-Tech? Its whats listed on Englanders site, and looks different than whats on my stove now.

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I don't think so... That looks like a Fasco. Give me 45 minutes and I will let you know for sure.

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jjones139 said:

I don't think so... That looks like a Fasco. Give me 45 minutes and I will let you know for sure.

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That could also be a stock photo and they haven't updated. Call and ask, but then again that takes lots of time to get through.

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jjones139 said:

That could also be a stock photo and they haven't updated. Call and ask, but then again that takes lots of time to get through.

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That's definitely a Fasco, but Englander now ships P-Tech.

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