Excessive Ash Build up on Center Glass Breckwell P2000FS

I have a Breckwell P2000FS which I purchased new in Jan 2008. I love the stove however I seem to have excessive ash building up on the front glass (see photo). The ash builds up so heavy that I must clean daily or I can’t see thru the door. I could live with this however I must scrape the burn pot daily and every time I open the door I get a large amount of fly ash that falls out of the front area to the floor. I don’t mind having to clean the stove every day but this seems to be an excessive amount. My dealer stopped and adjusted the air deflector by adding some washers to create more space between the glass and air deflector plate along the inside bottom part of the door. The ash build up was less but the stove burned poorly with large amounts of creosote. I assumed this was too much air was entering the stove thru the air-wash and not thru the burn pot area. So I removed the washers and tightened the plate back up and now the stove burns nicely but I am back to ash build up on the front center of door. Based on the photo I think there may be something blocking the air flow in the center part of the center glass. I would like to take the air deflector off and check but my dealer says I shouldn’t because the bottom of the plate is attached with silicone. Is he correct or does he not want to mess around with this any longer? Is there anything I can do to fix this?

Ron

kinsman stoves said:

First I would like to know about the exhaust.
1.) What is the diameter 3" or 4"?
2.) When is the last time you cleaned the exhaust?
3.) Where do you run your damper at?
4.) Call me 330-876-0200 I will be here till 4:00 Pm EST.

Eric 330-876-0200

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Thanks for taking a look Eric. Exhust inside diameter is 3", set up as direct vent (horizontal). The pipe was cleaned last week. I think I may need to take combustion blower off and inspect blower fins, however this has done this since day one. the damper is set so I have flame that runs straight up, with pellets dancing slightly in burn pot. I have taken a cigarette lighter to the bottom of the glass on the outside and the stove will pull the flame down and in the air-flow slot in all areas of the three sheets of glass with the exception of the center 4 inches of the center glass.

Ron

kinsman stoves said:

You have a blockage under the center pane of glass. That needs to be opened up somehow. A business card can be used to clean it by running it through from the inside of the door. I might suggest that you undo the screws on the bottom shield and use smaller washers to get a little gap in there. Not as much as you first indicated. The whole point of the air wash is to have air come into the stove and wash the glass. BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN TIGHTENING THE SCREWS. If you over tighten you will break the glass. There should be no silicone on the door. Eric

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Thanks will give it a try later today, normal shut down and cleaning. What holds that plate on other than the two nuts on each side?

kinsman stoves said:

That is it. Take the door off to do it and lay it flat. REMEMBER, Go easy. Do not pull out the air ratchet or the 1/2" drive socket set.

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Thanks for the help, I promise not to use large tools. My dealer attempted to open air wash and tighten too much a couple of weeks ago. He broke the glass, but fixed now. I adjusted after he did the initial glass replacement Thursday (which burned poorly) and got the burn looking good again. Will use only nuit driver slightly tight. He was able to change glass without removing door?

kinsman stoves said:

Yes you can do it without removing the door but it is only pinned and will lift off. The door is a little more stable laying flat than in place. Just a point to consider, he did break the glass, right? Eric

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Point well taken, haha. He also used large washers that was not set all the way down to the bottom of air wash, which put pressure on the glass. My dealer is relatively new to pellet stoves (less than three years) and approaches things by trial and error. I don't believe he has any training on servicing these stoves. Which explains my time on this forum. It would be nice if Breckwell published a service manual or parts breakdown diagram to these stoves for people like myself who don't mind digging in and getting my hands dirty. I have two Breckwells, the P2000FS in my home which easily saved me over 50% on heating cost this winter and a Big E out in my workshop. Best purchase I ever made.

kinsman stoves said:

I love the Big E and have sold more of them than all my other pellet stoves combined. The Big E rocks. I did say this before and had to answer to it but if you put the Big E and any Harman pellet stove in a cage match fight the Harman would take a butt whooping. Then the Big E would take the Harman's Girlfriend out for a beer. Eric

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I believe that, when I fire up the Big E on 3 or 4 out in my shop you'll need several beers to cool you off in short order. The P2000 kept my house (1400sq ft) warm all winter with having to go to the number 4 setting only on the coldest days (-20F to -30F), and my house has very little insulation. Kept my house @ 75 F, which is very comfy. I did look at the Harman and Quadra Fire before deciding that saving some money by going with the Breckwells was my best choice. have not regretted that decission.

Well, after cleaning with card stock between the air deflector plate and glass, I still have the same problem (ash build up on door). I was able to get the card stock to bend under the glass as well. My current thinking as that maybe the plate has a slight warp towards the glass which creates less space for the air to flow. My plan is to take a straight edge to the plate tonight when I shut down to clean. I cannot put a washer in the middle of the glass as it may put enough pressure to ctrack the glass under high heat.