I find that when i run out of pellets there's usually about half a bag still in the hopper but the pellets are stacked on the tapered side of the hopper just before they fall into the auger pit. i would get a bit more burn out of a full hopper if there was some kind of lube or something to keep the pellets sliding all the way down the hopper. seriously when i push them all to the bottom of the hopper there is about 10" of pellets left to go thru before another fill. i would love to put some noncombustible coating on the sides to keep them constantly filling the auger pot and not stacking up the slanted sides of the hopper.. any best practices would be appreciated! if there are any.
pellets not sliding to bottom of hopper
- Thread starter ramdez
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I was just thinking about teflon earlier today. I wonder how combustible it is once it's applied and dried.
Mr Fixit
New Member
Yes I have heard of the was solution, and teflon is a good option also.
Whatever you use, please remember to never put your hand into the hopper to push the pellets down into the auger. I personally know someone who did this and got her hand drawn into the auger, and it cost her 9 hours of almost unbearable pain until she was finally discovered and the loss of 3 fingers when the fire dept finally figured out how to get her hand free.
Whatever you use, please remember to never put your hand into the hopper to push the pellets down into the auger. I personally know someone who did this and got her hand drawn into the auger, and it cost her 9 hours of almost unbearable pain until she was finally discovered and the loss of 3 fingers when the fire dept finally figured out how to get her hand free.
Doocrew
Feeling the Heat
Mr Fixit said:
Good advice. That would be like sticking your hand in the chute of a snowblower to free a jam. It usually does not produce good results.
maybe she was triple dog dared?
so wax or Teflon? lets bang out the pros and cons
con: wax you may have to redo every so often
pro: permanent
so wax or Teflon? lets bang out the pros and cons
con: wax you may have to redo every so often
pro: permanent
Come to think about it, having something that's even mildly inflammable lining a hopper filled with stuff that is destined to burn up anyway doesn't strike me as any greater a hazard than filling a hopper with stuff that is destined to burn up anyway.
lol good point, it's all fuel anyway n the flame would have to come back all the way passed the auger and then up. i would be more worried that the stuff would coat the pellets n do something to them eh well, i'll ask the repair man when he comes tomorrow to tell me why i have a bolt in my burn pan lol.
Czech
Minister of Fire
Now I'm not sure about all stove models, but augers on the ones I know do NOT turn that quickly. If this lady in question lost fingers, she passed out with her hand down there for about an hour or two. Even then, most stoves would shut down due to the obstruction, no way you're going to lose a finger. No way, dream on all. As far as the pellet hopper goes, good advice above, wax it for starters, telflon is cool too, aerosols and running stoves and CO detectors don't mix well so keep that in mind.
Mr Fixit
New Member
Leadfoot
Member
I move over a million tons of coal each year. Years ago we had many problems with coal sticking and chute pluggs. We lined the problem areas with UHMW and it solved all the sticking problems. One of our plants in Hawaii called and ask me if we had this sticking problem, I explained what we did so they followed suit as well as many others. UHMW is a great material to prevent pluggs and sticking.
The melting point is arounf 300 degrees F and it wears 6 times better than steel.
The melting point is arounf 300 degrees F and it wears 6 times better than steel.
man-machine
Member
I have the same problem, hopper sides are only at a 30 or so degree angle. I thought of a good, hard wipedown with silicone spray might help. Sure gets annoying when they don't slide like they should.
man-machine
Member
Leadfoot said:
Absolutely. We used UHMW on the folder/gluer packaging machines we were building and it's the ultimate stuff for creating the "slippery slope". Glad this forum doesn't have a politics section or we'd be hearing about the "slippery slope" a lot more lol.
mainegeek
Member
I would have to agree that if the stove was powered on and the woman had her hand inside the bit of the auger when it turned that it could provide for a very painful experience and a possible loss of blood in the fingers. I wouldn't want to do it!
That is why my stove is always unplugged before my hand goes down the auger shoot OR why I always shut off the snow blower and disconnect the spark plug before replacing a sheer pin.
On a side note, the pellets don't seem to stick to the sides in my stoves hopper even when unattended..... but isn't half the fun of running a pellet stove opening up the hopper every few hours and flattening the pellets near the auger shoot? I don't know what it is; I would liken it to sifting the ambers in a wood stove!
That is why my stove is always unplugged before my hand goes down the auger shoot OR why I always shut off the snow blower and disconnect the spark plug before replacing a sheer pin.
On a side note, the pellets don't seem to stick to the sides in my stoves hopper even when unattended..... but isn't half the fun of running a pellet stove opening up the hopper every few hours and flattening the pellets near the auger shoot? I don't know what it is; I would liken it to sifting the ambers in a wood stove!
Mr Fixit
New Member
HopeItBurns
Member
I G :bug: :bug: l e d it and it said: Ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE or sometimes shortened to UHMW), UHMW Anti-Static can move products more safely in potentially volatile environments, such as munitions plants, grain handling facilities and explosive assembly facilities (air-bags) where a spark can cause a dust explosion. UHMW AntiStatic protects products sensitive to build-up of electrical charges.
At any rate sounds interesting, i'll stick to checking the hopper every so often.
At any rate sounds interesting, i'll stick to checking the hopper every so often.
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
man-machine said:
The closest this forum gets to that is in The Ash Can
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewforum/10/
Leadfoot
Member
Hmmm, politics, a very slippery slope indeed. I'll have to pass on that one.
I administered a political forum for a few years, doing my best to be unbiased. The worst time of my life, the site made me ill. Adults at their worst!
Pellet stoves are much more fun. My only regret about pellet stoves is I just got my first and I only have one
I administered a political forum for a few years, doing my best to be unbiased. The worst time of my life, the site made me ill. Adults at their worst!
Pellet stoves are much more fun. My only regret about pellet stoves is I just got my first and I only have one
Leadfoot
Member
QuadraBurner
Member
Mr Fixit said:
Although it sounds unlikely, it obviously is not impossible. I would be curious to hear exactly what happened, as it is hard to imagine how it could happen. My stove has a switch on the hopper lid that turns off the auger when the lid is open. I suppose older models may not have had this safety measure.
Leadfoot
Member
Clean out the pellets and fines in the hopper and spray it with lemon pledge furniture polish. Works great. ;-)
Czech
Minister of Fire
OT gang, sorry, but I felt that I needed to apologize to Fixit guy in the public forum here and explain a little about my comments. Mr. Fixit, I was sarcastic, and for that I apologize to you Sir. I did not call you a liar, that would mean that I felt that you were intentionally saying something untruthful, I do not and maybe what you stated is true. My point was that I have worked on numerous stove models, and find it hard to believe for the following reasons. Augers on pellets stoves typically turn intermittently off and on every few seconds, say 4 seconds on, 8 seconds off for a total of .25-50 rpms when on every cycle. This means a full rpm on the stoves I know take a minute or more for a complete revolution of the auger. That fact, coupled with the fact that most stoves have fail safes on the auger (prevents the part from burning out when stuck), I find your comment hard to swallow although I’m very interested in more details if true, please provide those details so I can learn if you would. As far as being eager to disprove you, I am not, I am eager to provide factual information here for users of stoves such as the ones we own based on my experience and knowledge. That’s all. The following comment may be taken as sarcasm too, for that I apologize in advance, but I have submitted this situation to Myth Busters in the hope that those two fun guys may have the final say on this topic (man, do they have the coolest job or what?). I’ll keep the board posted. Peace, Bob.
By the way, Pledge works great, that's what I use! Just keep those aerosols away from open flame and CO's!
By the way, Pledge works great, that's what I use! Just keep those aerosols away from open flame and CO's!
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