filling the hopper = temp drop

  • 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.

chrisasst

Minister of Fire
Aug 13, 2008
1,289
cortland ny
I bought a digital thermometer that has a probe. Pretty much all day the out put has been around 340ish. I just filled the hopper and the temp has dropped and staying around 315. Why would filling the hopper cause a temp drop..?
 
Why?
I shouldn't fill the hopper full than? I don't understand :red:
 
Or...maybe your best air source is currently coming through your hopper.

Then, you have a blockage coming the intended air route.
 
Hello

What Smokey means is that pellets can hold in the cold.

So if you store your pellets in a cold garage, they will even feel cold coming out of the bag. I had more auger jams from the cold pellets adding moisture to the stove. So now I always have a few bags in my warm basement for a few days before loading them into the pellet stove. It works much better and creates more heat.
 
Yep, I found that out too. I always keep, 6-8 bags in close proximity to the stove. The rest are in the garage. This way they're at room temp when I add them.
 
I do the same thing. Room temp pellets added to hopper. No problems with them this way. Mine are stored outside in the shed. BRRRRR!!
 
340 degrees output temperature???? That's really high, WAY HIGH. My stoves put out about 180 max AIR TEMPERATURE. Do you have the probe just sitting in the outlet or is it suspended in front of the outlet? I could see if you have it inserted into the outlet that you would have that high temperature because you're measuring the temperature of the steel/aluminum (?) heat exchanger and not the air. That could also explain why the temp drops when you dump in a load of cold pellets. They cool down the stove's mass, which is reflected in a drop in the temperature of the heat exchangers.
A lot of people make this mistake by sticking a meat thermometer into the outlet tubes of the heat exchanger where it sits against the tubing, giving a false reading.
 
SmokeyTheBear said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.
 
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.

His stove has a metal hopper and it can impact the temperature out the front a bit. Further he is also disturbing the air flow through the stove while adding the pellets. This is even before you try to figure out if he has that thermometer in the very same place for both measurements and that it is also protected from any air movements associated with his actions.

But in essence he is adding an ice cube to the stove.
 
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.

His stove has a metal hopper and it can impact the temperature out the front a bit. Further he is also disturbing the air flow through the stove while adding the pellets. This is even before you try to figure out if he has that thermometer in the very same place for both measurements and that it is also protected from any air movements associated with his actions.

But in essence he is adding an ice cube to the stove.
Really? 40lbs of cold pellets cooled the stove output by 25 degrees! Those are some really cold pellets to cool the entire stove off by that amount. I always put cold pellets in my stoves..no big deal. More than likely the auger stopped feeding pellets when he opened the lid and it took some time to recover. I agree he may have accidently moved the thermo in the process.
 
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.

His stove has a metal hopper and it can impact the temperature out the front a bit. Further he is also disturbing the air flow through the stove while adding the pellets. This is even before you try to figure out if he has that thermometer in the very same place for both measurements and that it is also protected from any air movements associated with his actions.

But in essence he is adding an ice cube to the stove.
Really? 40lbs of cold pellets cooled the stove output by 25 degrees! Those are some really cold pellets to cool the entire stove off by that amount. I always put cold pellets in my stoves..no big deal. More than likely the auger stopped feeding pellets when he opened the lid and it took some time to recover. I agree he may have accidently moved the thermo in the process.

I didn't say it cooled the stove by almost 25 degrees. He also is not measuring the stoves temperature, not by a long shot.
 
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.

His stove has a metal hopper and it can impact the temperature out the front a bit. Further he is also disturbing the air flow through the stove while adding the pellets. This is even before you try to figure out if he has that thermometer in the very same place for both measurements and that it is also protected from any air movements associated with his actions.

But in essence he is adding an ice cube to the stove.
Really? 40lbs of cold pellets cooled the stove output by 25 degrees! Those are some really cold pellets to cool the entire stove off by that amount. I always put cold pellets in my stoves..no big deal. More than likely the auger stopped feeding pellets when he opened the lid and it took some time to recover. I agree he may have accidentally moved the thermo in the process.

I didn't say it cooled the stove by almost 25 degrees. He also is not measuring the stoves temperature, not by a long shot.

The original poster stated his temperature dropped by 25 degrees and stayed there. If your response is correct, the cold pellets would have to be in direct contact with the heat exchanger to possibly make a difference. If significant heat cannot transfer from the stove through the hopper, cold cannot transfer from the hopper to the stove. Does this make sense? I can't believe I am arguing this with you.
 
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear said:
BDPVT said:
SmokeyTheBear" date="1296198255 said:
You in effect just added an ice cube to the stove.

I find this hard to believe. The hopper has absolutely nothing to do with heat exchange and is generally isolated from the stove mass. I can't imagine a load of cold pellets can cool a stove down to any measurable degree. The hopper on my Quad is plastic and the metal lined hopper on my Accentra insert is only moderately warm even after the stove has been running high all day long. I think the problem is in his data collection.

His stove has a metal hopper and it can impact the temperature out the front a bit. Further he is also disturbing the air flow through the stove while adding the pellets. This is even before you try to figure out if he has that thermometer in the very same place for both measurements and that it is also protected from any air movements associated with his actions.

But in essence he is adding an ice cube to the stove.
Really? 40lbs of cold pellets cooled the stove output by 25 degrees! Those are some really cold pellets to cool the entire stove off by that amount. I always put cold pellets in my stoves..no big deal. More than likely the auger stopped feeding pellets when he opened the lid and it took some time to recover. I agree he may have accidentally moved the thermo in the process.

I didn't say it cooled the stove by almost 25 degrees. He also is not measuring the stoves temperature, not by a long shot.

The original poster stated his temperature dropped by 25 degrees and stayed there. If your response is correct, the cold pellets wo
uld have to be in direct contact with the heat exchanger to possibly make a difference. If significant heat cannot transfer from the stove through the hopper, cold cannot transfer from the hopper to the stove. Does this make sense? I can't believe I am arguing this with you.

Actually the heat would transfer to the colder object which would be the hopper. The effect of this would be a temporary lowering elsewhere.

The OP saying "and stayed there" is likely because he hit something while loading the hopper.
 
tjnamtiw said:
340 degrees output temperature???? That's really high, WAY HIGH. My stoves put out about 180 max AIR TEMPERATURE. Do you have the probe just sitting in the outlet or is it suspended in front of the outlet? I could see if you have it inserted into the outlet that you would have that high temperature because you're measuring the temperature of the steel/aluminum (?) heat exchanger and not the air. That could also explain why the temp drops when you dump in a load of cold pellets. They cool down the stove's mass, which is reflected in a drop in the temperature of the heat exchangers.
A lot of people make this mistake by sticking a meat thermometer into the outlet tubes of the heat exchanger where it sits against the tubing, giving a false reading.

Yes I have the tip of the probe just resting on the very edge of the tube. Yes, I need to figure a way to dangle it in front to get a more accurate reading.
 
Is there a hopper lid sensor? Some of the newer stoves have them and the pellet feed stops when the lid is open. That would cool it down a bit.
 
While you're at it try this one on for size, he hit the stove with the bag of pellets and knocked ash down into the fire pot.

This could choke off air causing a drop in burn pot temperature.
 
Actually the heat would transfer to the colder object which would be the hopper. The effect of this would be a temporary lowering elsewhere.

The OP saying “and stayed there†is likely because he hit something while loading the hopper.

Your assumption is correct. Heat will always transfer to the cooler object until both objects equalize temperature. The hopper is always cooler than the stove. Correct? It is always cooler than the stove because it is isolated from the stove, otherwise it would be just as hot and your pellets would be burning in the hopper!
So which is it, the ice cube or moving something while loading the hopper? Or maybe the auger stopped when he opened the lid. Sorry, but this argument defies logic. Not trying to offend anyone, just trying to make a point.
 
BDPVT said:
Actually the heat would transfer to the colder object which would be the hopper. The effect of this would be a temporary lowering elsewhere.

The OP saying “and stayed there†is likely because he hit something while loading the hopper.

Your assumption is correct. Heat will always transfer to the cooler object until both objects equalize temperature. The hopper is always cooler than the stove. Correct? It is always cooler than the stove because it is isolated from the stove, otherwise it would be just as hot and your pellets would be burning in the hopper!
So which is it, the ice cube or moving something while loading the hopper? Or maybe the auger stopped when he opened the lid. Sorry, but this argument defies logic. Not trying to offend anyone, just trying to make a point.

Actually the hopper is insulated from the fire not truly isolated. There is conduction that takes place and the hopper is not at ambient temperature. The reason there are high limit safeties on the stove is to prevent the temperature from getting high enough to start those pellets in the hopper.

And just so you know you aren't offending anyone.

It is actually likely some of both. It does not have to be exclusive.
 
Chris is also running his stove maxed, pegged, flat out, to the boards, she won't go no higher! I have to believe at least some air is being drawn thru the hopper. To get as much heat as possible out of it he is also running the damper closed in a bit more than might be usual.

All stoves will get variable temps on the convection air. It depends on the CFM of the convection blower. If I max out my Omega I could get over 500ºF with the 200 CFM blower. With the 455 CFM I just stuck in there, I get around 370ºF But thats maxed. I could get more with a denser pellet as well. Toss in the Cubex or Hamer Hotties would output a bit more heat!
 
BDPVT said:
... Your assumption is correct. Heat will always transfer to the cooler object until both objects equalize temperature. The hopper is always cooler than the stove. Correct? It is always cooler than the stove because it is isolated from the stove, otherwise it would be just as hot and your pellets would be burning in the hopper! ...

Only in a closed system would the temperature ever equalize a pellet stove is not a closed system. The entire closed system would be the universe.

The heat is removed via convection, radiation, conduction, and various combinations of these methods of heat transfer.

Heat always flows from the hot to cold.
 
Ok, we now are up to several possible causes with many possible combinations.

Oh and just so everyone understands the final resting temperature is zero degrees Kelvin. You won't need to worry about it getting any colder after that.

Ain't heat just grand?
 
So I got the probe dangling in front the pic is below...( 178-180 °F ) It is what about 160 °F difference from blowing air to when I had the tip resting on the pipe, and the stove is maxed out, it is 30 °F outside and it is only blowing out that temp... :bug:
The 400 on the bottom of the unit is an alarm set.
I have some pellets sitting next to the stove, I'll see tonight if that makes a difference
I just calibrated this thermometer and it is about 10 degrees off( higher than it should be)

.
000_0001-2.jpg
 
Status
Not open for further replies.