almost ready to go back to propane, cause this is getting old fast.

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Jim W

New Member
Jan 20, 2011
25
Michigan
So every time I think I have this stove figured out, I don't. Thought the low heat was due to the air intake not being connected (wrong). So I called the dealer and they suggested switching pellets again. I got some Somerset pellets, really like the low ash, but they seam to get ash on top of the pile in the burn pot. Heat is about the same as the Michigan Wood Pellets. Back to the issue, the colder the weather, the less heat I'm getting and the pellets burn slower. I have cleaned this thing over and over again in the two and a half weeks I've owned it. It is a Harman xxv, if anyone has experienced this problem and has the magic answer please let me know.
 
This makes no sense if everything is set up and the stove is running properly. You should be getting a large strong flame when calling for heat and a very hot air temp blowing out of the vents from the heat exchanger. A friend of mine is using one of these to heat the entire upstairs of a raised ranch in Maine. The stove is in an addition on the house with 15 ft ceiling (and a ceiling fan to keep warm air down). The XXV is keeping her place above 70 if that is what she wants it to do, usually around 72.

Has the installing dealer visited and experienced what you are describing?
 
Ask your dealer if they could come out and verify the DIP switch settings are correct. They should have a diagnostic tool. If they bring it you can verify without pulling the control box out AND you can monitor how much heat you are loosing up the flue via the ESP. I have a sneaky suspicion that you are drafting to quickly. Correction can be made to monitor the draft and you can visually see a reduction in heat up the flue (which translates into heat in your house) by making some simple adjustments to the draft and cleaning etc... Also.....Michigan's are VERY ashy. clean off your heat exchanger if you haven't in a while.
 
Thanks for the responses. No, the dealer has not been out yet, I have called them several times and they seem to think it is the pellets. I know this is not the case, I have tried four different brands with the same result (good heat till it gets cold, then a consistant heat loss).
 
We are also in Maine & are using our XXV to heat our whole first floor (48' ranch). The stove is in our great room with cathedral ceilings. That room stays about 74 degrees & the bedrooms at the other end of the hall are about 65 degrees. We have the fan set just below high to push the heat out, but otherwise are not using any other fans to move the warm air. The house is very comfortable. We still use oil to heat the basement & for hot water.

The dealer needs to come on-site & re-inspect the stove installation & settings. This is a brand new stove & you should not be having these issues. The XXV IS a great stove. We've had problems with ours squealing due to carbon issues (which were horrendous this year & that WAS due to the pellets & the dealer has switched those out). We seem to have one major repair every year, but otherwise we absolutely love the heat this stove puts out. If your XXV isn't putting out heat & it sounds like you're getting a lazy burn, it must be the settings. We set our stove on room temp, fan just below high, temp set about 70 degrees or just under. We are very comfy.

Are you running your stove on room temp or stove temp? Have you tried using the opposite setting? Where is your sensor located? Could be the location of the sensor. If it's getting too warm a reading, it would cause a smaller fire to be built. Ours is mounted to the wall behind & to the left of the stove.

Hope you find the solution. When this stove is running right, you'll love it & won't want to think about propane!
 
On my XXV with outside air intake, I was over-drafting and sending most of the heat up the stack. My solution was to place foil tape over the intake mouth until I had a lazy flame,
and then start removing small portions of tape to get the flame right. The outside air intake is 4" diameter and a 3/8" x 4" opening is all I need to get the flame right..
 
We are running on stove temp, have tried both, it doesn't really make a difference. But thanks for the thought.
 
Self install or did the dealer do the install?

If the dealer did the install they should have checked the draft and made any needed adjustments.
 
Something is obviously wrong and it is not the pellets if you have tried various brands.
What settings are you using? Do you have the rocker switch on high?

I am on the 5th winter with my XXV and it can melt your eyeballs if you stand to close to the thing.

EDIT: As others have mentioned, request the dealer make a visit and test the draft.
 
how many square feet is your house,did you do your homework and make sure that the stove you have has sufficiant btu's to properly heat your home? try closing the windows also, heat seems to stay inside much easier that way! just kidding. there must be sompting wrong with the fuel air mixture,obviously not the fuel so it must be a lack of air flow,and if your cold air return is not hooked up than that only leaves the stove itself as a factor,you may have only had it a couple weeks and have cleaned it multiple times but are you sure all you intake orfices are clear of any dust build up or anything else that will restrict the air flow into the stove?
 
I have everything on high...Settings are as follows: Stove Temp Hi, #7 on thermostat, feed rate is currently @2 because the pellets are burning so that anything higher is just pushing burning pellets into the ash pan (i have tried every feed rate and no change to heat or flame).
 
It isn't the pellets..

It would be like saying the oil leaking from the burnt ring is due to the type of oil being used.
If the stove is clean..then that issue isn't the problem..

When I work on my stove I always UNPLUG the power and let the stove go back to factory settings and re boot.
Maybe you've done more to confuse the stove and yourself than is necessary?

If it cant be solved by recommendations from here it might be something only a dealer can test..
A good dealer is worth a lot more than a lousy burning stove and pissed off customer.Give Them a chance.

A hot stove that works correctly is a joy to have..
I cannot imagine sitting around the heat vent and going..

"ah ..Propane.."

when the bill comes at the end of the month.

Good luck..
 
certainly sounds like something is obstructing your combustion airflow. your feed rate setting is far too low to get the stove to a decent output. if you are using the harman wall passthrough for fresh air intake make sure the piece of insulation is cut out from inside the flange (super common thing to skip over on self install).
 
I turned it down from 4.5 because nothing was burning, it was just pushing full hot pellets into the ash pan. No difference in the heat output currently. insulation has been removed. any idea what number setting the intake on the wall passthrough should be at? owners manual said "2".
 
Jim44 said:
I turned it down from 4.5 because nothing was burning, it was just pushing full hot pellets into the ash pan. No difference in the heat output currently. insulation has been removed. any idea what number setting the intake on the wall passthrough should be at? owners manual said "2".

that adjustment on the passthrough is really just so you can line up the flange and the pipe on the different models, not much to do with anything else. If you pull off the fresh air intake does anything change (from the stove end, not the passthrough end)????
 
Jim44 said:
I have everything on high...Settings are as follows: Stove Temp Hi, #7 on thermostat, feed rate is currently @2 because the pellets are burning so that anything higher is just pushing burning pellets into the ash pan (i have tried every feed rate and no change to heat or flame).

This is a symptom of plugged holes at the bottom of the burn pot. There are 5 - 6 holes down near the end of the auger that are almost impossible to see. They are situated exactly where the dreaded Harman carbon "speed bump" occurs. Most of the heat from the igniter is directed towards them, so that the pellets ignite immediately upon entering the pot. A piece of 12 gauge wire - with about 3/4" of sheathing stripped back & a 90 degree bend - will work wonders for cleaning them, AFTER you scrape out the speed bump...
 
If you used the Harman supplied wall pass thru, make sure you cut out the insulation from the air intake side of the pass thru! It is about 1/4" thick and looks like a white piece of felt. If this is not removed, then the only air entering the stove will be what it can draw from around the flange where the flex pipe meets it.
 
DAKSY said:
Jim44 said:
I have everything on high...Settings are as follows: Stove Temp Hi, #7 on thermostat, feed rate is currently @2 because the pellets are burning so that anything higher is just pushing burning pellets into the ash pan (i have tried every feed rate and no change to heat or flame).

This is a symptom of plugged holes at the bottom of the burn pot. There are 5 - 6 holes down near the end of the auger that are almost impossible to see. They are situated exactly where the dreaded Harman carbon "speed bump" occurs. Most of the heat from the igniter is directed towards them, so that the pellets ignite immediately upon entering the pot. A piece of 12 gauge wire - with about 3/4" of sheathing stripped back & a 90 degree bend - will work wonders for cleaning them, AFTER you scrape out the speed bump...

The wonder bar is the best tool ever for raking the Harman burn pot. Though the OP is not having issues with ignition.
 
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