The fuse blew on the control panel and now the stove will not power up. The fuse blows as soon as I hit the on button. Is there a way to test the board to be sure it is the problem?
Breckwell Big E, Fuse on Control board burns as soon as power button is touched.
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Going to need a bit more info from you to help.
1.) Are you electrically inclined and do you own a meter to check things?
2.) When the first fuse blew was the stove running or just starting up?
I will try to help with more info.
jay
1.) Are you electrically inclined and do you own a meter to check things?
2.) When the first fuse blew was the stove running or just starting up?
I will try to help with more info.
jay
Let me add one more question:
Since the last time the stove ran w/o any problems, what EXACTLY have you done to the stove?
List EVERYTHING please.
Since the last time the stove ran w/o any problems, what EXACTLY have you done to the stove?
List EVERYTHING please.
what does the fuse look like inside. Is it blown violently up or is it a small crack in the filament?
imacman said:
I have bypassed the POF thermodisk and High Limit thermodisk to check them and they are ok. I have checked the connectors to the control board and changed the fuse.
j-takeman said:
Yes I am somewhat electriaclly inclined and I do own a multimeter.
The fuse blew when we lost power.
burner50 said:
Thats what I was looking for, Most likely a surge took out the board. Unplug the stove first and remove the board from the stove. Snap a couple of pictures and post them or PM me your email addy and I will forward mine to you. I might be able to locate the bad components on the board if thats the case. You most likely will see some blacken spots on the board.
Seeing that the first thing that turns on is the combustion blower that would be the 2nd thing I would look at it with a meter. Check the ohms and see if its might have a dead short. You could plug it in direct but be careful. If shorted it could dump the breaker on that circuit.
3rd thing is take a GOOD look at the wiring. Sometimes the surge will arc out one of the wires and fuse it to the stove body. With the stove unplugged I make sure none of the wires are not touching the stove case and I inspect them for blow outs(bare spots).
But odds are the board took the hit and it crispied a component or two on the board. Can you solder???
If the thing is shorting out on start up I would look into the leads that go to the combustion blower and make sure they haven't somehow come loose from the harness. Wires that are free to the wind can rest against the exhaust housing and melt. The board powers the combustion blower first to generate negative pressure and then starts the sequence of looking for the switches to be functioning properly. If you can replace the fuse and then power back up that is a good sign. It means the board may not be blown. Has anyone worked on the stove since it's last operation?
smwilliamson said:
When board is plugged in you only liven up the 5V control power. The triacs are inactive, Once you hit the start button on the breckwell boards the 120V becomes live. Still could be the control board! That's why I want some pictures of the board. I have dabbled with quit a few!
j-takeman said:
Yes, but they are fine when plugged in. It's when they hit the power button. Or that is what the post says. Still, if they can replace the fuse and the thing sits idle, I would imagine that the short is external of the control board.
smwilliamson said:
With the unpredictable AC anything is possible. But I have seen it before, Not the first go round with a Breckwell digital board. I am betting it will idle and not trip untill the power button is pushed. There is a 5v DC control relay on the board that isolates the 120v AC. Once the Button is pushed the relay energizes the 120v AC and then poof goes the fuse! Seen it with my own eyes on my simulator! $18.00 worth of components and a new fuse and she was running like the dickens.
I also bet the stove was plugged in without a surge suppressor. Or a cheap one at best! Spend $70.00 or $245.00 in a control board after the first surge.
j-takeman said:
Reminds me of the old Fram filter commercial (not that I would ever use one <junk>) :
"You can pay me now ($), or pay me later ($$$$$)"
It doesn't rule out a bad board. Could be a shorted triac which you might not see. But I will play along.
Check the combustion motor with your meter in Ohms. You don't want to see OL. Then use a cord and see if the motor runs on direct power to it. If the motor runs start checking the wiring for the short. If you don't see nothing post back. I am not sure on your electrical skill soooo I'm trying to be safe here. My stove notes are tucked away for now. I have my fishing notes out and enjoying that!
SMW, Do you have any other tests to rule out the board? I am really bad with words and maybe you could talk him through some stuff!
Check the combustion motor with your meter in Ohms. You don't want to see OL. Then use a cord and see if the motor runs on direct power to it. If the motor runs start checking the wiring for the short. If you don't see nothing post back. I am not sure on your electrical skill soooo I'm trying to be safe here. My stove notes are tucked away for now. I have my fishing notes out and enjoying that!
SMW, Do you have any other tests to rule out the board? I am really bad with words and maybe you could talk him through some stuff!
j-takeman said:
Fuse. IS IT THE CORRECT Amperage? Are we sure that it is the correct amperage? I'm not sure but I think the Big E is 4amps 250V AC.
Got a friend with another Big E control board??? That's a simple way to check. That aside...remove leads one at a time from all of the motors and bench test them with 120V AC to observe if they are working. I would start with the combustion motor, then the auger, then the convection. I have a test cord made from an extension cord with alligator clips. If they all work, then we move to a complete inspection of all switches, actuate them with pressure or heat as needed and test continuity. Lastly, inspect all of the wiring harness for a short. this is more common in and around the exhaust area...as that gets hot and wire casings melt.
If after all of this, and everything seems to check out, I would suggest that the control board is bad. Alternatively, yank the control board and bring it down to the dealer and have them bench test it against one of their own.
Sorry, I do not have an electrical schematic to troubleshoot the board. J, you have all that stuff. So handy that the finshing notes are taking you away....what's wrong? Reliving the Big E nightmares?
smwilliamson said:
YES! And a P23 and a P2000 and.........and........and.......... Uggg!
Before I made my simulator I did it with an old harness. About the same as having it in the stove with nothing connected and the safeties(high limit and vacuum switch) jumped out. But you have to be sure there are no shorts in the harness. All connectors should be taped to ensure there isolated. If the board still pops the fuse?
I had an issue like this w/ a Lopi, and once with a Bosca. The Lopi Leyden had a hopper switch that was shorting things out (loose wire rubbung against the metal casing). The bosca had a lead that was laying too close to the exhaust blower's housing.. the heat melted off part of the plastic on the wire, so that every time the exhaust fan was on, it would short out.
Check the green ground wire connected to the power cord at the rear of the stove. I have had a few stoves with this problem. I re connected the ground wire and walla!
Eric
Eric
kinsman stoves said:
You might also want to test your outlet the stove is plugged into, the problem hinted at by Eric is a possible incorrect wiring on the circuit the stove is plugged into as well.
There are several possible outlet wiring faults, radio shack and others have a handy tester to spot these (your friendly home inspector uses one when checking out house wiring for the purchaser of a house).
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