Sorry to step away from this discussion. I got sent out of town for work and just got back. I look forward to burning tomorrow to see what happens. It's gotten cold again!
Buying 1st Pellets + 1st Burn with my PDVC - Help with minor issues!
- Thread starter DawgOnKing
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UPDATE.....
I've been burning the stove since 3PM ET today. There is still a very evident smoke emission coming from the window gasket area of the stove. It appears that the higher the temp is set, the more noticeable the smoke. I've attached a picture to highlight the area. I'm 100% sure this is the source of the emission. The smoke rises from the area highlighted below and disappears when it reaches the exhaust blower. I'm 100% sure that it's a white smoke and not a dark/black color. There is no odor associated with the smoke that I can tell, but I have been nursing a cold for the past few days. My wife doesn't think there's an odor though, so it can't be that bad.
Few further observations/questions:
- I've burned my first bag of pellets. There are still some in the hopper, approx 10-15% of the bag. Total time to burn was around 12 hours at a medium setting (5). Does this burn rate seem accurate for this stove? I admit, I thought a bag would last a little bit longer at a medium burn rate.
- She puts out some great heat when I close the doors to my addition!
It's 500 sq. foot and in an hour with the doors closed this eve it heated the room to 80F. I'm hoping that by leaving the doors open I can assist in heating the main part of my home as well. Testing this as we speak.
- Oh yeah, got a surge protector.
I've been burning the stove since 3PM ET today. There is still a very evident smoke emission coming from the window gasket area of the stove. It appears that the higher the temp is set, the more noticeable the smoke. I've attached a picture to highlight the area. I'm 100% sure this is the source of the emission. The smoke rises from the area highlighted below and disappears when it reaches the exhaust blower. I'm 100% sure that it's a white smoke and not a dark/black color. There is no odor associated with the smoke that I can tell, but I have been nursing a cold for the past few days. My wife doesn't think there's an odor though, so it can't be that bad.
Few further observations/questions:
- I've burned my first bag of pellets. There are still some in the hopper, approx 10-15% of the bag. Total time to burn was around 12 hours at a medium setting (5). Does this burn rate seem accurate for this stove? I admit, I thought a bag would last a little bit longer at a medium burn rate.
- She puts out some great heat when I close the doors to my addition!
It's 500 sq. foot and in an hour with the doors closed this eve it heated the room to 80F. I'm hoping that by leaving the doors open I can assist in heating the main part of my home as well. Testing this as we speak. - Oh yeah, got a surge protector.
Smoke emission seems to be gone!
Currently testing burn rates and settings. Who knew there was so much involved in the process?!
The info below is a combination of running both the stove and my existing home geothermal furnace set to 67F-69F.
Ran 6-7 yesterday and the addition heats to 80F+ with doors shut. I open the doors to the rest of my house and it was enough to cycle my geothermal furnace on/off all evening long. The temp inside the house didn't make it up a whole degree but the heat was noticeable. Before bed I dropped it to 1-1 and it burned til 5:30A and kept a constant temp (69F) in both the addition and home. Between the two above settings I got a 15 hour burn out of the bag.
Today I am running 3-4. The addition shows 69F after a few hours. The temp in my house has crept up from 67F to 68F as well. Keep in mind it's freakin' cold outside as well, Real Feel is 4F. I'm hoping the setting will regulate to around 70F and yield a 18 - 20 hour burn for a bag. We shall see. If I can get that type of burn rate/temp on days when the outside temps are in the 30's, I will be more than happy to crank it up and let her eat on days like this.
If anyone has similar settings data, please share it with me.
Here are some pictures of the area I'm trying to heat and my new pellet box. The first picture below is a 500 sq. ft addition with cathedral ceilings. I would be happy in heating it and then getting some heat in the dining room/living room that you see in the background. If I can do that, I'm ecstatic.
Currently testing burn rates and settings. Who knew there was so much involved in the process?!
The info below is a combination of running both the stove and my existing home geothermal furnace set to 67F-69F.
Ran 6-7 yesterday and the addition heats to 80F+ with doors shut. I open the doors to the rest of my house and it was enough to cycle my geothermal furnace on/off all evening long. The temp inside the house didn't make it up a whole degree but the heat was noticeable. Before bed I dropped it to 1-1 and it burned til 5:30A and kept a constant temp (69F) in both the addition and home. Between the two above settings I got a 15 hour burn out of the bag.
Today I am running 3-4. The addition shows 69F after a few hours. The temp in my house has crept up from 67F to 68F as well. Keep in mind it's freakin' cold outside as well, Real Feel is 4F. I'm hoping the setting will regulate to around 70F and yield a 18 - 20 hour burn for a bag. We shall see. If I can get that type of burn rate/temp on days when the outside temps are in the 30's, I will be more than happy to crank it up and let her eat on days like this.
If anyone has similar settings data, please share it with me.
Here are some pictures of the area I'm trying to heat and my new pellet box. The first picture below is a 500 sq. ft addition with cathedral ceilings. I would be happy in heating it and then getting some heat in the dining room/living room that you see in the background. If I can do that, I'm ecstatic.
Dawg, thanks for the pics....that's a real nice place you have there. And I love the pellet box. (why not just dump the pellets in and get a grain scoop to put them in the stove?).
Now this next comment is just me thinking out loud based on what I now see and hear about your set-up.....I think you should have gone with the bigger 25-PDV. With those ceilings, and trying to heat more than than just that 1 room, the bigger stove wouldn't have to work hard and it would keep it warmer.
Yeah, I know, I know...hindsight is always 20-20...just thought I'd share my thoughts.
Still, a really nice set-up you have!
Just my 2 cents.
Now this next comment is just me thinking out loud based on what I now see and hear about your set-up.....I think you should have gone with the bigger 25-PDV. With those ceilings, and trying to heat more than than just that 1 room, the bigger stove wouldn't have to work hard and it would keep it warmer.
Yeah, I know, I know...hindsight is always 20-20...just thought I'd share my thoughts.
Still, a really nice set-up you have!
Just my 2 cents.
macman said:
Thanks Mac. I appreciate your input.
To be honest, my knowledge of pellet stoves on January 1st was right up there with my knowledge on astrophysics.
I assumed that a unit that was "rated" for 1500 sq/ft would heat up my addition (VERY well insulated by NCI here in OH) and have a lot left to flow elsewhere. I found this forum about 10 days too late. I think that as I have more time to tinker with my PDVC I will be very happy with what I can obtain. I'm not afraid to burn 2 bags a day when I get them for the right price. Having a late start this season has left me in experimentation mode. I'm familiar with switching the PDVC to mode "C" for additional heat output, that seems to have cured issues for a lot of owners. For me, I'm not ready sacrifice the extra pellet burn just yet, I've only been burning for a week and I've not yet run the stove higher than 6-7. Tonight is one of the coldest nights so far this year here in Ohio. Wind chill right around 0*F. My wife started the stove at 8PM when she got home and ran it on 3-3 til 10:30PM. She went to bed an set it on 1-1 and closed the addition doors. I just got home and the temp out there is 73*F and very comfortable. The stove has no prob heating the room adequately. What happens when I open up the addition and attempt to heat a portion of my house is still being tested, but I see your point about a bigger unit. There are a lot of owners who use these as a sole source of heat in 1000+ sq/ft dwelling from what I've read. I plan to use my in tandem with my furnace set to a reduced temp on most months and see what I get. I'm excited to keep experimenting.
I can't believe how much I enjoy the look and feel of the stove. I would have invested a long time ago had I known how much we would enjoy it. I plan on owning these unit(s) for a long time as I continue to educate myself. A bigger stove is prob not too far in my future. My existing PDVC would look great in the detached garage!
DawgOnKing said:Thanks Mac. I appreciate your input.
To be honest, my knowledge of pellet stoves on January 1st was right up there with my knowledge on astrophysics.
Tonight is one of the coldest nights so far this year here in Ohio. Wind chill right around 0*F. My wife started the stove at 8PM when she got home and ran it on 3-3 til 10:30PM. She went to bed an set it on 1-1 and closed the addition doors. I just got home and the temp out there is 73*F and very comfortable. The stove has no prob heating the room adequately. What happens when I open up the addition and attempt to heat a portion of my house is still being tested, but I see your point about a bigger unit. There are a lot of owners who use these as a sole source of heat in 1000+ sq/ft dwelling from what I've read. I plan to use my in tandem with my furnace set to a reduced temp on most months and see what I get. I'm excited to keep experimenting.
I can't believe how much I enjoy the look and feel of the stove. I would have invested a long time ago had I known how much we would enjoy it. I plan on owning these unit(s) for a long time as I continue to educate myself. A bigger stove is prob not too far in my future. My existing PDVC would look great in the detached garage!
Yep, the garage (if insulated) would be well heated by the pdvc.
Remember one thing about the "ratings" on ALL makes of pellet stoves....they are the absolute best the stove could ever put out at ideal lab conditions. In the real world, it's going to be somewhat less. The 1500 sq. ft pdvc might really only be capable of 1200 sq ft in your situation. On the other hand, the pdv rated at 2000 might be able to do 1700....much better for your situation, especially with the addition doors open.
As for switching to another "mode" (a,b,c,d), I don't think that is a wise move. The people at Englander know far more about the air/fuel ratios that their stoves need to burn at then we do. IMO, leave it the way the factory set it, unless the factory techs tell you to do otherwise.
Also, I highly recommend putting the stove on a stat. Saves pellets running lower at night & when not home during the week, but still makes the house warm before you get up or get home. The room doesn't need to be 73 all night while no one is using it. I've had a programmable stat on both my stoves, and wouldn't have it any other way.
Oh, and don't be afraid to crank the stove up to 7 or 8 if you need more heat.....let 'er rip!
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