Englander 25-PDVC Annual Cleaning questions

[msh227]

With the burning season quickly approaching I need to thoroughly do my annual cleaning that I have put off since the end of last season. Before I get to it I had a few questions that I hope someone could shed some light on.

First, the manual talks about cleaning the exhaust blower and replacing the exhaust blower gasket annually. This will be my 2nd burn season, is this step really necessary? Seems like it will be a pain in the butt to disconnect my exhaust year after year to check this area. Is it something I could check every other or every three years??

Second, last season I had a couple jams where the top auger would stop feeding the lower auger. Upon doing some research on this forum and the internet people were saying the augers should be pulled and smoothed with a dremel or sand paper. To me it seems like the augers do not fit very snug in the auger shafts, my question is would I be wasting time pulling both augers to try and smooth them in hopes of fixing any auger jams?? Especially if the augers fit loosely inside the auger shafts.

Lastly the part that kind of upsets me is I noticed the inside ash and burn area of my stove has a fair amount of surface rust. I'm assuming it is due to the humidity we have here in PA during the summer months. Is rust an issue for anyone else that owns one of these stoves? Has anyone addressed this issue and done something to remove the rust???

Thanks,

Matt

 

[imacman]

.....First, the manual talks about cleaning the exhaust blower and replacing the exhaust blower gasket annually. This will be my 2nd burn season, is this step really necessary? Seems like it will be a pain in the butt to disconnect my exhaust year after year to check this area. Is it something I could check every other or every three years??

Second, last season I had a couple jams where the top auger would stop feeding the lower auger. Upon doing some research on this forum and the internet people were saying the augers should be pulled and smoothed with a dremel or sand paper. To me it seems like the augers do not fit very snug in the auger shafts, my question is would I be wasting time pulling both augers to try and smooth them in hopes of fixing any auger jams?? Especially if the augers fit loosely inside the auger shafts.

Lastly the part that kind of upsets me is I noticed the inside ash and burn area of my stove has a fair amount of surface rust. I'm assuming it is due to the humidity we have here in PA during the summer months. Is rust an issue for anyone else that owns one of these stoves? Has anyone addressed this issue and done something to remove the rust???

Thanks,

Matt

Matt,

yes, the combustion blower needs to be removed at least once a year and cleaned/scraped of any baked-on soot/carbon. It must be pulling air through the stove as efficiently as possible. But you don't have to pull the exhaust system apart to do it....just remove the side cover and the nuts that secure the blower are right there. Make sure you get a replacement blower gasket for it, as they always tear.

As for the augers, they are designed to be slightly loose in the auger flights. Even if they don't require any cleaning with sandpaper, it's a good idea to pull them and check everything.

And the rust is something that most of us deal with. Unless you wirebrush the interior each spring, and then re-paint with high heat paint, it's tough to not get any rust. Some people try just wire brushing and then spraying the interior with Pam cooking spray.

Hope this helps.

 

[msh227]

Thanks for the response. I will make sure I pull the blower and the augers to inspect/clean. Interesting on the rust though, I'll give it a good wire brush and after the heating season figure out what I'd like to do.

Thanks again.

 

[kofkorn]

+1 to IMACMAN's comments. The combustion blower definitely builds up a bunch of ash and it affects how much draft is pulled through the stove. Second thing is that the blower gaskets are EXTREMELY fragile after they have been heated, so don't think you'll be able to get away with just re-using the original one. Make sure to have a new gasket on hand when you pull the blower.

Good luck!

 

[imacman]

+1 to IMACMAN's comments. The combustion blower definitely builds up a bunch of ash and it affects how much draft is pulled through the stove. Second thing is that the blower gaskets are EXTREMELY fragile after they have been heated, so don't think you'll be able to get away with just re-using the original one. Make sure to have a new gasket on hand when you pull the blower.

Good luck!

Give a call to Eric at Kinsman stoves. 330-448-0300

He has good prices, and will match-up the correct one for you. Tell him you're a member of the hearth.com forum, and he will give a discount.

I'd buy 3-4 at a time just to always have spares.

 

[Don2222]

Hello

If you do not clean the blowers you will be buying new ones much sooner than you would like.

I searched along time for my house with a walk-out basement because Salem NH is at the foot of the mountains and has a very high water table.
Therefore, no dampness, mold, mildew or water in the basement and no rust on my stove!

I do see other stoves that get rust and if not really taken care of, you will be buying a new stove sooner than you like too!!

See my pics and info on cleaning and inspecting the 25-PDVC !!
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/76319/