Englander 55-shp240 pellet buildup
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SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
thanks, I am really discouraged. At the point where I may just burn oil. This should not be that hard. I'll call tech support one more time. I got rid of my wood furnace which heated my hot water and baseboard heat because it was too much work. Well I tried pellets and although not much work I can't deal with it not working properly. Live and learn.
I have been having a similar problem the past 3 weeks. The full cleaning has helped dramatically, but the burnpot still fills up when heat setting is over 4. I didn't think of this till now, but I started a new ton/brand of pellet. I have been burning AWF since October. Started Greene Team 3 weeks ago. The ash level is half of the AWF,and slightly hotter. This morning I put AWF in the hopper. What a difference. The pellet has been the problem. I didn't think about it because my Englander multi fuel eats everything with ease. No I know to test a few bags before I buy a ton or 2. Live and learn. If it wasn't for this site, I might still be using propane.
I bought Cubex this morning, all hardwood. Cleaned everything, emptied the hopper and poored in 3 bags. Unfortunately, no difference.
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
Well about the only other thing from a physical perspective I can think of is ash still in the works between the combustion blower and the firebox or a bypass due to a warped burn pot.
After that you have a failing combustion blower (or underpowered for the vent system) or screwed up control board.
If it is any consolation I fought the pile up issue and was even burning cruddy pellets.
When you talk to tech support there is one thing I'd definitely mention and that is the 6x6 flue you are venting through, there is a limit to what the combustion blowers can handle and there is a good size difference between a 4" round flue and a 6" x 6" square flue.
This is a balancing act and sometimes it doesn't take much to make it not happen.
After that you have a failing combustion blower (or underpowered for the vent system) or screwed up control board.
If it is any consolation I fought the pile up issue and was even burning cruddy pellets.
When you talk to tech support there is one thing I'd definitely mention and that is the 6x6 flue you are venting through, there is a limit to what the combustion blowers can handle and there is a good size difference between a 4" round flue and a 6" x 6" square flue.
This is a balancing act and sometimes it doesn't take much to make it not happen.
I hear ya about the flue but if it was flue related I would think the issue would be from day one, not 4 years later. When I had the exhaust blower off it ran like new. But who knows if the revolutions have gone down. I was on 5/9 for an hour and the pellets were backing into the feed hole. It really may be the board is gone and just feeding too many pellets. Thanks for all your suggestions. What is the best pellet stove/furnace out there for a basement installation? Any recommendations?
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
JerriEric said:
I don't do recommendations for stove purchases.
Just that what ever the unit you get follow one very simple rule, it must meet the btu requirements of the heat loss of your building on the coldest day of the year at its middle firing ability.
Don't give up on that unit too fast, but be certain to hold the folks in tech support feet to the fire.
Perhaps Mike Holton will see this thread and drop in and offer a suggestion or two.
I shut it down, seems to have gotten worse. I have not disconnected the exhaust pipe from the flue. I doubt there is a blockage but you never know. I plan on doing that tomorrow. I could only check the chimney flue up to where it takes a turn. May need to get ladder outside and check it from top down. Last thing I can think to do at this point.
hwdemers
Member
i have scanned therw this thread so if i missed something dont beat me up. but have you cheked the voltage on the cumbs. motor? you mentiond that you had no way of testing if the motor was working right, well if the voltage is higher then 115 then its not working as it should
Ok attribute my tirade to "DUMB USER". I finally bit the bullet and dismantled all the exhaust pipe connections. The elbow into the flue had ash build up. I then cleaned the pipes which had no ash since I ran a brush through them yesterday and reassembled. Been burning for 1.5 hours, no pellet buildup at this point. Prior to this i had pellet build up almost immediately. I will replace the door gasket because it did not pass the dollar test except at the right side where it latches and the cord is compressed flat. I sumise that is keeping the other sides from sealing tightly. At this point I think I am ok. I'll let you know later this afternoon if the problem is solved.
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
HD41
Member
JerriEric said:
Sounds like you are over the hump and have corrected the pellet buildup. Curious about your earlier comment about the control board-do you think this is causing any other problem?
JerriEric said:
You have an 90 degree elbow or a T? If an elbow, you should replace that with a cleanout T....makes things much easier.
As for the gasket, I thought you did the dollar bill test yesterday and was all good?
We've said it a thousand times before, and i'm sure we'll say it again....80% of ALL stove problems are due to a dirty stove (and/or exhaust pipe).
Hope it keeps burning well....these stoves are not all that complicated...keep them clean and they'll keep you warm.
I have a T at the bottom but a 90 at the top going into the flue. I plan on replacing the 90 with another T so I do not have to dismantle the piping again. The board does not seem to have been the problem. I just can't beleive it was ash buildup in the 90 elbow into the flue. Live and learn. Thanks to everyone for your help and suggestions.
Running for 8 hours now on heat setting 8. Great flame and no pellets in burn pot and almost zero ash. Guess it needed a good cleaning,
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
The burn is perfect but I got an E3 error code. I ran yesterday on 5/9 no issue. Then went to 9/9 and got the E3. I then ran on 5/9 for an hour, 6/9 for an hour, 7/9 same and then 8/9 for 12 hours with no problem. Went to 9/9 this morning and got the E3 again. Called tech support and they told me to blow oot the room blower with compressed air. Now I understand what you were saying about the leaf blower. I did not get that before. I blew out with my compressor and just restarted. I will go to 9/9 after a bit. If I get the E3 again, I will get out my leaf blower. Besides that the stove is burning perfectly.
I came upon this thread while searching for solutions to my burn pot filling up with Pellets. Interesting that this started happening this year ( 2nd year with the stove) and I also started burning Maine's Choice. It doesn't seem like the pellets were the root of the issue but it's interesting. My issue seems to be the window seal, maybe? If I do the dollar bill test I can pull the bill out with ease around the whole window and when I lock the window it is much easier than it was last year. I didn't realize the window seal goes that quick, I've only had the stove for a year and already needs replacing? I think I may call the dealership/installer and see if they will do anything for me.
SmokeyTheBear
Minister of Fire
md2002 the normal cause of pellet build up is ash in the works somewhere.
What causes the ash build up is a whole other matter.
Your door may need adjusting if it can be adjusted (some can) otherwise the gasket need to be replaced.
There should be resistance to pulling the slip of paper out at all test points when the door is closed and latched.
What causes the ash build up is a whole other matter.
Your door may need adjusting if it can be adjusted (some can) otherwise the gasket need to be replaced.
There should be resistance to pulling the slip of paper out at all test points when the door is closed and latched.
Thanks for the reply Smokey. Just did a full stove cleaning so I'll see if that helps. The dollar bill test is a 100% failure! There is no resistance what so ever when pulling the bill out. I'm not getting too excited yet, it has only filled up with pellets twice, which is two more times than last year. If I clean out the pot and relight the stove it seems to work fine for weeks, then it will happen again.
If I do need to resale the door I can get a cord at Lowe's or anywhere correct? Just read the manual for the size? I did a search and it seems one is as good as the other as far as purchasing.
On a side note. I've always had trouble putting those ceramic walls back together when I do a full cleaning. What a pain in the arse!
YES, you DO need to replace the door seal if you say the dollar bill test is a "....100% failure." You are letting air into the stove that is supposed to go through the burn pot....right now, you are bypassing the pot. That is almost certainly the reason that it fills w/ pellets....not enough burn air.
As for buying the gasket kit at a big box store, yes you can as long as it's the correct diameter & length. Most of the big box stores will have a few kits, as they sell pellet stoves too.
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