Need help with my classic bay 1200

[Lineman30]

[/quote}I'd disconnect the OAK and try it. I know everybody's huge OAK fans here, but they don't always work. Just a thought.

I agree, and you can always move the control box to the +10 setting but you will end up using more fuel. As long as its operating and your getting the same amount of heat out of it, I wouldn't worry about a small flame. My CB1200 also has a small flame but gives plenty of heat, so I don't worry about it[/quote]


Checked the control box and there aren't any settings. Well I've stated earlier my flame doesn't even come out of the firepot. Last season I had the 4-6 inch flame while running on high. I took the combustion motor and firepot out and I don't even have a fire.

 

[peirhead]

I assume when you cleaned the fire pot you cleaned out all the holes ( I believe there are 9 or so) with a gun brush or something? ..If the burn pot has too many pellets it will smother the fire...it sounds like either not enough air or too much pellets. Check the feed rate inside the hopper again and try it at about 1/4" up from the bottom (I run mine all the way down)

 

[Lineman30]

I assume when you cleaned the fire pot you cleaned out all the holes ( I believe there are 9 or so) with a gun brush or something? ..If the burn pot has too many pellets it will smother the fire...it sounds like either not enough air or too much pellets. Check the feed rate inside the hopper again and try it at about 1/4" up from the bottom (I run mine all the way down)

Oh ya I cleaned the pot and all the holes with compressed air so it's super clean. I know what your saying about too many pellets in the hopper it causes the fire to slow down but it usually picks up. My feed rate is about half way and I've always have ran it that way. I'm believing it has to be air. There is a loss of air going thru the pot somewhere.

 

[jtakeman]

If your sure you got all the leaks sealed and the stove is squeaky clean. Try giving it more fuel with the fuel gate in the hopper.

One test to see if its not enough fuel(before you adjust the rod) Would be to start the stove and get a glove thats heat resistant. Let the stove get going and open the door and toss in a handful of pellets into the burnpot. Close the door and see if the flame gets large(it should).

If you still unsure and don't want to adjust the stove. Please try another pellet. Were running out of things to try and with others having similar issues? With the other pellets fixed them. So??? Trying another brand of pellets is easy anyway.

Wonder why your control doesn't have the adjustment?

 

[Lineman30]

If your sure you got all the leaks sealed and the stove is squeaky clean. Try giving it more fuel with the fuel gate in the hopper.

One test to see if its not enough fuel(before you adjust the rod) Would be to start the stove and get a glove thats heat resistant. Let the stove get going and open the door and toss in a handful of pellets into the burnpot. Close the door and see if the flame gets large(it should).

If you still unsure and don't want to adjust the stove. Please try another pellet. Were running out of things to try and with others having similar issues? With the other pellets fixed them. So??? Trying another brand of pellets is easy anyway.

Wonder why your control doesn't have the adjustment?

Are there anymore places it could possible leak? The door etc.... And I have adjusted the fuel all the way open and there was no change. The other morning it had dumped seems like a ton of pellets and when it ignited it amounted to nothing. I remember from
Previous years at start up the flame would reach to the baffles and now it doesnt even come out of the pot. I know that using a different kind of brand could help. The pellets I'm using are last seasons left overs. I had 15 bags leftover and didn't have a single problem with them. I've used a really crappy kind before(Heat Resource) and they stilled worked I just had to adjust the fuel open more. I really feel like it has to be loss of air or vac but where could I look? That's the only things I disturbed the firepot and combustion motor. And bout the control box the only things are a green and red lights and a 3 prong plug for something.

 

[jtakeman]

If your sure you got all the leaks sealed and the stove is squeaky clean. Try giving it more fuel with the fuel gate in the hopper.

One test to see if its not enough fuel(before you adjust the rod) Would be to start the stove and get a glove thats heat resistant. Let the stove get going and open the door and toss in a handful of pellets into the burnpot. Close the door and see if the flame gets large(it should).

If you still unsure and don't want to adjust the stove. Please try another pellet. Were running out of things to try and with others having similar issues? With the other pellets fixed them. So??? Trying another brand of pellets is easy anyway.

Wonder why your control doesn't have the adjustment?

Are there anymore places it could possible leak? The door etc.... And I have adjusted the fuel all the way open and there was no change. The other morning it had dumped seems like a ton of pellets and when it ignited it amounted to nothing. I remember from
Previous years at start up the flame would reach to the baffles and now it doesnt even come out of the pot. I know that using a different kind of brand could help. The pellets I'm using are last seasons left overs. I had 15 bags leftover and didn't have a single problem with them. I've used a really crappy kind before(Heat Resource) and they stilled worked I just had to adjust the fuel open more. I really feel like it has to be loss of air or vac but where could I look? That's the only things I disturbed the firepot and combustion motor. And bout the control box the only things are a green and red lights and a 3 prong plug for something.

This ones a tough one for sure. Most of the time air leaks gives you a tall flame dark orange, black tips and lazy. Lack of fuel or damp fuel gives a low flame. One of the reasons I wanted you to hand feed the burnpot or try a different fuel. Another low flame is if the stove is getting too much air from the damper very yellow and brisk like a torch.

If the fuels good, There is one more thing that will reduce the flame. An auger thats stahling out or not giving 1 full revolution per minute.

Just guessing now! WOW!

 

[Lineman30]

Well tomorrow I'll try what you suggested bout adding more fuel. And also I'll open a fresh bag of pellets and see if that makes a difference. Not sure if it's making a full revolution but it seems like it's dumping enough but maybe not. I'll post what I find out!!

 

[peirhead]

Lineman...I reread your posts and if the stove starts up nicely and then after a few minuted starts to die it really sounds to me like you stove is overfeeding pellets into the pot and smothering it. Try setting the feedrate all the way down and burning for a couple of hours. Then gradually open it up 1/4" at a time every few hours till you get the burn you want.

 

[Lineman30]

Are there anymore places it could possible leak? The door etc.... And I have adjusted the fuel all the way open and there was no change. The other morning it had dumped seems like a ton of pellets and when it ignited it amounted to nothing. I remember from
Previous years at start up the flame would reach to the baffles and now it doesnt even come out of the pot. I know that using a different kind of brand could help. The pellets I'm using are last seasons left overs. I had 15 bags leftover and didn't have a single problem with them. I've used a really crappy kind before(Heat Resource) and they stilled worked I just had to adjust the fuel open more. I really feel like it has to be loss of air or vac but where could I look? That's the only things I disturbed the firepot and combustion motor. And bout the control box the only things are a green and red lights and a 3 prong plug for something.[/quote]

This ones a tough one for sure. Most of the time air leaks gives you a tall flame dark orange, black tips and lazy. Lack of fuel or damp fuel gives a low flame. One of the reasons I wanted you to hand feed the burnpot or try a different fuel. Another low flame is if the stove is getting too much air from the damper very yellow and brisk like a torch.

If the fuels good, There is one more thing that will reduce the flame. An auger thats stahling out or not giving 1 full revolution per minute.

Just guessing now! WOW![/quote]



Ok this morning I did what you said I hand feed the firepot and wow what a difference. The flame grew all the way to the baffles. I used probably a 1/8 of a cup or less but after it burned it up it shrank to what I have been dealing with. And during this I had the fuel adjustment all the way open. I also watched the auger and to me it was making a full revolution. Someone stated earlier about it going backwards I didn't indicate that happening. So what could it be? Not enough fuel? What could be causing it?

 

[jtakeman]

Ok this morning I did what you said I hand feed the firepot and wow what a difference. The flame grew all the way to the baffles. I used probably a 1/8 of a cup or less but after it burned it up it shrank to what I have been dealing with. And during this I had the fuel adjustment all the way open. I also watched the auger and to me it was making a full revolution. Someone stated earlier about it going backwards I didn't indicate that happening. So what could it be? Not enough fuel? What could be causing it?

Yep, Not enough fuel!

On the auger, You need to time it and see if its making 1 full revolution in a 60 second time frame. I use a stop watch, but a watch works. You watch the auger and a friend to time the watch for you!

If that's checks out? Then maybe your fuel absorbed moisture some how.

If its not making a full revolution.? Could be the auger motor getting weak.

Again I suggest trying another brand of fuel. Something that doesn't have pellets longer than an inch. Or empty the hopper and break the OHP's to less than an inch long and try again. Your stove will feed more fuel into the burnpot when the pellets are smaller in length.

 

[kilbury]

How bout this, have you checked up into the drop tube to see if maybe a long pellet has got caught/lodged up in there? take a mirror and flashlight to look up there and you should be able to see a pellet crossways in there if thats the problem. this could cause the stove to let enough fuel into the pot to maintain a fire but restrict the flow enough so it doesn't get a decent size flame.

 

[Lineman30]

Ok this morning I did what you said I hand feed the firepot and wow what a difference. The flame grew all the way to the baffles. I used probably a 1/8 of a cup or less but after it burned it up it shrank to what I have been dealing with. And during this I had the fuel adjustment all the way open. I also watched the auger and to me it was making a full revolution. Someone stated earlier about it going backwards I didn't indicate that happening. So what could it be? Not enough fuel? What could be causing it?

Yep, Not enough fuel!

On the auger, You need to time it and see if its making 1 full revolution in a 60 second time frame. I use a stop watch, but a watch works. You watch the auger and a friend to time the watch for you!

If that's checks out? Then maybe your fuel absorbed moisture some how.

If its not making a full revolution.? Could be the auger motor getting weak.

Again I suggest trying another brand of fuel. Something that doesn't have pellets longer than an inch. Or empty the hopper and break the OHP's to less than an inch long and try again. Your stove will feed more fuel into the burnpot when the pellets are smaller in length.

Ok checked the auger and timed it and it made a full revolution per min. What your thoughts in pulling the auger motor and see if the whole tube is clean? Maybe it has something lodged causing it not to get enough pellets. I was watching it and seems like it isn't dropping enough fuel. With a different brand. About all I can get around here are OHP, tiddy timbers, SIH

 

[jtakeman]

Could be a lodge of some sort in the chute as balls of fire suggests. I have seen a piece of pellet bag get lodged in the chute and wrapped around the auger. You shouldn't have to pull the auger. But it isn't that hard to do if you want to try that.

I was able to just pull the plastic out of the chute. I have also seen kids toys do the same thing. Another issue I have seen on a quad with the spiral auger is pellets jammimg in the center of the spiral. Only the pellets making it around the out side were being feed into the hopper.

I have burned the Tidy Timbers and there size is around average. You could try a bag if there easy to obtain.

 

[tjnamtiw]

How bout this, have you checked up into the drop tube to see if maybe a long pellet has got caught/lodged up in there? take a mirror and flashlight to look up there and you should be able to see a pellet crossways in there if thats the problem. this could cause the stove to let enough fuel into the pot to maintain a fire but restrict the flow enough so it doesn't get a decent size flame.

Balls of fire is right on as a possible cause. It happened to me last winter 3 times! Twice with loooong pellet sitting across the top of the chute and once with a self adhesive warning label from SOMEWHERE!. Try what he says.

 

[Lineman30]

Well, I took the auger out, cleaned the tube and chute and all is good. Put it back together started a fire and same old thing. I've broke all the long pellets up ( there were very few). It's dumping lots of pellets now but same old thing. What about the dump door? Could that change something? The air wash? To much could that effect the flame? I've noticed there is more vac on the front than the sides.

 

[tjnamtiw]

Well, I took the auger out, cleaned the tube and chute and all is good. Put it back together started a fire and same old thing. I've broke all the long pellets up ( there were very few). It's dumping lots of pellets now but same old thing. What about the dump door? Could that change something? The air wash? To much could that effect the flame? I've noticed there is more vac on the front than the sides.

According to Kap, who was over on IBC, the dump door should hang down with no more gap than the thickness of a dime on the side opposite the pivot bolt.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

You might want to check to see if the auger motor is securely connected to the auger, those shafts have been known to slip if things aren't tight.

Slipping shafts reduce the pellet feed.

 

[ARGlock]

I know this is a PITA, but do you have the feed motor capacitor installed on the feed motor? Only way to tell is to remove the cover from the feed motor and look. I have seen quite a few classic bays work for years without it and then all the sudden the quit feeding like they are suppose to. Without out it the feed motor will turn backwards at times messing with the amount of fuel being fed. You unit is old enough to be a perfect candidate for this problem. pretty easy fix if it is the problem.

You are very correct on this Balls of Fire! I had to install a feed motor capacitor last year on my CB 1200. Worried the living fire out of me until that was fixed. Mine has about the same age.

AR

 

[Lineman30]

Well still working at it and it's 85 degrees. I started it and it was kinda small and below the pot. I adjusted the ash pan thinking it was to tight so I loosen it up and it improved the fire to the 6 inch or better. Ran it over an hour and it shrank and shrank until it just went out. The call is still on so it just put itself out. I know everyone is saying the fuel so if I get a chance I'll pick up a bag this week. What if it isn't the fuel? What's next? I just don't understand I can go from a awesome flame to it completely going out. I remember someone saying something about damper? (H

 

[Lineman30]

I think I might have the answer. Watching the amount of pellets being dropped in the pot makes me think that it's not dropping enough pellets to keep the flame at a 6 inch. At start up it seemed very few but as the stove began to begin the cycle I noticed at one point it almost went out. Watching and hearing the auger motor at each turn. Some of the turns didn't even drop any pellets. I even witnessed 3 turns without dropping. My fuel is 1 inch long so could it bridge? What does bridging actually? What would the motor capacitor do if I would put one on? I might seem crazy but I just want to fix the stove before it really cools off.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

The capacitor makes certain that the motor consistently rotates in the correct direction. The stove you have has experienced inconsistent direction of rotation of the auger motor. Since the auger motor is a start/stop device it is possible that it runs backward as well as forwards as far as feeding pellets goes, if it goes forwards more than backwards the stove is likely to run but with a low flame, if it goes backwards more than forwards the stove will not run.