new p68 owner, couple of questions

[veedo]

First off, thanks for all the information from you guys and this forum, i have learned a lot but am still searching and learning new info daily.

I have the stove all set up, and am planning on running in room temp mode when the temperatures drop enough. Ideally, i would like to run the distribution blower as low as i can for noise purposes, but does running the blower slower have an effect on the stoves efficiency? Or does the units control system have this figured out? I do not really need the extra circulation from the blower, but i also do not want to waste any heat out the chimney. Has anyone monitored exhaust temps while running the blower at different speeds to see if it makes a difference?

I guess i just want to run the stove as effective and efficient as possible. I have also gone through the steps to adjust the low draft setting, and it indeed did need an adjustment, this should also help a little with efficiency.


Next question, i seen the thread where a harman was tied into a digital thermostat, which is pretty neat. Has anyone set one up with a thermostat system that can be controlled from a pc or smartphone? Its not something i really need, but it sure would be neat, and actually kind of handy due to my work schedule.

 

[Defiant]

Welcome aboard veedo, distribution fan settings will not affect your efficiency, if stove gets to hot it will automaticaly engage the higher speed, as far as the thermostat system be prepared for Don222ZZZ, I am sure he will chime in soon We like pictures or it did not happen

 

[tsmith]

It can be hooked up to a thermostat inline with the Room temp sensing probe. As far as one controlled by a computer or smart phone I have no clue as I am still using a dumb phone. I am not keeping up with technology.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Snip ... As far as one controlled by a computer or smart phone I have no clue as I am still using a dumb phone. I am not keeping up with technology.

+1

 

[veedo]

well, theres a ton of awesome looking thermostats, and i do not think it would take much to tie in a stat via the stock harman temp probe. i have been checking out the Venstar T5800 and radio thermostat CT80.

it would be very convenient to set up heating/cooling schedules and have the ability to run my furnace fan to recirculate the air through the house. my harman is located in my basement ( i know i know) near my furnace duct work, so it would be nice to run the furnace fan to suck the warm air from the basement level and recirc it throughout the house, helping with hot and cold spots. with some of these custom thermostats, you can set your furnace fan to run for a couple minutes every hour, etc. i think it would work out well.

 

[boosted3g]

What i do is use my heat pumps air handler to circulate the air. I cut in 2 additional return vents near the stove and i use a honeywell 8000 series touchscreen thermostat. It has a recirculation setting where it runs for 10 minutes then shuts off for 10 minutes. I think you can even adjust the time and intervals but im not certain. It probably has the capabilites to be operated by a smart phone if you get all the bells and whistles with it. I didnt opt for the color screen, wireless capabilities and all sorts of other things because it adds up quick. My wholesale price is around 140ish for my model and it goes up fast from there.

 

[veedo]

Yup, that is my plan! Does it seem to help even the temps? I ordered up an ecobee touch screen thermostat today. i had it narrowed down to a few and i think i will like this one the best, so i am going to try it. Maybe Ill post some pics when its all set up. Next project is to insulate the basement!

 

[boosted3g]

It definantly moves the air around. What i do to help further is to use a magnet sheet and cover some returns and leave others open so you can manipulate the air to go where you need it and also draw from the stove room. I have 3 8x8 returns in the stove room and it definantly helps take the heat to the other end of the house and up to the second floor. I recently remodeled the downstairs in my house and being a sheet metal worker i tore all the duct board crap out and ran metal duct that is sized properly and meant to do this. What i really wanted to do was use the pellet stove to heat a coil mounted in the duct but i also didnt was to over complicate the system.