Pellet Overflow J1000

[Northeaster2010]

I have a Jamestown J1000, Thanks to Jay and others I have my convection blower fixed. If I burn the stove more then 4 hrs the pellets build up and overflow. I cleaned the stove good. Draft is good to start but noticed when pellets start to build up draft isn't good even if I try to adjust the draft. I am going to replace the door, ash pan and burn pot gaskets tonight, they looked in rough shape and could see on one part of door the flame between door and stove, any other suggestions??

 

[SmokingAndPoking]

Gaskets! Air leaks will make the stove appear to overfeed. Inside the cradle (the thing the burnpot sits in) there is a circular punch out. Make sure it is still there and sealed. I have it fall out on a J1000 I have a long time ago and it created similar havoc to what you described. Ultimately though, probably a gasket leak issue. Try the dollar bill test on all gaskets after you replace em.

 

[mtalea]

make sure you dial timer goes completely off or manually turn it off when a good burn is achieved.play with the draft lever and install a fresh air kit if not installed.

 

[Northeaster2010]

Changed all my gaskets, still same problem after abt 2hrs of burn. Took out burn pot and notice a small crack in the front side of pot. Wire brushed the whole pot WOW there is a split almost all around the pot's edge. I am welding it today and will see what happens. Prob. when stove heats up the crack expands allowing little air to go through the pot where it needs to go and the rest to the outside of pot!

 

[littlesmokey]

Often overlooked is the ash door. They are not very carefully fitted, but need to be tightly seated and the locks tightened equally . Make sure the "wire spring" is clean and there is nothing obstructing the pan. Make sure the two access "ports" to the lower chamber are in place and flat face to face. It sounds like you are running on the very edge of OK, so I would crank the combustion air up a bit.

When you go the stove, it sounds like it was a "not so clean one owner" I suggest pulling the combustion motor and scrubbing it good. Has a tendency to build a thick coating of soot, unless managed.

Try these ideas and let us know how she burns.

 

[Northeaster2010]

Littlesmokey, I cleaned the stove again and pulled out the conbustion motor that was clean inside, I did notice a gasket around the cage area near the bottom was pulled out on one side. Started it up again same problem, still pellets build up, there is allot of black soot through the exhaust system too. Any other suggestions?

 

[mtalea]

Noreaster, on my jamestown there is 2 ash pockets on eachside. the outer accessed from the burn area,and then another pocket thru that same pocket to another pocket on each side.

Please dont be afraid to call jamestown and talk to glenda for starters.they never had any issues offering me help when i got mine.

 

[imacman]

......Started it up again same problem, still pellets build up, there is allot of black soot through the exhaust system too. Any other suggestions?

Black soot is usually an indication of poor airflow through the stove (poor combustion....temps too low). It could be air leaks, but since this was a used stove, I'm betting on the "dirty stove" syndrome.

Are there ash traps on this stove? If so, have they been vacuumed out completely?

What about using a leaf blower on the stove after a complete cleaning?

What is your exhaust vent set-up?

 

[littlesmokey]

Littlesmokey, I cleaned the stove again and pulled out the conbustion motor that was clean inside, I did notice a gasket around the cage area near the bottom was pulled out on one side. Started it up again same problem, still pellets build up, there is allot of black soot through the exhaust system too. Any other suggestions?

Definitely an incomplete burn situation. My next idea is simple you are not getting enough air to burn the pellets the auger is delivering. This is a pain in the butt, but check the air intake tube for a blockage or buildup. Maybe the mother of all dust bunnies???? The stove uses a damper type shutoff. It is possible the control may not be working. Try sliding the control forward and backward and see if there is any change in the flame size, intensity, or burn pattern. If moving the slide does nothing, you have a stuck or disconnected damper. Another issue could be be an improperly seated burn pot. Check the gasket at the bottom of the pot to make sure it is smooth and has no gaps. It needs to fit tightly all the way around so there is no air leak. Based on the shape of the pot it is not likely that it is warped, but there may be a crack or other opening that is allowing air to pass without going through the burn pot. I would also dial back the auger as far as possible and see if you have a low feed and then crank it up for a high feed. If there is little difference in rates, you have a control board issue.

Side note: sorry about the compressed reply, but I am trying a new wi-fi link and it is only working in fit and spurts still arguing with my firewall.

 

[kilbury]

I agree on incomplete combustion. Those little jamestowns r easy enough to move around that I would take it outside and remove all 6 ash cleanout plates and take the air compressor to it. I have seen those with hard chunks in the spots you can't reach with a vacuum hose.

 

[Northeaster2010]

When I had the combustion blower out I took a small flexible tubing in passed it through into the ash pan area with no problem and also checked the draft or air intake tube also no problem or restrictions. I have cleaned out all 6 ash traps. I did turn down the auger settings as low as the go and they seem to be no change. I guess I would lean toward a bad board and not sure if I want to invest that much money in this stove.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Please tell us the vent setup on the stove, are both stoves drawing room air. Are there any other air suckers operating and how tight is your house?

 

[mtalea]

When I had the combustion blower out I took a small flexible tubing in passed it through into the ash pan area with no problem and also checked the draft or air intake tube also no problem or restrictions. I have cleaned out all 6 ash traps. I did turn down the auger settings as low as the go and they seem to be no change. I guess I would lean toward a bad board and not sure if I want to invest that much money in this stove.

How much did u pay for the stove? if you got it cheap then invest it is a great stove.

 

[Excell]

I would try a different brand of pellets ,maybe they are high in moisture content .I have that problem with some pellets .

 

[Northeaster2010]

The stove came with the pellet pipe I bought for my Whitfield install, $100 It has a straight threw the wall vent with the cap, no vertical rise. Today I decided to change out the gasket on the burn pot again, so far it is running so so. Still once in awhile you can see black smoke coming out of vent pipe. I know its getting plenty of air now if I open the draft enough I can blow the pellets out of the burn pot.

 

[Phill]

i have a j2000, how much is your auger turning? what is the setting? auger should stop and start.

 

[imacman]

....I know its getting plenty of air now if I open the draft enough I can blow the pellets out of the burn pot.

Set the draft damper just so the pellets are wiggling around a little bit while they burn, and that should be pretty close to what you want. If the pellet embers that are almost all burned up are getting ejected from the pot, that is also a good indication that you have proper airflow through the pot.

The black smoke has to be coming from somewhere else......

 

[littlesmokey]

AAAhhhh! Another thought. You are clump dumping. For some reason you may have issues with the auger supply. The delivery to the shut is not making it to the burn pot until enough accumulate and you get a big dump. The extra large amount causes the smoking when the pot is overloaded. Empty the hopper and rub it down with "scotch-brite" and adding a little lubricant, some say graphite is good. Inspect the burn pot end of the auger to make sure there are no obstructions and then go after the ramp with a scraper and wire-brush.

The stove may not be at total fault. Irregular sized pellets and especially extra long ones get hung up in this stove. The ramp if cruddy will act as a brake and keep the pellets from falling into the pot.

Before you start this all, watch your stove. Make sure the auger is cycling. Check that there is a difference between the high and low speeds. With each cycle make sure something makes it into the pot. Sometimes on low, this may be every other cycle allowing for the turn of the auger, but you should not be going more than one or two cycles without pellets. Make sure you are not getting a long delay between cycles and suddenly a heavy long cycle with a big dump. That would mean to me a new board.

Because the boards on these are relatively simple, check on getting the board redone. There's a guy in Boise, Idaho area that does a great job. Others on this forum can give you his information.

This is a very good stove and worth hanging onto in my opinion. Simpler, more repairable (verses replace-parts) and put out a great amount of heat.

 

[SmokingAndPoking]

You do have the intake air set to max, right?

 

[Northeaster2010]

Ok, I finally got the adjustments on the board so my pellets are not building up in the pot. NOW after abt 1/2 hr or so my green light goes out but my pellets continue to drop-still holding a decent flame and not over loading??? Leaning towards a bad board still,but I can burn it still when I'm home would not trust keeping it going at night or away.