Warning. Numerous hopper fires.

[Overfireinthehole]

Just get a sooteater set of rods with a 4” brush and run it up from the tee on a drill

 

[green wood]

Not sure 4' ft would do it though.....it goes up thru atic...then roof. Cost us about 1100 dollars for pipe n install

 

[SidecarFlip]

Not sure 4' ft would do it though.....it goes up thru atic...then roof. Cost us about 1100 dollars for pipe n install

You can buy extensions but be prepared for a helluva mess on the floor behind the stove under the cleanout cap on the bottom of the Tee. Trouble with total inside venting installs is cleaning the pipe (which requires periodic cleaning. Much better to that the transition Tee outside so the mess stays outside.

I assume that your vertical venting is 4 "id not the 3" id from the appliance exhaust as required by recommended venting practices (for runs over 6 feet).

I fit my leaf blower up to the bottom of my transition Tee and 'suck' mine out a couple times during the heating season and it makes a mess on the deck which washes away with the spring rain. Every spring, I take down my venting and pressure wash it inside to get rid of an 'clumps' that have formed over the winter. It'a a PITA as my vertical venting is 20 feet vertical, but doable and necessary

Glad I put mine 'through the wall' and outside. I did installed my own but it was still expensive. Pellet pro vent pipe (Duravent), isn't a cheap date from Ventingpipe.com.

 

[green wood]

Yes we ran the good pipe and it was very expensive the wife did not want to pipe running out the side of her living room up the wall outside so she wanted up through the roof I guess I should make her clean it...

 

[SidecarFlip]

It's all good, Selkirk or Duravent, just different connection design. So long as it's not single wall or 'B' vent. Have fun with it....lol

 

[rickwai]

I have zero respect for PFI Certification. I’m not going to name brands but some are real junk. I’ve also noticed a big increase in chunks of heavy brown paper within the bags. I’m assuming it gets through the grinders. I’ve got a pretty good sample of wet creosote from the one yesterday and a bag of the pellets. We have no idea what they are putting in these pellets and there needs to more oversight on the manufacturing of them. If you combine the bad pellets and lazy owners and you’ve got the beginning of something bad.

Thats crazy! I had a Harman that was not feeding correctly and I emptied hopper and found a piece of heavy brown on top of slide plate. Maybe some are mixing scrap craft paper in with there pellets?

 

[SidecarFlip]

I never did for the reasons I stated earlier. It's a 'feel good' org. You pays your dues and you gets your cert to put on the bags and then advertise that you are indeed certified when in reality the 'certification imprint' means nothing because there is no policing on the part of the PFI, whatever that is....

Always sounded like a scam to me.

Best method of determining quality is by trying various brands, couple bags at a crack (not a whole boatload) and determining what runs (for you) the best and STICKING WITH THAT BRAND instead of experimenting every season and whining about sub standard fuel. How I do it, plus I research the pellet extruders feedstock resource. That will give you a good yardstick as to what to expect. I never buy on price, always consistent burn quality. Why I buy the same brand, year in and year out. I like to pre buy in the summer to get the best deal.

 

[Overfireinthehole]

Yes we ran the good pipe and it was very expensive the wife did not want to pipe running out the side of her living room up the wall outside so she wanted up through the roof I guess I should make her clean it...

A good strong vacuum usually keeps the mess to a minimal, especially if you stick it a couple inches up the pipe while you brush and yes sooteater has a 4 INCH brush with 3 FOOT rods that screw together. The starter pack comes with like three rods and then they come in packs of two after that. They are the best brand I’ve found and I clean hundreds every year. If your really getting an avalanche of ash ( it’s worse if there are elbows in the attic ) Take a pvc cap and drill a hole in the center of it just large enough to easily run your rods through, then put that on your tee while brushing it.

 

[Overfireinthehole]

Gardus SootEater Rotary Pellet Stove Cleaning System RPS204-B - The Home Depot

The SootEater Rotary Pellet Stove Cleaning System safely cleans your pellet stove and vent with ease! Ensures peak operation of your pellet appliance and minimize your service issues while decreasing your risk of a flue fire. The SootEater Pellet Stove propeller brush and flexible screw-connect...

www.homedepot.com

 

[SidecarFlip]

Gardus SootEater Rotary Pellet Stove Cleaning System RPS204-B - The Home Depot

The SootEater Rotary Pellet Stove Cleaning System safely cleans your pellet stove and vent with ease! Ensures peak operation of your pellet appliance and minimize your service issues while decreasing your risk of a flue fire. The SootEater Pellet Stove propeller brush and flexible screw-connect...

www.homedepot.com

Also works well for dryer vents loaded with lint.....

 

[batchman]

Looks like an atomic bomb blast.....

I do believe what we see there is a dust explosion. Of course, most pellets are dusty, but were these extremely dusty?

Good luck,
- Jeff

 

[Ssyko]

More like they never cleaned the hopper. We have some pellets up here in northern NY area that are extremely dusty and dirty. I tried some currans early this season to see how they burned in the new MAXX. Well they burned but high ash and about a cup of fines per bag. But 5.50 a bag a lot of folks up here just buy cheap and go till something goes wrong.

 

[Xgoons]

Hello everyone,

excuse my english,but i experienced this problem last week with my vicenza 5.2 that's a picture of...