Thermostat?

[Ezekiel_33]

So, Friday after work I went to the dealer where I bought my Mt Vernon (non AE) a few years back. Told him I would like to buy a new ignitor. He insisted that I do not need an ignitor if it is glowing. He said I was probably not getting enough pellets in the initial dump, and to open up the gate all the way and try it for a few days.
Over the weekend, I had 1 misfire, but the outside temps were really warm and the stove didn't work much. The one time it misfired, there were plenty of pellets in the pot.
IGNITOR???? I don't want to waste $50 if I don't need to. The guy I talked to at the store is a young guy, but seems to be quite familiar with the stoves. What does your experience say? Have you encountered such a thing as a "weak ignitor"? He insists that there is no such thing, it either works or it don't.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

It depends upon what the igniter has for zones and how it is made. It is possible to have a weak igniter, that is one that glows but doesn't get hot enough.

The biggest issues with ignition problems is lack of proper air flow past the igniter and into the pellet pile.

If you have a bad burn pot gasket your air flow is messed up, if the holes in front of the igniter are plugged (sometimes even just a little bit) your air flow is messed up, that list just goes on.

 

[DexterDay]

$50 for an ignitor? Ummm. Check online. Fleabay is much cheaper.

Yes. Ignitors can weaken over time. How old is the ignitor now? The Non AE hasn't been made in quite some time.

One on there now for $34.95 w/ free shipping out of Byron Center Michigan. Prob be at your door by Friday.

Again, worst case scenario, you have a spare and now Know you have burn pot bypass's (air leaks or.clogs of some sort).

 

[Ezekiel_33]

O.K. Bought a new ignitor for $31 at the local dealer. Stove is still misfiring. It does seem to light quicker though, when it lights.

Last night I thought I felt a bit of an obstruction in the port where the pellets are supposed to touch the ignitor. Cleaned it out extra good, hoping that perhaps I had missed that before and that it was the cause of the misfires.

This morning it misfired, but there were no pellets left in the pot, they were all burned up. I set my control box for +10% to see if that will make a difference. This intermittent misfire is driving me crazy! lol! Anything else I should check or re-check??????

HELP!

 

[DexterDay]

What setting are you running on??

Bkins a member here, says that The early non AE models didnt start in High (or Quad in your case). They went through start up at whatever setting you had selected.

If you are running on Med, try running in Quad? This will give the stove (if the info is correct) Full air like it should.

I still think its a feed/fuel issue?

To misfire, means there should be fuel in the pot. When you hit reset, you Add even More to the pot.

Also, your stove burned the pellets the last time? Which means it ignited. So that means 2 things. Either there was to little fuel to satisfy the thermocouple or the thermocouple wasn't properly positioned (tip touching ceramic cover and ceramic cover sticking out into pot).

Im betting on to little fuel? Have you verified the auger cycle times are correct? And that its not stalling or spinning backward? The collar is tight on the auger shaft?

 

[DexterDay]

Here is a sheet with your auger feed times.

Make sure that it is spinning at these times for the selected firing rate.

 

[Ezekiel_33]

Thanks! I printed those sheets for reference. My gate is wide open. I have ran on both Quad and High settings. What I am trying right now is to scrape/clean out the bottom of the pot twice a day to see if it makes a difference. So far-so good. Will see for sure in a few days.

Yes, I have gone from unburned pellets to ashes with no fire. I think I am on the right trail. I have the controller set at #2 and the feed gate wide open for now.
Will try and adjust the gate/feed rate once I see if it keeps lighting properly.

 

[Ezekiel_33]

Well, it's not an intermittent problem anymore. Went home to a cold stove and the smell of cooked electronics yesterday. I can see through the plastic on the control box that the transformer is smoked. I just replaced this controller last February or March.
Is there anything in the stove that would take this out? My last one also had a toasted transformer, I replaced it but it must have taken out more components so I bought a new control box.
I am waiting for Pantrol to open up so I can see if they will warranty it.

 

[DexterDay]

Is the stove on a Good Surge protector?

 

[Ezekiel_33]

Is the stove on a Good Surge protector?

Nope. No one told me I needed one. I will get one now though. Something is heating up the transformer over time though. You can see the discoloration where the yellow has heated up and is now burnt/brown looking. I am going to try and get my hands on a schematic to see what is ran through the 12v portion of this board. I thought it was just a switching circuit and that the 12vdc just ran all the electronics on the board itself, with the relay actually handling the 120v stuff.

 

[Ezekiel_33]

does anyone have a schematic for the Pantrol Controller? This one is model HHT# 7000-206

 

[DexterDay]

I have better surge protectors on my Stoves, than I do on my P/C. Do a search up top. Many here use Tripp Lite. The Ultrablok and Isoblok series are pretty nice. Good Joules rating and a fast clamping speed.

Delicate electronics in these machines

Its possible, that this was your problem? The entire time.

If the controller had, even minor damage?

 

[Ezekiel_33]

Maybe. I am waiting to see if Pantrol can find a schematic of the controller. The tech said he would e-mail it to me if he can find it.

 

[briansol]

A bad/poor ground could also be the problem. It could melt wires, and short juice back abd forth to the ignitor, therefore only giving it half-glow as its not getting full on power to it constantly.

I fried a wire after a cleaning once to the ignitor... its casing melted as it got misplaced during the movement and got hot. the exposed wire then grounded itself to the stove chassis and the whole thing ate dirt. Luckily, all i needed was a new fuse and some electrical tape after finiding it.

 

[Ezekiel_33]

Well, after installing a new controller and carefully monitoring it, I noticed that the CALL light was not as bright as normal. I decided to troubleshoot the thermostat and the wiring. I noticed a spark from one of the thermostat wires when I removed it, as if it had a load on it. Grabbed the multimeter and discovered that one of my wires going to the thermostat was shorted to ground. When the wire mesh was stapled to my drywall to prepare for the cultured stone, one of the staples must have speared this wire and joined it with the wire mesh, which also touches the exhaust vent where it goes through the wall. So, the voltage that was supposed to be sent out to the thermostat and then return on the second wire was being shorted to the stove ground.

Hopefully this will end my problems. Looking back, it was last spring, toward the end of my burning season when the mesh was stapled to the drywall and my first controller died. Hope this helps if anyone else ever has a simular problem.

 

[tjnamtiw]

That is some great trouble shooting and analysis. It sure sounds like MY LUCK Sheet happens but that one is really bazaar.
As for surge protectors, I use these > http://www.amazon.com/APC-LE1200-Au...=1354545148&sr=1-1&keywords=apc+line-r+1200va

What people fail to realize is that one of the biggest problems with electrical supplies is when you lose power and then regain it, there is a large increase in voltage until it settles down. This controller not only protects against spikes but it also regulates the voltage during brown outs and surges.

 

[briansol]

told you it was a ground Glad you figured this remlin out.