XXV very hot left side of Hopper (inside wall) and top left side of stove top.

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stlwater

New Member
Feb 20, 2013
2
I've been running my stove (I'm new to it, just moved into a new house) since the fall. I've burned about 2 tons of pellets and the stove ran great. A few weeks back after cleaning the burn pot, I noticed a small stress fracture in the feed weldament. Well.. long story short it had to be replaced. Luckily it was under warranty.

The first time the repair tech came, he was rushed, hadn't seen the how-to video from Harman and didn't properly seal everything. There was a lot of smoke... He just came back and we re-did it together, making sure to seal everything properly. Now we had to remove the insulated heat shield twice to make the repairs.

Now, today I ran the stove pretty hard. It's about 30 degrees outside and I had it set to 75 (room temp) the stove was chugging along for about 7 hours. I noticed the top of the stove on the left side was very hot. I could touch it but it was uncomfortably hot. I seem to remember that only the top front of the stove was hot before the repair. Also, the stove top on the right side is nowhere near as hot right now. Strange..

I opened the hopper and the left side (front corner) is very hot.. I can touch it, even hold my hand there for about 2-5 seconds (depending where I'm touching) but it's much hotter than I ever remember the inside of the hopper being before. Again the right side is just warm, like I remember the entire thing being before the repair..

I believe that we re-installed the insulation correctly. The insulation did seem rather fragile though. All the sheet metal screws were inserted and tightened. Could the stove not be level? We did have to move it around on an uneven hearth so maybe it's not perfectly level? Not sure if that could have that dramatic effect? Wondering if the insulation became compressed on that side somehow?

Anyone else notice the inside walls of the hopper get hot on the XXV?
 
I've been running my stove (I'm new to it, just moved into a new house) since the fall. I've burned about 2 tons of pellets and the stove ran great. A few weeks back after cleaning the burn pot, I noticed a small stress fracture in the feed weldament. Well.. long story short it had to be replaced. Luckily it was under warranty.

The first time the repair tech came, he was rushed, hadn't seen the how-to video from Harman and didn't properly seal everything. There was a lot of smoke... He just came back and we re-did it together, making sure to seal everything properly. Now we had to remove the insulated heat shield twice to make the repairs.

Now, today I ran the stove pretty hard. It's about 30 degrees outside and I had it set to 75 (room temp) the stove was chugging along for about 7 hours. I noticed the top of the stove on the left side was very hot. I could touch it but it was uncomfortably hot. I seem to remember that only the top front of the stove was hot before the repair. Also, the stove top on the right side is nowhere near as hot right now. Strange..

I opened the hopper and the left side (front corner) is very hot.. I can touch it, even hold my hand there for about 2-5 seconds (depending where I'm touching) but it's much hotter than I ever remember the inside of the hopper being before. Again the right side is just warm, like I remember the entire thing being before the repair..

I believe that we re-installed the insulation correctly. The insulation did seem rather fragile though. All the sheet metal screws were inserted and tightened. Could the stove not be level? We did have to move it around on an uneven hearth so maybe it's not perfectly level? Not sure if that could have that dramatic effect? Wondering if the insulation became compressed on that side somehow?

Anyone else notice the inside walls of the hopper get hot on the XXV?
Except for cleanings, my XXV has been running steady since November. The hopper walls don't feel excessively hot. The top of the stove will get pretty warm towards the front but I would think that is OK as the hot air is running directly under the top front. If one side is obviously hotter than the other, I would think something was not right. I would make sure to tell the repair tech and have it checked, good luck.
 
The Top of my XXV gets pretty hot but I still can put my hands on it ! To br on the safe side Id have it checked! AS the Saying goes........ an Ounce of Prevention is worth a Pound of Cure !
 
Facing my XXV the top left side toward the front feels a little hotter than the right side. I'll have to check it again later to see if it changes. I don't know if it's always been like that. This is the first time I ever checked it.
 
This might be a stupid question, but I'm going to ask.

I have a Harman P68 and the top of the stove and even the side walls (not hopper) get very hot and you can barlely touch it. But with the stove running all day at 70 (room temp) I would think the stove getting that hot is normal, right?
 
This might be a stupid question, but I'm going to ask.

I have a Harman P68 and the top of the stove and even the side walls (not hopper) get very hot and you can barlely touch it. But with the stove running all day at 70 (room temp) I would think the stove getting that hot is normal, right?
That is correct for the P68, I will shoot a thermal on my XXV now, Left top reads 116 degrees Right top reads 108:cool:
 
@defiant

Well that's good to know it isn't just my stove. I wonder why that side gets hotter? I assume the inside walls of your pellet hopper are hot on that corner as well?

@Dollarbill

I can put my hands on my stove top as well, just noticed it was quite hot after running a constant 75 degree setting for about 8 hours. Maybe it's normal. I don't usually crank it up that high but I was 2 weeks into freezing my #$#$@ off so I binged on heat! lol
 
Inside hopper Lft sd 121 / Rt sd 103, Com on Smokey, that was too big of a hint.;)
 
might also check the distribution fan- is the lh impeller at all dirtier than the right? is there a buildup of pet hair on the grating on that side versus the other?
 
I think he means one squirrel cage is dirty?

Nope, just follow the air paths, you should then understand that there will be more combustion air flow (hot air) on one side than the other and the same is true ofor the convection side. I'll let you figure it out from there.
 
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My air is puledfrom left to right across exchanger on its way to vent
 
My air is puledfrom left to right across exchanger on its way to vent

You don't own a Harman XXV. And both air paths contribute so it is possible for one to pull air one way and the other the opposite the net result will determine which side is hotter. On a lot of stoves the exhaust side is on the left looking at the stove from the front thus pulling the hot exhaust gases all over to the left hand side as they exit the stove and the convection air gets fed into the right hand side of the exchanger removing more heat from the right hand side of the exchanger making the right hand side cool down more than the left hand side. The stoves air passages tend to be set up to leave more heat on one side than the other. Frequently it is the left hand side of the exchanger that is warmer. But nothing prevents it from being the other side,
 
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