25-PAH issues from factory

[SmokeyTheBear]

http://www.heatredefined.com/faq/videos/maintenance/pellet-auxiliary-heaters-maintainance-video


There are a lot of basic sections of the stove that are the same as the other models. They use a lot of the same fasteners.

Then I don't know what your stove went through in shipping but fasteners are noted for loosening up.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Thanks! My manual doesn't have that oddly enough. The hopper is the same, the front holds the dollar bill tight and the sides are loose to almost the point of no resistance.

The you need to make sure there is nothing in the way such as a piece of pellet in the rear area. Then you now have the means to at least get one of the seals tight by tightening the latch a bit more and retesting..

 

[acammer]

If the door and hopper aren't sealing, it's never gonna work right. Maybe it's bowed across the front - wouldn't be the first one we've heard of on here. I think you need to take a straight edge and check the front of the stove above and below the door and ash pan to see if it's straight all the way across. If both sides are tight but the middle is loose something isn't straight. Do the same with the door and ash pan itself - check for straightness. If something isn't straight, you need to get with Englander as suggested and figure out next level for repairs or replacement.

For what it's worth, the hopper seal is important, but by and far the least important of the gasket-ed seals. Mine will run perfectly fine with the hopper lid wide open - no change at all to the flame. If I so much as crack the door or the ash pan open - instant lazy, dirty flame. I would concentrate my efforts on the door and ash pan seals - we know those aren't sealing right and without them working right you're never going to get a clean burn.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

If the door and hopper aren't sealing, it's never gonna work right. Maybe it's bowed across the front - wouldn't be the first one we've heard of on here. I think you need to take a straight edge and check the front of the stove above and below the door and ash pan to see if it's straight all the way across. If both sides are tight but the middle is loose something isn't straight. Do the same with the door and ash pan itself - check for straightness. If something isn't straight, you need to get with Englander as suggested and figure out next level for repairs or replacement.
For what it's worth, the hopper seal is important, but by and far the least important of the gasket-ed seals. Mine will run perfectly fine with the hopper lid wide open - no change at all to the flame. If I so much as crack the door or the ash pan open - instant lazy, dirty flame. I would concentrate my efforts on the door and ash pan seals - we know those aren't sealing right and without them working right you're never going to get a clean burn.

Please feel free to provide the adjustment information for the door and ash pan.

 

[jjwreil]

If the door and hopper aren't sealing, it's never gonna work right. Maybe it's bowed across the front - wouldn't be the first one we've heard of on here

Thanks for the tip. I took a straight edge and held it accross the front in mutliple spots, the bar touches at both edges and goes a number of inches in before it loses contact. Maybe 1cm or so gap between the stove and the edge by the time it reaches the middle. Consistent accross the front where the door/ash pan latch. Might make sense why the sides are sealing properly on the front while the top is not sealing.

Your note about opening your door and your flame changing from a strong yellow to lazy caught my attention, I've opened the door before and my flame never changes so I guess that proves it was never really sealed to begin with.

Also I was incorrect, the burn pot does rock a little and there is enough of a gap to place a piece of gasket with room to spare (picture included).

Well with the other issues I know it won't clean but house is low 40's so starting the bad boy back up, gotta get some kind of heat out of it!

 

[acammer]

Please feel free to provide the adjustment information for the door and ash pan.

There isn't. Door hinges are fixed, as is the latching mechanism. Same with the ash pan, there are the two catches the rely on their "spring tension" to hold the ash pan against the body of the stove. You can usually pull on the ash pan and introduce an air gap, but if the gasket and surface are ok it seals air tight.

Sounds like the stove has a major bow in it to me. I had to reread that a few times - a 1cm gap, wow! Never gonna get that to seal. There should be an instant and major difference in the flame characteristic when you open that door with the stove running. I think you need to get with Englander and figure out how they want to help you resolve this.

BTW, if the burn pot rocks, its not laying flat. But the door/pan seal is your biggest issue by far.

 

[jjwreil]

While I'm at it posting pictures, here is a shot of the ashpan sealed in place, you can see the gap in the middle while the right side is flush and sealed.

 

[jjwreil]

Sounds like the stove has a major bow in it to me. I had to reread that a few times - a 1cm gap, wow! Never gonna get that to seal. I think you need to get with Englander and figure out how they want to help you resolve this.

Thats what you get for estimating, thought a cm was smaller! I would say 1/8" as thats as close as I could measure.;

 

[acammer]

Thanks for the tip. I took a straight edge and held it accross the front in mutliple spots, the bar touches at both edges and goes a number of inches in before it loses contact. Maybe 1cm or so gap between the stove and the edge by the time it reaches the middle. Consistent accross the front where the door/ash pan latch. Might make sense why the sides are sealing properly on the front while the top is not sealing.

Your note about opening your door and your flame changing from a strong yellow to lazy caught my attention, I've opened the door before and my flame never changes so I guess that proves it was never really sealed to begin with.

Also I was incorrect, the burn pot does rock a little and there is enough of a gap to place a piece of gasket with room to spare (picture included).

Well with the other issues I know it won't clean but house is low 40's so starting the bad boy back up, gotta get some kind of heat out of it!

Thats what you get for estimating, thought a cm was smaller! I would say 1/8" as thats as close as I could measure.;

An 1/8th is still probably going to be more than you can overcome with the rope gasket - it's not going to collapse enough on the sides to allow the middle to fill. You could probably get creative and jury rig up some sort of seal, but it's a new stove, this should be Englander's problem, not yours.

Just looking at the ash pan seal you can tell that's a major issue.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Thanks for the tip. I took a straight edge and held it accross the front in mutliple spots, the bar touches at both edges and goes a number of inches in before it loses contact. Maybe 1cm or so gap between the stove and the edge by the time it reaches the middle. Consistent accross the front where the door/ash pan latch. Might make sense why the sides are sealing properly on the front while the top is not sealing.

Your note about opening your door and your flame changing from a strong yellow to lazy caught my attention, I've opened the door before and my flame never changes so I guess that proves it was never really sealed to begin with.

Also I was incorrect, the burn pot does rock a little and there is enough of a gap to place a piece of gasket with room to spare (picture included).

Well with the other issues I know it won't clean but house is low 40's so starting the bad boy back up, gotta get some kind of heat out of it!

Get on the horn to ESW tell them that there are gaps on both the ash pan and the stove door that will not seal and get a new unit headed your way.

 

[jjwreil]

Get on the horn to ESW tell them that there are gaps on both the ash pan and the stove door that will not seal and get a new unit headed your way.

Thank you both for your help with these issues, this thing has been so frustrating but I feel better that its not just me. Going to call them now.

On the bright side I have a really nice flame, won't last long before it goes lazy but at least all that cleaning will warm things up a little bit before it poops out.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Thank you both for your help with these issues, this thing has been so frustrating but I feel better that its not just me. Going to call them now.

On the bright side I have a really nice flame, won't last long before it goes lazy but at least all that cleaning will warm things up a little bit before it poops out.

It will last a bit longer this time because most of the ash pan leak has been quashed, wasn't going to argue with you about the burn pot but several folks noticed it because the right edge edge around the flange on the pot was free of ash and I noticed it when I saw the first picture of the pot out of the cradle.

 

[jjwreil]

It will last a bit longer this time because most of the ash pan leak has been quashed, wasn't going to argue with you about the burn pot but several folks noticed it because the right edge edge around the flange on the pot was free of ash and I noticed it when I saw the first picture of the pot out of the cradle.

It already failed with an E-2 so it was short lived. Sorry I didn't mean to doubt you, I'm pretty new to these things, I saw what you were saying in the pictures but when I tested the pot wasn't clean as there was ash below from cleaning so it sat level, once fully clean it was clear as day.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

A 7/8 " rope gasket may take care of the door.and a 1/8" thick piece of lyherm could likely be used to be used to wedge that ash pan seal tight.

 

[acammer]

Thank you both for your help with these issues, this thing has been so frustrating but I feel better that its not just me. Going to call them now.

On the bright side I have a really nice flame, won't last long before it goes lazy but at least all that cleaning will warm things up a little bit before it poops out.

I hope everything gets worked out for your quickly - it's a bummer that this has been a bad experience, but I can tell you that this stove can work pretty well when it's working right. I hope the resolution is quick and complete for you - post back into this thread with your progress!

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Is E2 the failed to start Error code if so It didn't reach temperature in time maybe due to crap (ash) being behind where the temperature sensor is.

 

[jjwreil]

Is E2 the failed to start Error code if so It didn't reach temperature in time maybe due to crap (ash) being behind where the temperature sensor is.

Yeah its the fail to start error code due to not reaching temp fast enough. It always takes 2 tries to start this one, assuming because the airflow issues so it never heats quick enough, by 2nd time enough heat has built to start.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Crap in the area on the other side of the stove body behind the heat sensor is the number one cause of the E2 error, then we go to dirt between the sensor and the stove body, of course if the wiring got disturbed it could have come lose from the conrol board.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

It already failed with an E-2 so it was short lived. Sorry I didn't mean to doubt you, I'm pretty new to these things, I saw what you were saying in the pictures but when I tested the pot wasn't clean as there was ash below from cleaning so it sat level, once fully clean it was clear as day.

No problem as it would have come around to bite you soon enough. That is why this version of the game is called bop a mole.

 

[jjwreil]

Crap in the area on the other side of the stove body behind the heat sensor is the number one cause of the E2 error,

This is actually the first issue I called them for, been happening since it was new and clean. Thats why they sent me the control board, cables, etc, sadly nothing but trouble from the start.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Is it going now?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

This is actually the first issue I called them for, been happening since it was new and clean. Thats why they sent me the control board, cables, etc, sadly nothing but trouble from the start.

Maybe new but that doesn't mean it was clean.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Is it running?

 

[jjwreil]

Is it running?

Yeah its running as well as it does the cleaning helped for a bit but looking pretty lazy now. Warming the house up though so thats all that matters right now.

 

[jjwreil]

At work today so I can sit on my butt and wait through the ESW phone queue but I will be calling shortly and hopefully getting this dealth with for good. Stove ran great for about 5 hours last night, strong yellow flame and no ash build up and then slowly went downhill from there, by this morning it was a low lazy flame with the usual overspilling pot. After a cleaning and restarting it reverted to the typical orange flame that I get at startup. It was great in that 5 hour window, tons of heat coming out.