3 attempts to light my stove

[Bkins]

Wrong.......I beg to differ with both of you. The stove most definitely does not start on high with a cold stove start up unless it is set to Quad which is the highest setting. Maybe your Quad does but the MV non AE starts at whatever setting the stove is set for. I have timed the auger on numerous occasions and the speed of the auger changes as per the stove setting. Actually the manual for this stove states on cold starts the stove needs to be set to Quad which is the highest setting.

I have not tried to tell owners of any stove that I don't or have not owned and experienced how to operate or trouble shoot it. You might try the same idea of not telling somebody how their stove is designed to operate without having owned one. Your comment on the stove starting on high for every cold start is JUST PLAIN DEAD WRONG.

If you operate this stove strictly by the manual it will light every single time, without going searching for bad gaskets, igniters or anything else. If you try to start this stove on the lowest 2 settings then its a crap shoot if it will start or not.

 

[jtakeman]

I am assuming that the non-AE has similar logic to the Castile and Sante Fe.

It doesn't use the same control box. Assuming things sometimes gets us in trouble!

There is one other thing to try. There is a 10% increase in feed if you select it on the control panel. I included instructions. Worth a shot???

 

[Bkins]

Jay,

My guess is that the poster had the stove set to low or even med and not the highest Quad setting. It is a natural thing to set the stove for how you want it to run and the reason I called it a flaw in another post. When I want to start my stove right now I don't think about a high heat setting because I only need a little bit of heat. I am interested to hear what the poster had his set at, but I would bet it was low or med. It was why I suggested adding pellets or turn the heat setting up. I have found it to be much easier to just a small amount of pellets to the burn pot when I'm servicing the stove in the AM then to have to go back and turn the stove down.

To first starting suggesting it needs all kinds of parts checked before knowing how the stove was designed to operate is just as you said a assumption and can get anyone in trouble right away especially without having any experience with that stove.

 

[DexterDay]

Jay,

My guess is that the poster had the stove set to low or even med and not the highest Quad setting. It is a natural thing to set the stove for how you want it to run and the reason I called it a flaw in another post. When I want to start my stove right now I don't think about a high heat setting because I only need a little bit of heat. I am interested to hear what the poster had his set at, but I would bet it was low or med. It was why I suggested adding pellets or turn the heat setting up. I have found it to be much easier to just a small amount of pellets to the burn pot when I'm servicing the stove in the AM then to have to go back and turn the stove down.

To first starting suggesting it needs all kinds of parts checked before knowing how the stove was designed to operate is just as you said a assumption and can get anyone in trouble right away especially without having any experience with that stove.

Tu che.... My apologies Bkins. Just seems that if you ran off of a thermostat, that it would have to be on High all the time. Unless you were there to change. I only use the Low setting. In both the shoulder season (on thermostat) or in the dead of Winter (24/7 operation)

So Yes.. I assumed (A$$ out of you and me) Although I merely stated to "check" the ignitor as parts due fail.

Again, my apologies. I was wrong and will diligently say so. Just seems that it shouldnt be that way. Which means you are correct and it is a flawed system.

Do hope you harbor no ill feelings. And will now look further into a problem.
Having no experience with the Mt Vernon means I was a little off base. Yet knowing what I know about my stove (2 buddies with Quads also/no Mt Vernon) and everything I have read here (last winter I read almost every past thread before I ever became a member) I was making a highly educated "guess" and thats all it was. Was a guess. Butwhen someone presents a problem. They are searching for answers and opinions based on others experiences.

Having my stove mis-fire last season. And taking several tries to get going. I told him my experience with a similar stove that has similar problems.

Hope that the OP can work it out and apologies to both Him and Bkins.

 

[jtakeman]

I learned a long time ago where assumed was in the dictionary! Seeing as I have not tinkered with a non AE! I'm probably better off leaving it to someone that has.

I've seen my share of stove quirks that could not be worked around. I do see valid points on both sides. Trying to stay nuetral here. Hopefully the OP comes back before this thread is closed and this has been all for not!

By the way, I am glad all you fella's are here to assist the issues and problems. You all certainly show passion for a job that doesn't pay much. ;-)

 

[Bkins]

Jay,

My guess is that the poster had the stove set to low or even med and not the highest Quad setting. It is a natural thing to set the stove for how you want it to run and the reason I called it a flaw in another post. When I want to start my stove right now I don't think about a high heat setting because I only need a little bit of heat. I am interested to hear what the poster had his set at, but I would bet it was low or med. It was why I suggested adding pellets or turn the heat setting up. I have found it to be much easier to just a small amount of pellets to the burn pot when I'm servicing the stove in the AM then to have to go back and turn the stove down.

To first starting suggesting it needs all kinds of parts checked before knowing how the stove was designed to operate is just as you said a assumption and can get anyone in trouble right away especially without having any experience with that stove.

Tu che.... My apologies checked_word">Bkins</SPAN>. Just seems that if you ran off of a thermostat, that it would have to be on High all the time. Unless you were there to change. I only use the Low setting. In both the shoulder season (on thermostat) or in the dead of Winter (24/7 operation)

So Yes.. I assumed (A$$ out of you and me) Although I merely stated to "check" the ignitor as parts due fail.

Again, my apologies. I was wrong and will diligently say so. Just seems that it shouldnt be that way. Which means you are correct and it is a flawed system.

Do hope you harbor no ill feelings. And will now look further into a problem.
Having no experience with the Mt Vernon means I was a little off base. Yet knowing what I know about my stove (2 buddies with Quads also/no Mt Vernon) and everything I have read here (last winter I read almost every past thread before I ever became a member) I was making a highly educated "guess" and thats all it was. Was a guess. Butwhen someone presents a problem. They are searching for answers and opinions based on others experiences.

Having my stove mis-fire last season. And taking several tries to get going. I told him my experience with a similar stove that has similar problems.

Hope that the OP can work it out and apologies to both Him and checked_word">Bkins</SPAN>.

Dexter,

I have no, none, ill feelings toward you or anyone else on this site. I stuck to my guns because I knew what I was talking about and have many, lots, of hours trying to figure out how this stove works and why it won't start on low or even medium most of the time. (Cold starts only) I try not to comment on stuff I have a vague knowledge about. Our stoves are made by the same company and in many ways the sameness stops there.

Lets hope the OP comes back to see the discussion that has ensued. I am almost positive this was answered for him on the other forum. The old forum I can't reach. Doesn't matter anyhow.

Jay,

Thanks for stepping in here as this would of gone back and forth forever and forum members look to you as a god of sorts. Imacman too. I know where the word assumption is in the dictionary from when I was 8 years old and my dad, after a incident, made me write out the meanings 25 times. It wasn't lost on me.

 

[tjnamtiw]

I'll chime in too and eat some crow! At least, I covered my A$$ and said I a$$umed.......... I could not find a manual for the non-AE but did find the AE one. Since the OP never wrote back, we still don't know answers to such questions as age of stove, condition of door gaskets and if he set the flame height per the manual. I see on the AE that you adjust the feed rate with the control panel and not a slide gate. How is the non-AE feed controlled.
With the exception of starting out on High no matter what the heat setting, the other questions posed to the OP would be reasonable places to look on any stove, which is why we asked them, so I don't feel all that bad and actually like the taste of crow, now that I've sampled it again. ;-P :sick:

 

[Bkins]

The feed rate is adjusted with a slide plate in the hopper like some other Quads. This question/problem came up a lot at this time of year onn the other site. I have not spent much time there since not that many people talk about Quads anymore. I have had no problems with my Harmans so no need to go looking.

Some folks probably felt I was being a arrogant SOB the way I was sticking to my guns but the OP said the stove worked good after getting it started and to me that ruled out all other things other then the gotta set it on high, or add pellets, in the cold start up mode. If you have slightly longer pellets it even worse yet and does require the Quad mode to get started.

If it comes up again next year I will answer it a little bit differently. Sorry if I PYO.

 

[jmcp]

Yes I did have my stove was set at 2 setting when I turned it on so it sounds like I should try 3 or 4 .These settings are rarely used by me as I do not like to see such a strong fire especially overnight I tend to set it at 1 and turn the temp up very high thus making the stove go all night without shutting down.I will try setting 3 or 4 tonight.

 

[Bkins]

If your stove doesn't relight when its warm then it is a whole different issue. Does it run and relight when its operating on a thermostat? If it only mis-fires on a cold start you should be good to go by turning it up to 3 or 4. You don't need to leave it on this setting but just long enough to get the stove started. My stove does take 1- to 15 minutes to get fully started.

 

[jmcp]

When I set the temp at 75 and the setting at 1 overnight sometimes it will not relight I would check the burnpot and it would be full of pellets.I reasoned that I probably had some ash buildup in the burnpot and when it called for heat the igniter could light the pellets through the ash.I can deal with that but I definetly will try set 3 and 4 for cold starts.Thanks for all the advise one learns something new every day.