A bazillion sparks

[thepaulmc]

I just changed the hopper gasket and burn pot gasket. Now I have sparks flying like crazy. Hopper gasket was so much thicker I had a hard time setting the locks. What can cause the sparks like that? I didn't have that many before changing the gaskets, still have the window one to do.

25-PDVC
05 model

 

[pell it]

Better airflow thru the burnpot. Try closing the damper a little at a time.

 

[barnyard840x]

You've sealed the stove up so the air you were losing has helped @to ;-) increase the air coming through the burn pot. Now you are getting too much air, if you have an intake draft gate closing the draft gate a little will tame the sparks. "Too many" sparks = loss of good heat. ;-)

 

[thepaulmc]

My settinga are 5-6-1... Factory is 5-9-1 full air for some reason..

 

[DexterDay]

(No damper on Englanders)

On an 05 model, I believe the bottom 3 are only affected at heat settings 1 & 2.

What heat setting are you burning at?

Imacman posted awhile back. Stating what models were affected on ALL heat settings (per Mike Holton / Senior Tech at Englander). Pretty sure an 05 wont be in that category. Send Mike a PM (stoveguy2esw) or hopefully he or imacman will stop by.

My theory is you had a leak and now fixed it. There should be a fair amount of sparks during the combustion process. So it may not be a problem. You could have had a problem and never knew. I will guess that there will be less ash build up on the burn plate.

 

[imacman]

My settinga are 5-6-1... Factory is 5-9-1 full air for some reason..

IIRC, the factory settings for a PDVC are 4-6-1 to start with, not 5-9-1.

 

[thepaulmc]

Mike is the one that told me that my settings are 5-9-1 for this model year.. Guess I will to try some others. I will try the 4-6-1. Running a thermostat so it is is low burn a lot.

 

[thepaulmc]

4-6-1 has the same effect.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

4-6-1 has the same effect.

Make it 4-5-1

In other words reduce the air (same as closing the damper a bit)

 

[Weird tolkienish figure]

(No damper on Englanders)

On an 05 model, I believe the bottom 3 are only affected at heat settings 1 & 2.

What heat setting are you burning at?

Imacman posted awhile back. Stating what models were affected on ALL heat settings (per Mike Holton / Senior Tech at Englander). Pretty sure an 05 wont be in that category. Send Mike a PM (stoveguy2esw) or hopefully he or imacman will stop by.

My theory is you had a leak and now fixed it. There should be a fair amount of sparks during the combustion process. So it may not be a problem. You could have had a problem and never knew. I will guess that there will be less ash build up on the burn plate.

What I had heard was that sparks = good. In particular, you want the majority of the ash to not settle in the ashpan, but around the burn pot. You just don't want solid pelets ending up out of the pot though.

Could be wrong...

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

(No damper on Englanders)

On an 05 model, I believe the bottom 3 are only affected at heat settings 1 & 2.

What heat setting are you burning at?

Imacman posted awhile back. Stating what models were affected on ALL heat settings (per Mike Holton / Senior Tech at Englander). Pretty sure an 05 wont be in that category. Send Mike a PM (stoveguy2esw) or hopefully he or imacman will stop by.

My theory is you had a leak and now fixed it. There should be a fair amount of sparks during the combustion process. So it may not be a problem. You could have had a problem and never knew. I will guess that there will be less ash build up on the burn plate.

What I had heard was that sparks = good. In particular, you want the majority of the ash to not settle in the ashpan, but around the burn pot. You just don't want solid pelets ending up out of the pot though.

Could be wrong...

No real ash pan and it is a bottom feeder.

 

[DexterDay]

(No damper on Englanders)

On an 05 model, I believe the bottom 3 are only affected at heat settings 1 & 2.

What heat setting are you burning at?

Imacman posted awhile back. Stating what models were affected on ALL heat settings (per Mike Holton / Senior Tech at Englander). Pretty sure an 05 wont be in that category. Send Mike a PM (stoveguy2esw) or hopefully he or imacman will stop by.

My theory is you had a leak and now fixed it. There should be a fair amount of sparks during the combustion process. So it may not be a problem. You could have had a problem and never knew. I will guess that there will be less ash build up on the burn plate.

What I had heard was that sparks = good. In particular, you want the majority of the ash to not settle in the ashpan, but around the burn pot. You just don't want solid pelets ending up out of the pot though.

Could be wrong...

I want my ash ejected from the pot (or majority of it). My Quadrafire has sparks flying constantly. When more pellets are dropped, hundreds of little sparks go flying.

If you dont have sparks. Then the ash builds up in or on your pot. Causing you to scrape or shut down and clean.

Sparks are a good thing. IMO

 

[HD41]

This is a trial and error thing. Factory settings are a base to start with, different pellets feed and burn differently. Is it possible sparks are from pellet fines? If you are you not getting any black buildup on the glass, try lowering the low burn air. You need enough air to burn clean on the lowest setting especially if you plan to use a thermostat. I set my low burn air so the pellets glow in the burn pot and get a nice amber ash after several hours of burning. 3-6-1 works for me. Very few sparks, burning Lignetics and Somersets

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

It is a balancing act.

You want some sparks but you don't need a bazillion with too much air large pellet pieces can get ejected.

 

[imacman]

It is a balancing act.

You want some sparks but you don't need a bazillion with too much air large pellet pieces can get ejected.

Agreed. IMO, reduce the air until you see a noticeable change in the flame (starts to get "lazy" and little or no sparks come from pot), then go back up one number. Remember to give the stove about 45 min.- 1 hour to stabilize after each change.