Anyone else shutting down for the season ?

[alternativeheat]

Shut the P61a off about an hour ago and changed my signature to reflect it. We are well into shoulder season now, maybe a month to six weeks of heating to go but will use oil for the low amount of heat it takes to heat this time of year.. The stove I think has been lighting a dozen times a day in room temp auto lately then off again, if not more and low burns at that. So ya, I'm done for this winter ! We used about 70-80 bags or so, that's some mixed heat and more than I thought I would do of full time burning combined.

If I don't see you all in the threads it's cause I'm spending time over in the fly fishing forums !!

 

[3650]

Shut her off yesterday morning. 65* when I woke up this morning.

 

[Orson_Yancey]

Yes, I think with the warm weather coming this weekend, I will not be turning on the stove anymore. I suppose most of us will
come back to this forum late in the summer when the pellets sales resume.

 

[papa bears stove]

Shut the Europa down yesterday for the season. This time I mean it. Hehe

 

[jackhammer]

I've been thinking I am done, then temps drop and I fire it up for a few hours just to warm the house up. I'm looking forward to giving the stove its first end of season cleaning, though I'm nervous about removing the esp. Looks challenging, at least for me!

 

[Tonyray]

Have a HALF hopper of pellets which will stay in the stove until I am 100% sure we won't need to fire it up anymore [overnite lows still get nippy]
Still only half way thru April.... just sayin..

 

[bogieb]

Nop[e - with mornings in the 20's, the house still needs heat at night. Heck, the basement needs heat during the dy since the ground is still so cold (tress aren't budding and even the early bulbs haven't come out to play yet).

Stoves will be on room temp auto for another 60-90 days unless we have a severe heat spell.

 

[Harman Lover 007]

Room temp Auto until it stops lighting by itself....

 

[Harman Lover 007]

Nop[e - with mornings in the 20's, the house still needs heat at night. Heck, the basement needs heat during the dy since the ground is still so cold (tress aren't budding and even the early bulbs haven't come out to play yet).

Stoves will be on room temp auto for another 60-90 days unless we have a severe heat spell.

If you're still burning on July 16th, it's time to move!!

 

[alternativeheat]

Have a HALF hopper of pellets which will stay in the stove until I am 100% sure we won't need to fire it up anymore [overnite lows still get nippy]
Still only half way thru April.... just sayin..

I know, that's what I thought two weeks ago and then it ran day and night, we even had a snow storm mixed in there. That's done now. Besides, we got a hundred gallons of fuel and it filled the tank. Supposed to be in the 40's tonight, near 60 tomorrow.

 

[alternativeheat]

Nop[e - with mornings in the 20's, the house still needs heat at night. Heck, the basement needs heat during the dy since the ground is still so cold (tress aren't budding and even the early bulbs haven't come out to play yet).

Stoves will be on room temp auto for another 60-90 days unless we have a severe heat spell.

Oh those purple things came and went already down here ( crocus I think my wife said they are). Our magnolia tree started to blossom then we got a freeze and lost that part of the bloom but have more almost ready. And the daffodils are out. Cape Cod is just raw in the spring with wind off the water but the sun is still strong when it's out. Probably in the next week I'll get the garden tractor going and cut the grass. And then there is the full tank of oil. The air doesn't feel like spring but the response to the sun says it is.

 

[rich2500]

Looking at the forecast it looks like I may be done for the year but I'm not doing the end of season prep just yet.

 

[corkman]

I've been thinking I am done, then temps drop and I fire it up for a few hours just to warm the house up. I'm looking forward to giving the stove its first end of season cleaning, though I'm nervous about removing the esp. Looks challenging, at least for me!

You'll be surprised at how easy it is once you do it. Once you expose the exhaust stub at the rear of the stove look for the hex head screw that penetrates that pipe. Once you back that out the ESP comes out. Wipe if clean and reinstall

 

[alternativeheat]

I bought a 1/4" hex driver at Harbor Freight rather than dig out my ratchet set all the time. Plus the driver is like a screw driver and has nice clearance to get at the screw. I only pull the ESP once annually now since going with the bottle brush during the burning season though.

I tend not to do spring cleaning but fall. I learned last year that if I leave some ash in the stove and just crack the main door slightly I get no rust in the stove. I leave minimal pellets in the hopper, just enough to cover the auger plate with a six or eight inch circle of pellets. I use no absorbent or oil or paint etc. I just shut the stove off, let it cool and crack the main door so air can get in there. I do clean the glass and just sweep the real heavy ash into the ash pan and that's it till fall. In Sept I do the full cleaning. The first year I cleaned everything all up, made sure it was all locked down tight and got severe condensation, streaks of rust where water ran down the inside of the stove. Never had that or any rust at all with my non air tight coal stove in 35 years of burning more corrosive coal, so I just made this one non air tight too, by cracking the door. No rust at all, even after our humid Aug.

 

[jackhammer]

I have cleaned the fines box a few times so I am familiar with the location of the ESP, I might have a nut driver to fit. I was hoping you all would chime in! Not to get off track, but do I need to pull motors or the auger? I read about issues with that. When talking to the guy who installed it, he doesn't normally do that for end of year cleanings.

 

[alternativeheat]

I don't think anyone does the major pulling of motors on a P series Harman. Maybe after 4-5 years of burning. I did get some of the Harman squeal in the auger this spring but I think that probably is just carbon or a little hardening creosote on the auger shaft from such low burns . A hot burn often takes care of that. There does come a point where you need to pull the auger and clean up the shaft though, so I'll look close at that next fall. To my knowledge ( don't quote me on it) the Harman motors don't require oil unlike some models that do. And we can access our blower fans without dismantling. Well anyway , next season is season 4 for my P61 and I haven't oiled anything yet. I'll reevaluate that next fall too !

 

[scajjr2]

from the forecast other than Tuesday being colder (low 40"s) the rest of the temps supposed to be 50"s-60"s. have about half a hopper of pellets in the P43 now, my burn those tues afternoon-night, then shut it down for the season. Do the spring clean out next weekend. It's been off all week, will run the electric baseboard if need be.

Sam

 

[bogieb]

If you're still burning on July 16th, it's time to move!!

Last year I was burning until June 28th, so it isn't impossible

 

[Tonyray]

I have cleaned the fines box a few times so I am familiar with the location of the ESP, I might have a nut driver to fit. I was hoping you all would chime in! Not to get off track, but do I need to pull motors or the auger? I read about issues with that. When talking to the guy who installed it, he doesn't normally do that for end of year cleanings.

I had the same misgivings about pulling the ESP.Fear of dropping the screw in the really tight space area.
Alternativeheat here told me not to sweat losing the little 1/4 screw as it will "Stay'" fastened to the metal plate it is screwed into as the ESP comes up and out.
fear over.. piece of cake to remove/clean.
[useing a 1/4" driver works good.]

 

[Harman Lover 007]

Last year I was burning until June 28th, so it isn't impossible

You're in NH...not the North Pole!!

 

[womaus]

We fired the stove for the last time a week or more ago. We tend to keep the house on the cooler side anyway, as long as it doesn't get below 50º inside overnight we're OK. Stopped burning due to pouring the last bag in the hopper, just over a ton since November (?).

Will be doing a thorough clean soon, and start looking for summer deals on peoples leftover bags of pellets on Craigslist (yeah, I'm a cheap bastard....)

 

[bags]

It is warm here but if needed one night I will still still fire mine up. I think it will remain warm here. Tomorrow is supposed to hit 82*. Crazy because it was in the 20's not long ago. And it snowed. The snow only stuck on the grass and such and wasn't much more than a dusting anyway but it was chilly.

The way I see it is I will fire mine up anytime I get a chill. I don't care if it is July..... The days are number though if I even see another time to heat the P68 up again.

 

[Tonyray]

It is warm here but if needed one night I will still still fire mine up. I think it will remain warm here. Tomorrow is supposed to hit 82*. Crazy because it was in the 20's not long ago. And it snowed. The snow only stuck on the grass and such and wasn't much more than a dusting anyway but it was chilly.

The way I see it is I will fire mine up anytime I get a chill. I don't care if it is July..... The days are number though if I even see another time to heat the P68 up again.

Right...
what's the Bums Rush about closing up the stove so soon?
gonna take same amount of time now or later.
Not like ya need a whole weekend closing up a summer home..
stove cleaning/close up can be done anytime between today and whenever..
but hey.. to each his/her own.

 

[DneprDave]

I lit my pellet stove off for the last time this season on easter, but it was only for ambiance. I was really done a couple of week before easter. I only burned a ton and a half this year!

It was 75 degrees today, tomorrow they say is will be 80.

 

[bogieb]

You're in NH...not the North Pole!!

Yes, and on June 28, 2015 it was 42* and rainy and windy. I know because I rode my bike from western NY to home that day in the nasty conditions all the way. Fired up both pellet stoves to not only warm up the house, but me as well when I got home.