Cleaning Heat Exchanger when Hot?

[lilpeck]

Hello All,

Thanks to all of you I have selected and installed a used 2013 Enviro Maxx (Vistaflame 170) in a living space. For now, the noise levels are absolutely fine for my application.

Question please ...

Cleaning the heat exchanger tubes per the manual:
<snip><snip>
Lift the grill and move the handles all the way up and down a few times (ONLY WHEN THE UNIT IS COLD) in order to clean away any fly ash that may have collected on the heat exchanger tubes.
<snip><snip>

Is it okay to clean the heat exchanger tubes when hot despite what the manual says? Is the risk only singeing fingers or is there a risk of harming the heat exchanger tubes?

I ask because I am finishing up the last of MWP pellets which coat both glass and tubes with ash (not creosote) overnight. (using hi-lo on thermostat) I notice diminished heat output even overnight and would like to clean them quickly in the morning without powering the unit down.

I have read that using a better quality pellet and/or adding air should solve this. Pellet remedy soon.

Knowing you like to see install photos I attach one.

Details
Primary heat 1580 sqft
Enviro Maxx (Vistaflame 170)
Ecobee 3 Lite
Tripp Lite surge protector
settings: on hi 2/lo 1; auger 4; combustion blower 4

Tomorrow
Installing OAK from porous unheated basement - no water pipes
Considering shortening up pipe

Within a couple of weeks (hopefully)
Considering this Gleason Avery auger upgrade for noise abatement and quality:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/enviro-maxx-maxx-m-and-vista-flame.128117/

Thanks all!

 

[Ssyko]

It could damage the exchange tubes. They expand when they are hot and if the scraping device is a tight fit it may get stuck where you cant close the stove top

 

[lilpeck]

Ssyko. Thanks for that. So cleaner pellets and adjust air. Schedule downtime to clean. Got it. Thanks.

 

[Connecticut Yankee]

The manual for my stove says to clean it every two or three days. I don't find that a problem, since the shutdown cycle is fairly short but leaves the stove and ash at a safe temperature. Ten or fifteen minutes with the ash vac, and I'm done. Another incentive to clean is that the door glass gets a film of ash after a couple of days, and I really like an unobstructed view of the flames. (Yes, I'm a pyromaniac, lol!)

Of course, this is our first season with the stove, and I'm still excited to have it. Perhaps next year, having to clean it so frequently will get to be a drag, who knows?

 

[Mt Bob]

Creosote?That would be bad.If just a little rich,and is soot/ash,that is OK.Austroflamms,and other stoves,you can operate the scraper,hot or cold.But,in your case,because of what manual says,do it cold,or,while the stove is on low burn,or cooling down.Go gently.If you were actually forming creosote,you probably would not be able to move the scraper when it is cooled down.