Creosote buildup fore in pellet stove

[buildingmaint]

Near as I can tell I had a creosote fire in my pellet stove today. Smelled a lot of unusual wood smell today turned off stove and found a mess.Looked like pellets were on fire on bottom of stove ,heat exchange tubes covered with creosote ,exhaust fan covered what a mess.Question how can I clean out this stuff ? I have been scraping and brushing but I don't know how clean I have to have the stove before I can use it agin.Any help would be great ,

 

[Corie]

Whats your flame look like? What kind of pellets are you burning?

 

[buildingmaint]

No flame now ,stove is turned off. Glass always dusts over .it is a small window . Need to know how to clean this stuff up so I can use stove safley.

 

[Xena]

I'm assuming you don't have a manual for the stove...
You can usually go to the MFG's web site and download them.
Manual should explain everything involved for a thorough
cleaning.
THe basics involve cleaning ash traps and heat exchange tubes
as well as inside walls of stove, door, and emptying ash pan.
I use a wide paint brush I bought solely for the job, and run
the wet dry vac inside the stove while cleaning to reduce
dust in the room. Also, don't forget to wear a mask of some sort to protect
your lungs.

 

[bacsales]

Clean it as best as you can but remember it is made to burn and burn hot so don't get too freaked. The bigger concern is why did your burnpot over fill and pellets spill to the ashpan. This is the problem. Check all gaskets. Check the ashpan gasket if you have one. Clean the stove thoughrouly meaning the ASHTRAPS. These are critical. Check often for clinkers in the burnpot. You may need to stir the pot more often than you have due to different pellets etc.

 

[buildingmaint]

Been using stove for two years .This is not normal cleaning.This is major creasote build up in a short time . This has never happed before. Looked like pelletts that were on fire fell in to ash pan and caught some stary pelletts on fire .

 

[Corie]

Well that's what I'm trying to get to the bottom of.

Cleaning it is one thing, but figuring out the cause is really the root of this discussion. That is no acceptable behavior for a pellet stove.

 

[buildingmaint]

Thanks for the replys . Sorry if I sounded less then polite,this was not my intention. Flame looks good now after I restarted the stove.Nice yellow flames.Like I said it looks like some stray pelletts caught on fire in the ash pan, and were burning in the ash pan. Pelletts are the same I have used the past two years .Agway brand made in West Virginia.

 

[restorer]

Sounds like an air leak. On my stove if the burn pot fills it is a result of an air leak (usually the ash pan doesn't seal) or the feed rate gets screwed up for a few cycles and overfeeds the burn rate for the combustion air. What you describes is the extreme. The stove kept burning weakly and the pellets kept coming and finally spilled over. The burning pellets in the ash pan were probably ignited in the burn pot and spilled, but had enough air to continue burning.

One unique parallel was the time I did not get the burn pot back on the air chamber properly. Lit the stove and walked into the shop, 45 minutes later I went back and there were unburned pellets everywhere. Flame was wagging like a flag in a soft breeze. I shook the pot and it properly seated. The flame went nuclear on me and cleared the over fill in about 15 minutes.

when the burn pot is not properly seated air leaks around the seal and is not drawn over the pellets for burning. Sort of like leaving the door open an inch. It will burn, but not burn well. Check that all possible sources of leaking air are sealed.

If your stove is running normally, just check frequently to make sure it is running normally. If you experience it again, let us know what your stove is doing.

 

[buildingmaint]

Fired it back up tonight.Seems to be operating ok. Still I need to know how to clean the build up of creosote off the heat exchange tubes. I think I will get a door seal kit just in case.Oh by the way it is a Breckwell Big E .Does any one know how to get to the exchange tubes so I can clean them better? Or how to rip apart the stove and get it back together again. I'm pretty mechanical.

 

[restorer]

I think the BigE will self clean. Fire it up and let it run hot. Any build up should burn away. You have a residue from weak burning, it probably isn't "creosote" that will destroy you stove and home. Sometimes when I am not adjusted right there is a resinous build up, a hot but cleans the crud

 

[begreen]

Best to figure out how the pellets got loose into the ash pan. Watch the feed rate to make sure it's not overfeeding.

 

[restorer]

Near as I can tell I had a creosote fire in my pellet stove today. Smelled a lot of unusual wood smell today turned off stove and found a mess.Looked like pellets were on fire on bottom of stove ,heat exchange tubes covered with creosote ,exhaust fan covered what a mess.Question how can I clean out this stuff ? I have been scraping and brushing but I don't know how clean I have to have the stove before I can use it agin.Any help would be great ,

Didn't say this first time around. You did not have a creosote fire. If you had a fire like a chimney creosote fire everything would be clean on your pellet stove, that is the parts that were left. You had a low burn that left way too many deposits.

 

[HarryBack]

cleaning.....clog......nuff said

 

[buildingmaint]

Update on my stove. Has been operating fine since I found the build up of what ever that stuff was.Have been burning it hot as instructed by this forum members.I also EMAILED Breckwell about what happened and they didn't respond.First time I have had that problem,they are usually right on the ball.My burn pot was a little ascue when I opened the door to the stove. I think I had a bad seal on the burn pot and the secondary fire in the ash pan kept the pellets that were feeding burning.I can't think of any thing elce that could of happened . Thanks for all of your help and responces.

 

[restorer]

An askew burn pot meant the cumbustion air was not being drawn through the pot but around. Seems this would be the cause, but still check your door gasket as you may be drawing extra air to get the weak fire. Is your hot burns cleaning the deposits? After four or five bags of pellets, shut down and thorough clean and inspect the stove to make sure there in no residual problems.