So I've had my Castille Quadrafire for 3 years now. Very nice stove, but I've had increasing difficulty keeping it clean. At first I thought it was an issue with junk pellets, but I finally figured I had to call in the pros for a professional cleaning because I've been getting a very lazy fire really quickly after I clean the burn pot, and have had to clean it about every 12 hours or so. I called around, and couldn't find any local service technicians, so I broke down and decided to clean it myself. After fiddling around for a while I figured out how to undo the top plate, and also how to take out the firebrick. An hour later, my stove is clean, back together and running like a champ. By the way, it was loaded with soot and ash... thank goodness I got to it! If I can clean mine...you can clean yours...get to it!
Don't be afraid to clean your pellet stove
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A little investigating doesn't hurt. It usually takes about a hour to clean and now you know why, thumbs up! I just finished cleaning mine after two ash drawer dump. It hasn't been very cold yet so i skipped one cleaning. Doing it yourself helps on knowing your stove better. Replacing parts by yourself is the next step. Now for a beer with the feet up
, enjoy!
, enjoy!
kenstogie
Feeling the Heat
I think it's important to clean not only your stove but maybe more importantly your venting. I clean mine with the Gardus RLE202 LintEater 10-Piece Rotary Dryer Vent Cleaning System http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0014CN8Y8/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
but you could probably use most any Dryer vent cleaner. This just works pretty dang awesomely. After the lint eater I do the Leaf Blower trick, which gets most anything I may have missed. Done in 30 Mins and it's clean. Now I also have a super clean dryer venting which is a big cause for house fires.
but you could probably use most any Dryer vent cleaner. This just works pretty dang awesomely. After the lint eater I do the Leaf Blower trick, which gets most anything I may have missed. Done in 30 Mins and it's clean. Now I also have a super clean dryer venting which is a big cause for house fires.
Thanks for the tip on the Dryer Vent cleaner. I've been wanting to get something like that for my dryer.
That's what I do every year. No matter how clean you think your stove is: the air compressor will blow everything out of it.
the pony boy
Member
Got lazy with mine and had issues today. Thought since I only burned three bags the past two weeks I could slack off but not so. Stove shut down today and after I gave it a good cleaning it's nice and toasty in here.
The Grintch
Burning Hunk
What do you do for a weekly cleaning?
Monthly?
End of season?
I'm new and understand a clean stove is a happy stove!
Monthly?
End of season?
I'm new and understand a clean stove is a happy stove!
So important to read, read and read the owners manual. Clean stove = Happy stove. And what a difference that Lint Cleaner makes! Be sure to clean behind the plates that make up the back wall and drop the cover that protects the heat exchange tubes on the top inside wall of the stove after EVERY TON BURNED. 1/2 hour of time well invested. Don't forget to clean out all the holes in the fire pot, too! Owner's manual, priceless.
I appreciate all of the comments. I had been doing a good job of cleaning everything that was easily accessible... it was the tougher stuff that I was worried about. It's that nagging question of "if I start taking things apart will I be able to put it all back together?" and the concern that I need it running well since winter will be rolling in soon. BTW I clean the burn pot every 1-2 days during the season.
Think of ash this way... a ton of pellets with <.5% ash equals about 8-9 lbs of ash produced as a by-product. That ash goes "everywhere" and still manages to accumulates in your stove and piping. In one 3 ton season of burning of pellets, that's at least 25 lbs of ash. It doesn't seem like much but that can tank your stove's ability to give you maximum performance and heat. And if you don't clean for a couple of seasons..... the math works against you.
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P38X2
Minister of Fire
I noticed that if I clean out the exhaust piping with a vent brush at the time I use the leaf blower trick, that really does good. I had some harder stuff inside that only that brush would break free. And then when I did the leaf blower after that, it really got the extra ash out. And then it burned like it was brand new again.
Glad you could not find someone! Now your knowledge base is greater than before.
Bill
weekly = ash pan, burn pot, quick vac of the heat exchanger from the firebox area, outside the unit, the dust around the unit
monthly = weekly + hopper for fines, quick release vent pipe shake out, flu passages clean out.
end of season = weekly + go inside the motors
kenstogie
Feeling the Heat
Yea, that's been my schedule for my old stove and will run with it with my new stove. I'll adjust if it's dirtier than it should be. In addition..... for my venting I have needed to brush and LBT every ton, cuz it does make a difference.
Yeah if you do not periodically clean behind the bricks/plates and drop the stuff away from the heat exchangers the output and performance go to the toilet. I bet it breathes fire in comparison to before.
It is working way better for sure.... and using less pellets now. Should have done it sooner... now I know.
Usually after 10 bags I'll take the brick plates off and get behind there with a shop vac. Clean the heat exchangers too...make sure the burn pot holes are cleaned out. Every ton I do the leaf blower ...
For you people cleaning your flue monthly, that seems like extreme over kill unless your stove is burning bad. I have did 6 tons without cleaning the flue once, I do however empty the clean out elbow as that is where things accumulate. Likewise if you have a lot of horizontal it might be require more.
Phil Do's fire.
Minister of Fire
switch to softies and stove will stay cleaner longer and cleaning becomes a breeze 
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