EF3 convection blower has high pitch noise

[Handy53]

Hi,
I'm new to the forum and have lurking here off and on for a year. The generous tips have solved a few questions but I have something new to me. My convection blower fan has a high pitched noise to it this year. I have an Enviro EF3 pelllet stove and is just a year old last week. Worked well but now the high pitch waving in and out is really annoying, especially when try to sleep. Such as why I am sitting here at 3:50 am typing in a sos plea.
Has any one ever had this problem? Another thing.. does anyone know where the two oil holes are on the convection blower?
Thanks, any suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[imacman]

I can't speak for all stoves, but the oil holes on my Astoria convection blower motor (Fasco) are covered by small yellow caps. I just pry them out with a fingernail. Does your motor mention anything on the label about oiling?

If you want, let me know, and I'll take a pic of mine and post it for you.

 

[nailed_nailer]

Handy.

Have you deep cleaned your stove since last year. I find that removing the combustion and convection blowers at least once a year and blowing them out with compressed air keeps them running quiet. You may also have to scrape the blades gently with a small hook type tool to dislodge any thick crud.

On my EF-2 the convection blower (on the right side) has two small lubrication holes on the top of the motor casing. A couple of drops of light (3 in 1) oil is all that is needed. The combustion blower does not need oil.

There are excellent service tips located here.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/13413/

---Nailer---

 

[imacman]

Just some info on lubrication: Forum member "Wood Heat Stoves" mentioned something in a recent post about oiling Fasco motors....he's a dealer, and it sounds like good advice:

“Note: We have been advised by Fasco that use of petroleum based oils (like 3 in 1), will likely cause premature bearing failure on thier motors. "Anderol 456” 2oz. is recomended by Fasco for their high service temperature motors that have oil ports."

(broken link removed to http://www.woodheatstoves.com/synthetic-bearing-oil-p-12121.html)

I have always used 3 in 1, but after reading this will probably switch to the Anderol

 

[hossthehermit]

Hi,
I'm new to the forum and have lurking here off and on for a year. The generous tips have solved a few questions but I have something new to me. My convection blower fan has a high pitched noise to it this year. I have an Enviro EF3 pelllet stove and is just a year old last week. Worked well but now the high pitch waving in and out is really annoying, especially when try to sleep. Such as why I am sitting here at 3:50 am typing in a sos plea.
Has any one ever had this problem? Another thing.. does anyone know where the two oil holes are on the convection blower?
Thanks, any suggestions would be appreciated.

That "high pitched noise" is technically called a "whine" or a "howl", depending on the noise level (measured in decibles). Frequently, it is an indication that there is insufficient lubricant in the offending equipment. I would suggest referring to the operating and maintenance instructions which should be in the paperwork included with your appliance. Seriously, a lot of these motors ARE really picky about what you lube them with, so check with manufacturer recommendations. I used to be a firm believer in "any grease is better than no grease", now having my doubts after a few recent disasters.

 

[gutterboy2ca]

Handyhands, welcome to the forum,Glad to see yet another Easterner in here.I have the Enviro EF3 and also experianced that squeal last winter for a month before i called the dealer and demanded he replace the motor.the stove was 8 year old in Shop Demo when i purchased it so its got some tonnage put thru it for sure.They gave me 1 full factory year warranty on it and did give me a new motor,before installing the new motor i tried a couple bursts of Remington Gun oil,very light.Instantly squeal was gone,never came back.(anyone need a new Motor? LOL)

 

[On2wheels]

Am I ever glad to have found this forum! I have the EF3 as well, my first pellet stove, it's one year old. The blower fan does not make any noise as I can recall from last winter, but I haven't started it yet this year, in fact I'm cleaning it today. I think I figured out where the oil ports are on the blower motor: there's 2 holes at either end of the motor casing where the bearings would be, they're just stamped out of the metal casing, no rubbber plugs or anything on them. When the motor is mounted in the stove, the oil ports would sit at about 11 o'clock, that should help you locate them. At least I'm 99% sure that's where the oil goes.
As for the type of oil to use, I don't know what's proper, but I was going to try Hoppes 9 gun oil. Haven't heard from my dealer if it's approved yet but I'll let you know.

 

[Dr_Drum]

I can't speak for all stoves, but the oil holes on my Astoria convection blower motor (Fasco) are covered by small yellow caps. I just pry them out with a fingernail. Does your motor mention anything on the label about oiling?

Oh, crap. My manual doesn't say anything about servicing the motors for the normal or yearly cleanings. I know it should be obvious, but I just couldn't make myself pull them out. I imagine I have fasco motors that need to be oiled as both are Travis Ind? Will you post that pic?
Thanks, Mike -

 

[Handy53]

Thanks for all the hints and instructions. Checked and found 2 holes at 11 o'clock, rear and forward. Humming is toning down . The high pitch noise which is getting worse is not from my convection blower now. I turned off the blower and a new higher pitch is still left there. I had 2 high octave pitches. Now I only have 1 left and it is making me wanting to kick it out the front door. I have called my repair guy and now I'll have to tell him about the other place the noise is coming from. uuurgh.

 

[On2wheels]

Sounds like your exhaust fan then. My EF3 manual says the exhaust fan does not need lubing. I also talked to my dealer, his words were to never use a WD40 type lube on motors, always a 3in1 or similar. hopefully a new fan solves it for you, I haven't even started my stove yet this year, still chugging on oil till it gets cold.

 

[Handy53]

Thats what I think, just spent too long with my head upside down in back of the stove trying to pin point the noise. exhaust or augur. exhaust it was. I have the pellet stove on low and mostly around the clock now. When it gets to 0 c thru the night then I have to shut it off and put on the oil furnace. House is too big for one stove. So I guess we are the opposite of you.

 

[nailed_nailer]

Handy,

On my EF-2 I can adjust the convection blower speed. Does your noise change with the fan speed? Is the noise a constant one or is it periodical? If not constant I would be guessing the auger system.

If lubrication of your convection blower did not solve your noise issue, It has to be your exhaust blower or your auger system. There are no other noise makers in the stove.

I find my stove gets much quieter after a good deep cleaning. This involves removing the false fire brick from the rear of the fire box and really getting all the ash dust out of the stove. I have a buddy help me move the stove to the front yard where I take it apart completely. I use a combination of compressed air and a vacuum to get all the dust out of the stove. I do this about once a year. I'm due to do it this weekend. While it is apart I check everything and replace what needs fixing.

On the blowers. I remove both of them from the stove and really give them a deep clean. I scrape the blades as best as I can and again use compressed air to really get the blades and the shroud clean. I lube the convection blower but not the exhaust blower. In my case I also remove any Golden Retriever hair that is in there

You also may be having an air turbulence issue with your intake air as well. Check the OAK path and make sure it is not constricted. You could be getting a whistle from just about any tight corner.

My EF-2 is not by any means a quiet unit. I usually have to increase the TV volume a few notches to hear it over the stove when running. It is not real loud but I am a person that likes to keep the TV low.

You should be able to identify what is making the noise. But, it probably means that you will have to move the stove for access.

Good Luck,
---Nailer---

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

Handy.

Have you deep cleaned your stove since last year. I find that removing the combustion and convection blowers at least once a year and blowing them out with compressed air keeps them running quiet. You may also have to scrape the blades gently with a small hook type tool to dislodge any thick crud.

On my EF-2 the convection blower (on the right side) has two small lubrication holes on the top of the motor casing. A couple of drops of light (3 in 1) oil is all that is needed. The combustion blower does not need oil.

There are excellent service tips located here.
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/13413/

---Nailer---

fasco says to use synthetic oil, oil like 3 and 1 can cause premature bearing failure.

 

[btanoue]

Hi,

Sorry to post to an old thread, but I also had convection blower sound issue.
It was very high pitch. Almost like something was hitting the edge of the casing at thigh speed.
Very hard to explain unless you hear it.

Any, I did oil the ports on my Meridian FPI. No change.
I decided to connect the leads to an extension cord to see if temperature had anything to do with it.
No change.

I decided to remove the convection blower and I noticed there was lots of pellet dust on the circular fan.
I vacuumed it (took forever) and got all the bades clean.

Now the sound has stopped. I think that the pellet dust set the fan a little off balance and was causing something inside the motor to touch something as it was running.

I just wanted to post this before people spend money on a new convection blower.

I've been using 3 in 1 sewing machine oil as well. Maybe I need to switch too.

Hope this helps,

btanoue