ENGLANDER 25 Insert is THE WORST ever owned

[tonyiiiafl]

I bought an insert, the Englander 25 2 months ago. Worst piece of iron I have ever bought. This thing won't flow pellets through the night! I can stuff the hopper full and 6 hours later it is "out of fuel" because the pellet won't drop down! There are over 1/2 the pellets left in the hopper. Cust service has been cordial but no help. I have sanded the inside of the hopper to make it smoother and sprayed it with Pledge, both per cust service. Then the last guy said he had the foolproof answer, he said to buy a roll of aluminum tape, and tape a layer of it over the inside of the hopper, that it will now allow pellets to slip and slide down the hopper walls. NOPE! pellets still don't flow. If I am home I can run it at a 4 or 5, but need to stir the hopper every 4 to 5 hours. I can set to a "2' and get 8 hours out of it before it bridges and stops feeding the auger. What this unit needs is either a pellet hopper extension, which Cust service said was a safety issue installing or perhaps a vibrator to attach to the side oft he hopper to let pellet flow.

Anyone else have this issue? How did you solve it? Or am I just screwed and have to live with it. I would love to return it, and have written to Home Depot requesting such, but no answer yet.

 

[johneh]

What brand of Pellets are you using ?
What is the average length of your Pellets
Are there a lot of long ones ( over 3/4 , 1 inch ?
The longer the pellet there is more chance of bridging

 

[tonyiiiafl]

I am using Fireside Ultra. Been using this brand for most of 10 years. Pellets aren t too long. Mostly in the 1/2" long or so size.

 

[funflyer]

Take a look in the hopper at the auger tube and see how much of a lip is sticking up above the walls and in the flow stream of the pellets (see picture). This lip and the rough surface of the hopper are the biggest issues with pellet flow. I would suggest you run the metal tape over this edge to try and improve things. Also, use a quality HVAC foil tape.

 

[Jason845845]

Dry Graphite spray will make the surface slicker. When I had my 25ep this would happen with certain pellets.

And for what it's worth, this is an excellent stove and England Stove Works has excellent customer service.