Gas Fireplace service panel area extremely hot when blower is in use?

[jkotys]

Hello all, first timer here. We recently started using our new gas fireplace Lennox MPD40 and have noticed that within the bottom service panel it gets extremely hot in there so much that the wires, gas pipe and transmitter box for the remote are so hot you cannot touch them for long.

HOWEVER this only occurs when the blower is turned on. I would think the blower would blow hot air up and out of the top vent which it does do, but for some reason its also generates hot ait within the bottom service panel. If I dont use the blower then the service panel area and components do not get hot.

Installer told me this is normal but I see it as a potential fire hazard. Even the blower plug that goes into the receptacle within the backside of the service panel area gets crazy hot!

Any ideas or suggestions

 

[DAKSY]

Doesn't sound right to me. Generally, when the blower moves air, cooler air is drawn into the blower cavity and directed up the back of the insert & across a heat exchanger to get heated before it's distributed into the room. It almost seems that you may have a grounding issue causing current to flow thru the frame of the insert. Maybe a zipscrew has partially penetrated an electrical wire. Most times, that situation will cause a tripped breaker, but I have seen heat build up caused by current flow thru a metal container...

 

[jkotys]

Thanks but in this case if the blower is off and I put my hand inside area of the bottom service panel I can only feel a warm feel from the upper bottom tray where the burners are on. Once the blower gets turned on I feel hot air rushing within the service panel area which builds up the heat thus causing the wiring and piping to get extremely hot. I almost feel as if the blower is drawing heat from above and back into the service panel.

 

[DAKSY]

Can the blower be turned around? If not, is the polarity correct?

 

[jkotys]

Ive called the installer to come back next Tuesday to have a look again. The blower and its fins seem to be turning the correct way so it blows up in the direction of the back wall leading up and it does allow for heat to come out of the top of the unit where its supposed to but for some reason its also blowing in the service panel area???

 

[DAKSY]

It may need to be positioned farther back into the cavity...