Harman feed question.

[corkman]

Hi all. Looking for some help trying to figure out an issue I seem to be having with my advance. What would cause a reduced feed on my stove. On start up I don't seem to be getting the amount of pellets in the pot that I used to. The pot would normally fill with pellets and I would have s roaring fire on start up till the start up sequence ran its course and the stove would level off with a nice even burn from there on. Now on start up the pot only gets about 1/4 of the amount of pellets it used to so not much of a fire now on start up and low flame from that point on. My stove has always been on feed 4 and its now on 6 to get a decent fire. This is s basement stove with Selkirk direct temp. Stove is super clean. Vent recently cleaned. Innards all removed and then hit if with LBT. I've also tried many different pellets with no change. I have a p68 on 1st floor and that runs flawlessly

 

[Tonyray]

Hi all. Looking for some help trying to figure out an issue I seem to be having with my advance. What would cause a reduced feed on my stove. On start up I don't seem to be getting the amount of pellets in the pot that I used to. The pot would normally fill with pellets and I would have s roaring fire on start up till the start up sequence ran its course and the stove would level off with a nice even burn from there on. Now on start up the pot only gets about 1/4 of the amount of pellets it used to so not much of a fire now on start up and low flame from that point on. My stove has always been on feed 4 and its now on 6 to get a decent fire. This is s basement stove with Selkirk direct temp. Stove is super clean. Vent recently cleaned. Innards all removed and then hit if with LBT. I've also tried many different pellets with no change. I have a p68 on 1st floor and that runs flawlessly

Have u put your hand all the way thru to the bottom of your hopper to check if u have a pellet dam? [where pellets get stacked up and don't fall thru]

 

[corkman]

Ys. I let it run dry. Slide plate looks good and moves as it should

 

[Tonyray]

Ys. I let it run dry. Slide plate looks good and moves as it should

you haven't posted a few key items like,
have u run the stove in both room mode & stove[or constant mode ] and get same problem??

 

[corkman]

Changing mode has no effect.problem exists in both modes. i typically start it in room temp auto and run if that way just about all the time. Esp is cleaned and shiny. Stove is about 10 yrs old. I don't know if any parts were ever replaced. I bought it used 2 yard ago

 

[Tonyray]

Changing mode has no effect.problem exists in both modes
hopefully some will chime in as I don't know what else to ask
other than is the fines box cleaned out and not clogged with broken pellet pieces..

 

[corkman]

Yep. All cleaned out. I'm usually pretty good at fixing things myself but this one has me stumped. Ty Tony

 

[Tonyray]

Yep. All cleaned out. I'm usually pretty good at fixing things myself but this one has me stumped. Ty Tony

couple things I would do:
jiggle ot turn the feed rate knob back/forth just in case the pod is sticking.. like a radio knob when u have static.]
un-plug the stove for a minute in case the Control board is confused.
and,
what happens when you put the feed knob on "test"

 

[jzm2cc]

Any chance someone changed the DIP switch settings? 1 through 3 affects the initial fire start feed amount.

You stated the fire is not burning normally after fire started and ran a while which is probably another issue (plugged firepot holes, slow exhaust fan, bad ESP, bad board, leaky door gasket, plugged exhaust...

 

[Bioburner]

Have you pulled the auger out and checked for a possible partial plug. Have seen and have heard of this several times in the last couple years. I have had issues with corn stalks and other things. Others have had toys, pieces of bags, screws and bolts, twigs.

 

[corkman]

couple things I would do:
jiggle ot turn the feed rate knob back/forth just in case the pod is sticking.. like a radio knob when u have static.]
un-plug the stove for a minute in case the Control board is confused.
and,
what happens when you put the feed knob on "test"

Have unplugged it to do a reset and played with the feed dial but no difference. In test all motors run

 

[corkman]

Any chance someone changed the DIP switch settings? 1 through 3 affects the initial fire start feed amount.

You stated the fire is not burning normally after fire started and ran a while which is probably another issue (plugged firepot holes, slow exhaust fan, bad ESP, bad board, leaky door gasket, plugged exhaust...

Dip switch settings are as they should be. All off if I remember correctly. I have a harman diognostic so I can see the switch settings. Pot holes are clean. I use a drill bit to keep em clear. Gaskets are good and new. So that leaves the esp and board

 

[corkman]

Have you pulled the auger out and checked for a possible partial plug. Have seen and have heard of this several times in the last couple years. I have had issues with corn stalks and other things. Others have had toys, pieces of bags, screws and bolts, twigs.

I have yet to pull the auger but that mah be the next step

 

[heat seeker]

Check the see if the auger motor is running at the correct RPM. If the bearings are gummy or worn, the motor may not turn as fast as it is supposed to.

 

[bogieb]

Before pulling the auger, just make sure the temp probe is seated correctly in the back. It just takes a little tug on it to do a partial unseating. It will definitely affect Room Temp operation as the stove can't "see" the temp. And on some stoves it will also affect the Stove Temp mode, even though it doesn't seem like it should.

Also, check way back in the starter chamber to make sure a bunch of ash hasn't blocked the air intake - low air intake will affect flame height too.

 

[corkman]

Check the see if the auger motor is running at the correct RPM. If the bearings are gummy or worn, the motor may not turn as fast as it is supposed to.

How would I chk this. I removed the motor when I bought the stove 2 yrs ago and packed it with high temp grease

 

[heat seeker]

Run it in test mode, carefully watch the auger to see how long it takes to make one revolution. For instance, if it takes 30 seconds to make one revolution, the motor is going 2 RPM. I don't know what kind of bearings your motor has, but if they are sleeve bearings, the grease could have gelled and be slowing the motor down. If ball bearings, they may be dry and dragging, doing the same. Of course, you need to know the expected RPM of the motor. Time the auger carefully, a few seconds makes a difference. My auger motor was slow by just a few seconds, and it really affected the pellet feed.

The gearbox grease is certainly a good idea, but will not have as much effect on RPM as the armature bearings.

 

[corkman]

I have a spare board (rev e) I believe that came with my p68 and also a combustion blower. My plan was to buy an igniter,room blower and esp soon to complete the backup parts list. I was actually contemplating selling the stove soon because I have a good lead on a 2yr old xxv for $1600. I need to get this rectified though before I list it. Ty all for you input so far

 

[corkman]

I have a spare board (rev e) I believe that came with my p68 and also a combustion blower. My plan was to buy an igniter,room blower and esp soon to complete the backup parts list. I was actually contemplating selling the stove soon because I have a good lead on a 2yr old xxv for $1600. I need to get this rectified though before I list it. Ty all for you input so far

 

[corkman]

This is what the DDM is showing in test mode. The auger is a 4 rpm and it does spin 4 times a minute

 

[corkman]

I also emptied the hopper and could see the slide plate moving. It moves about 3/4inch

 

[corkman]

Would a suspect hopper gasket cause thr issue I'm having

 

[smwilliamson]

I have yet to pull the auger but that mah be the next step

Gummy stove, pull the feed system and look up inside there.

 

[corkman]

Gummy stove, pull the feed system and look up inside there.

Unlikely. I pulled everything when I bought it 2 yrs sgo and it was clean as a whistle. I also installed the cross over tube at that time. This stove is in my basement. It's only burned about 15 bags this year and about 30 last year

 

[smwilliamson]

Unlikely. I pulled everything when I bought it 2 yrs sgo and it was clean as a whistle. I also installed the cross over tube at that time. This stove is in my basement. It's only burned about 15 bags this year and about 30 last year

Motor is 4rpm check it