Harman P68 igniter will not light pellets

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Tonyis

New Member
Oct 8, 2020
16
New York
I put new gaskets on the doors and cleaned the whole stove and exhaust. All covers are tight but no matter how much I try the igniter will not light the pellets. The fire box gets warm/hot but no flame. It seems like a air problem but can't figure out from where. Any ideas?
 
Have you done a deep clean including the igniter hatch? If so, it could be damp pellets or a weak igniter.
 
Have you done a deep clean including the igniter hatch? If so, it could be damp pellets or a weak igniter.
Yes. Everything is clean. The pellets are not damp and this is the second igniter that had this problem. Granted they were both aftermarket igniters but it does heat up the burn pot but not enough to lite the pellets. The only other thing I can think of is a weak combustion motor. But the motor does keep the fire going if lit manually. I hate to spend close to $200 on a combustion motor if mine is still good.
 
Check the auto damper to see if you have a stuck flapper.
The igniter Triac on the circuit board could be weak or defective. Check the current draw with a amp clamp around one of the igniter wires.
Good luck.
 
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Check the auto damper to see if you have a stuck flapper.
The igniter Triac on the circuit board could be weak or defective. Check the current draw with a amp clamp around one of the igniter wires.
Good luck.
Damper door is free and working. What should the current draw be? Thank you
 
Fines box clean & cover gasket good?
Yes. I double and triple checked everything I could think of. Everything is cleaned and I even took my leaf blower and put it into the air intake to blow out anything that may be there.I am at a lostfor ideas. Thank you for trying to help.
 
Check if igniter is getting hot when igniter light on the control is lit. The igniter is wired through the draft differential switch. Check if voltage is present to the igniter when the igniter light on the control is lit. Check the resistance of the igniter. Resistance should be 50 - 54 ohms. Replace igniter if needed.
 
The draft differential switch will not close allowing voltage to the igniter if the draft is less than -.17"W.C. If the draft readings are correct and jumping the differential switch allows the stove to light, check for obstruction in the differential switch tube. Replace differential switch if needed.
 
Check if igniter is getting hot when igniter light on the control is lit. The igniter is wired through the draft differential switch. Check if voltage is present to the igniter when the igniter light on the control is lit. Check the resistance of the igniter. Resistance should be 50 - 54 ohms. Replace igniter if needed.
After the unit times out, the firebox is warm/hot under the pellets so I assume that the igniter is working. It is a new igniter. This is the second igniter I purchased and they both did the same thing. They are both aftermarket igniters, but I would think that they should work somewhat.
 
The draft differential switch will not close allowing voltage to the igniter if the draft is less than -.17"W.C. If the draft readings are correct and jumping the differential switch allows the stove to light, check for obstruction in the differential switch tube. Replace differential switch if needed.
I will take a look at that. Thank you for the idea. But like I said, the fire pot does get warm. I will try anything. I can light the stove on manual and it works perfectly.
 
Try a different brand of pellets. If that dont work, get a OEM igniter. Alot of the aftermarket are junk.
 
You need an Amp clamp around only one of the igniter wires for it to read the current correctly.
It should read greater than 2 and less than 4 amps if it is working correct.
1st pic - Shows current after installing a new Harman 4 port circuit board in a Harman P43
2nd pic - Shows current reading an the old Harman circuit board that would not make the new igniter hot enough to get the pellets warm!
 

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I will take a look at that. Thank you for the idea. But like I said, the fire pot does get warm. I will try anything. I can light the stove on manual and it works perfectly.
I jumped out the air switch and still the same problem. Pellets would not light and the fore pot gets warm. I even tried different pellets.
 
You need an Amp clamp around only one of the igniter wires for it to read the current correctly.
It should read greater than 2 and less than 4 amps if it is working correct.
1st pic - Shows current after installing a new Harman 4 port circuit board in a Harman P43
2nd pic - Shows current reading an the old Harman circuit board that would not make the new igniter hot enough to get the pellets warm!
I have numerous VOM but never had an amp probe so I ordred one and will be here Wednesday. As soon as UPS gets here I am going right to the stove to try. Thank you for the values.
 
Try a different brand of pellets. If that dont work, get a OEM igniter. Alot of the aftermarket are junk.
I did try different pellets. No luck. I hate to purchase an OEM since it will not work with 2 different aftermarket igniters. If an OEM doesn't work I am out a lot of money on something I can't return. If I get the stove working properly I will buy an OEM to stop future problems
 
That is what I use

Never had the luxury of a Cal Rod igniter. I use hand sanitizer (readily available with Covid) or Rutland Starter Gel. My old workhorse is wired to a remote T'stat so when the T'stat is satisfied, the stove goes to low fire and stays there. I programmed the low fire parameter to just provide enough fuel to keep it burning. It 'idles' do low, the room air blower will cycle on and off.

Running field corn and pellets, I have to start the stove on straight pellets, it's basically impossible to start on corn.

Don't actually know if I'd like one anyway. Convenience comes with a price and that is a more complex stove.

I won't even light it until the ambient outside temps are in the 30's anyway. Propane here is cheaper than any solid fuel (corn or pellets) per realized BTU so the stove will only aid the central furnace this winter.

I have 2 tons of hardwood pellets in the barn and10 ton of shelled 12% field corn in a grain tank, ready to go. Of course the cattle are eating the the corn as well.... :)
 
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Never had the luxury of a Cal Rod igniter. I use hand sanitizer (readily available with Covid) or Rutland Starter Gel. My old workhorse is wired to a remote T'stat so when the T'stat is satisfied, the stove goes to low fire and stays there. I programmed the low fire parameter to just provide enough fuel to keep it burning. It 'idles' do low, the room air blower will cycle on and off.

Running field corn and pellets, I have to start the stove on straight pellets, it's basically impossible to start on corn.

Don't actually know if I'd like one anyway. Convenience comes with a price and that is a more complex stove.

I won't even light it until the ambient outside temps are in the 30's anyway. Propane here is cheaper than any solid fuel (corn or pellets) per realized BTU so the stove will only aid the central furnace this winter.

I have 2 tons of hardwood pellets in the barn and10 ton of shelled 12% field corn in a grain tank, ready to go. Of course the cattle are eating the the corn as well.... :)
I go through 10 tons of pellets a year and use very little oil or propane. I have a 3300 sq ft house that is open concept so my P68 heats 90 -95% of the house. The oil only goes on when it is windy and under 15 degrees. Hopefully you have a mild winter where you live so that the cattle have plenty to eat.