Harman XXV blower noise

[twodogs02]

Fired up my XXV last night to ensure I would not have any problems when I really need it. Once the stove got up to temp and the blower motor came on, I noticed a faint squeal. If I bumped the lower right side of the stove slightly the noise would go away for a few minutes then come back. I took both rear panels off but could not tell where this noise is coming from. The stove will see its second season this winter so I can't believe it is a bearing issue but I did run my blower on Hi all the time last year to get as much heat out of the stove as I could.

It is under warranty so I can call the dealer but I'm interested in hearing from others about this....Thanks !

 

[Bioburner]

I would call their tech and get a opinion first.

 

[Mr. Spock]

Be curious to see what the dealer has to say. Besides a bearing or motor issue the only thing I can think of is dirt causing an imbalance on the impeller. Or maybe something touching the side of the impeller.

 

[mepellet]

Did you remove the distribution blower and clean it over the summer?

 

[twodogs02]

mepellet -

I did not and did not see instructions in the manual referencing this cleaning. Is this something that needs to be done annually? When I was cleaning out the fines in the feeder, I did vacuum the fan blades as I did on the opposite side when I pulled combustion motor.

Dealer called me back - said it could be a couple of things. Vacuum the fins (already done) as this can create imbalance with excess dust collecting over off season. Tighten the bolts that hold the blower fan (at work, not done yet) and run it again. If problem continues, most likely a bad bearing which he said they would come out and replace. Stay tuned.

 

[mepellet]

The imbalance was what I was thinking too. If you didn't remove the fan and clean it real good you could have missed some spots thus creating an imbalance. I take the distribution fan off at least every other year and then take the squirrel cage outside and hit it with compressed air to clean it real good.

 

[twodogs02]

42 this morning wife said fire the stove. Took the fan out last night hit it with compressed air, all is well with me, no noise and she's a happy wife

 

[mepellet]

Glad it worked for you!

 

[twodogs02]

Moved

 

[twodogs02]

Noise is back, isolated it to the fan guard on the distribution blower. The bolts are tight, called dealer, they will try to be out by christmas.

 

[greggo730]

Hi guys I might have the answer to this one.I had the same problem with my XXV last year. It turned out to be 4 or 2 red rubber bushings or holders that the blower wheels sit in. Im doing this from memory bear with me. There were 2 blower wheels on the XXV ,at the end of the wheels there is a shaft ,that shaft sits on a rubber holder,

take them off gently ,clean them,then lube them. Thats what was causing the squealing noise on mine. I wanted to replace the rubber holders but my dealer says Harman dosen't sell them. You have to buy the whole blower assembly. Cleaned and lubed mine and I haven't heard a squeak out of them.

Hope this helps.

Greg

 

[twodogs02]

My dealer called two weeks before Christmas and said Harman issued a technical bulletin the involves placing a hose clamp near the distribution blower. I put them off for a bit hoping I can find the source of the noise rather than a bandaid clamp.

I'm going to try your option Greg and will report back.

 

[twodogs02]

So the dealer replaced the blower under warranty late January 2015. All was good for 2 weeks then another vibration surfaced. It's definitely the distribution blower since it only vibrates on a higher speed but not when you turn the speed down.

The dealer called today to inform me of a conversation they had with Harman today. Harman told the dealer they have had reports of vibrations with these latest blowers they put out in the field, Harman has not found what is causing this vibration but they are working to track it down.

Dealer said Harman authorized a second distribution blower to be put in under warranty. Dealer coming Tuesday to install.

This latest vibration is much different than previous, sounds like a washing machine that's out of balance (thumping) when the fan kicks on when stove is cold and fan set to high.

 

[bags]

I wouldn't limit it to authorizing a second blower. It needs to be fixed for free no matter how many blowers they sling at it. I'd stick to the guns too. What about you being cold and not using it because of this?

 

[twodogs02]

Yesterday the second replacent distribution blower went into the stove under warranty. Counting the blower that came with the unit, this is the third blower.

While the tech was replacing this one, he mentioned that Harman told him they have been having problems with this latest batch of blowers. So far this one is quiet, but we'll see in another 2-3 weeks. I've run my stove non stop since January (stove mode manual) only to shut down for cleaning every two weeks or the big one ton cleaning. No push back from dealer on this problem, he was even surprised by this latest fan vibration.