I have an MP35/50 Earth Stove. We purchased it used last winter and it worked awesome all winter. We ran it full baor thru an ice storm when the power was out for a week here in Mo. This year it seems to not want to work properly. Smoke is coming up thru the auger tube, into the hopper and then into the house. This will start about 30 minutes after starting the stove up. It doesnt do it continuously, just in spurts. We have cleaned pipes and stove, replaced gaskets for the door and ash pan. According to the tech that we had come out, all of the fans and motors seem to be working. He didnt know anything about this stove, he had to read our manual. He didnt stay long enough to see it start smoking. I do not want to get rid of this stove. Like I said, it works awesome other than this problem. I think overall its a good stove. Please, is there anyone out there who can help us out?
HELP! My Earth Pellet Stove Sprung A Leak!
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I would honestly check the "pathway" from the firebox to the exit. It really sounds like you still have some blockage there. It's fairly tough for smoke to go up those augers as they're a horizontal feed with a cup motor above that. This is a positive pressure stove with all the heat tubes in the top, and it top vents correct? Those tubes are a bear to clean. Did you remove the pipe off the top and ensure that all the fly ash has been removed? Another possibility is that your combustion fan is going out and working intermittently. What does the fire look like? Does it change when the smoke comes out of the hopper?
First let me say thanks for even replying to this. I was starting to think that no one was going to. How would I check the pathway? The auger tube sits at a slight angle up towards the metering cup or at least it appears that way. You cant see up it. It is not top vented. It is vented out the back. We didnt really think that that was the problem since that is the way it was last year. Dont get me wrong, i will take all the advice that I can get. We did remove the plates and grill up top to clean out. Do the insides of the tubes need to be cleaned somehow? All we have is an attached plate that goes back and forth on them to clean. How would we check the fan during operation? I have only been able to find a draft fan for this stove for $200. I dont know if they come any cheaper or not. This line of stoves was discontinued when lennox bought them out. I dont notice any change in its sound during the problem, we can check again. The fire probably does change when it starts smoking, we just havent noticed. We had planned on doing some more work on it this weekend. A man that my husband works with wants to buy it maybe for $350 regardless of it working. But its so nice and has a big corner tile pad that it sits on. Im at a loss. If its just one part that needs to be replaced i would do it.
The model number you've referenced is a top venting stove. (broken link removed to http://www.woodheatstoves.com/zcart/images/mp3550manual.jpg)
That is a picture of the stove manual. Sorry I couldn't find it for free anywhere. I would suggest removing the pipe and making sure that all the flyash is removed from the baffle/heat exchanger area. I can't give an exact procedure for this I don't have one in front of me. Just be absolutely sure you've cleaned from the firebox to the chimney. The insides of the tubes do not typically need to be cleaned. 200.00 sounds about right for cost on the blower. If you want my honest opinion, if you have someone willing to pay 350 for that thing sell it and never look back, not that it's a bad stove they're were actually very nice. It's just the parts situation. A control board, if one can still be found is north of 300.00. The cup motor is not common and will be hard to find in the future etc. The parts are going to be an issue in the next few years.
Back to your current issue. If you can absolutey ensure there is no blockage then it is either a matter of the combustion fan going bad (highly unlikely since even with no combustion fan the chimney should draft better than the auger tube) or with a positive pressure like yours you may have a negative pressure issue with the house (running a dryer, exhaust fan etc.) that is overpowering the draft fan? Both of these possibilities are grasping for straws though.
That is a picture of the stove manual. Sorry I couldn't find it for free anywhere. I would suggest removing the pipe and making sure that all the flyash is removed from the baffle/heat exchanger area. I can't give an exact procedure for this I don't have one in front of me. Just be absolutely sure you've cleaned from the firebox to the chimney. The insides of the tubes do not typically need to be cleaned. 200.00 sounds about right for cost on the blower. If you want my honest opinion, if you have someone willing to pay 350 for that thing sell it and never look back, not that it's a bad stove they're were actually very nice. It's just the parts situation. A control board, if one can still be found is north of 300.00. The cup motor is not common and will be hard to find in the future etc. The parts are going to be an issue in the next few years.
Back to your current issue. If you can absolutey ensure there is no blockage then it is either a matter of the combustion fan going bad (highly unlikely since even with no combustion fan the chimney should draft better than the auger tube) or with a positive pressure like yours you may have a negative pressure issue with the house (running a dryer, exhaust fan etc.) that is overpowering the draft fan? Both of these possibilities are grasping for straws though.
Thanks for your help. I really appreciate it. Can anyone out there offer opinions on a good pellet stove with good warranty for a reasonable price. We only heat the upstairs. Its about 1200 sq ft. Thanks again for your help.
Enviro, Lopi, Avalon, Englander (least expensive), Quadrafire, Harman. These are the brands that are prduced by stable companies and alot of them use fairly common parts that, in my opinion, could be found in the event of line discontinuation etc. Control boards are usually going to be proprietary but alot of other components aren't.
As long as we are talking about blowers, did the tech remove the combustion blower, or just check to see it was turning? It is possible that the blower vanes are clogged and can generate enough draft to start and run a little, but when the demand for air is there, it can not produce enough. Also, check your incoming air, if you have a damper, make sure it is free and working, although this would not account for the through the hopper smoking.
why shoot no. the tech had to read the manual that we had on it. we knew more about the stove then he did. he didnt test voltage or do anything except look at it and vacuum out the auger tube. he said that thier stoves just have a plug in like a car does to see what is wrong with it. go figure.
I doubt it's the combustion blower being positive pressure. It actually blows into the burn pot rather than the typical inline negative pressure system.
I'd pull that motor, and check for build up. Take a bottle brush and run it out the exhaust and in any nook you can find when the motor is out. If you are real couragous, give the exhaust stream a blast of compressed air, close the stove up and pack the motor opening with a rag around the air hose. You will get some dust and ash around. You can bench test the free run of the motor without much ado, but you should take it to a motor shop, if you want to be sure about performance.
I think this is where the block is. Last time I cleaned mine it took about an hour and a half, but the performance improvement was like night and day.
Good luck.
I think this is where the block is. Last time I cleaned mine it took about an hour and a half, but the performance improvement was like night and day.
Good luck.
But the exhaust blower is not in the exhaust stream on this stove. There would be nothing but household dust on it. Air is pushed through these stoves not pulled.
Shane said:
I agree about the soot, but the other can block the fan even more affectively. Remember Hearthtool's pics of his blower. Dog and cat hair, regular dust bunnies, and who nows what else over an extended period of time could really foul the blower. Remember they are not like furnace blowers, they are fractional horse power units. in a closed system, when the stove is starving for air and all the airways are "clean", I think the air mover is the problem.
littlesmokey said:
we built a similar unit back in the early 90's, you are right it can get plugged with dust bunnines and pet hair and such , usually the blower is a common one that could be found through grainger if the company doesnt keep in stock.
note (and this is important) that stove needs draw like a woodstove , if this is not present it will push heat and exhaust up the auger chute and into the hopper, which is a bad thing. check to ensure that the heat exchangers are clear , check the flue also just as you would for a woodstove for draw, and check the termianls on the board for curent to the induction (combustion) blower.
Sorry guys, i have been out sick all this week. you are never going to believe this. my husband took off the hopper and tested voltage on everything then preceded to clean everything again. we started up the stove and it was working awesome. all the sudden the flames go lazy and hypnotic and it just goes out, everthing shuts off. i hollar at my husband that the fire has gone out and he goes to check out the control board to make sure that everything is shut off properly before we do anything. he accidently brushes the fuse holder and everything starts back up. i know it sounds crazy. so needless to say he takes that off and tightens it up, the fuse isnt blown, he already checked that. it has been working since saturday. im still shaking my head in disbelief. at least we will be able to burn that ton of pellets we bought though. So i think that it was a combination of blockage and the fuse. im sooo appreciative of all of the help and suggestions that everyone has given.
pellets have been known to end up it the gear box that turns the cup and auger motors,
causing reduced airflow and smoke out the hopper. very rare! email me if you still have issues, i have serviced earthstoves for 10yrs [email protected]
other than that, some good suggestions in this old thread...
did anyone mention negative preasure in the home? bathroom draft fans, stack effect etc??
causing reduced airflow and smoke out the hopper. very rare! email me if you still have issues, i have serviced earthstoves for 10yrs [email protected]
other than that, some good suggestions in this old thread...
did anyone mention negative preasure in the home? bathroom draft fans, stack effect etc??
Hey there Wood Heat. Welcome to the forum. You have reminded me of something I read recently about forums. The last line seems to fit well... Thanks for (unwittingly) giving me a chuckle.
:smirk:
:smirk:
Thanks for the welcome!
i read lots of earthstove posts, on this one i thought i could contribute something, i'll try not to dredge up too many oldies
i read lots of earthstove posts, on this one i thought i could contribute something, i'll try not to dredge up too many oldies
cncpro said:
And don't forgot other new members who want to have everyone ponder the role of light bulbs in energy policy and the economy as a whole.
:coolsmile:
P.S. Another mystery is whatever became of whoever started a thread years ago. Did they switch to solar? Huddle around a campfire?
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