Hot Wheels and Pellet Augers=Cold Morning

[jwyoung2007]

I awoke this morning to a brisk 54 degrees in the house. I thought to myself I know filled that hopper before bed. I loook at it and think OK I have had a jam or two before no problem. I took my Jam fixing stick errr speicalized tool that is and tryed un jamming it with no luck. I dig out all of the pellets and use the vac to get the one down around the auger and what to my suprise I see the smashed rearend of an M&M's Nascar. WHats bad is the kids havent been here since Sunday. I guess i need to put my toys up when i get done. :lol:

 

[Czech]

For some reason, hoppers attract hot wheels. Done that more than once in this house. If I recall correctly, one of them was the m&m nascar too!

 

[Fish On]

when I was growing up I used to send my matchbox cars down the oil pipe to the neihgors house, boy was my dad pissed!

Merry christmas!

 

[CygnusX1]

For some reason, hoppers attract hot wheels. Done that more than once in this house. If I recall correctly, one of them was the m&m nascar too!

Really? My hopper attracts Legos, even had some of the smaller pieces make there way into the burn pot. You can always tell by the greenish blue flame that you're burning one.

 

[dw06]

Had to laugh, sorry. I've woke up to a cold house. only cause I forgot to fill hopper. Least you got an excuse! :lol:

 

[heat seeker]

How about a small hasp with a mini padlock to keep small hands out?
Glad it wasn't anything worse, 54º is a tad chilly!

 

[turbulator]

Hahaha my 2 1/2 year old daughter loves to "help" me work on the furnace... I guess the little gears are turning as to what she can put in there to help daddy make it burn better..... Good to know!

 

[St_Earl]

i know some folks who would be very happy to see the #18 m&ms; car get chewed up by a giant screw thingy.

 

[Snowy Rivers]

Yesssss, 54 is cold.

Many years ago and shortly after we got our first pellet stove.

I had just started my Dump trucking career and had a fellow hire me to deliver a load of nut shells.
He explained that he burned them in his pellet stove (I was all ears)

So I brought home a load of shells and stored them in the garage and started our long history of using shells.

About a week into this new adventure I woke up to a very cold house. It was about 15F outside and NO heat.

The fire was out and the hopper was full.

Now the stove we had then was an Earth Stove Pellet stove.
After trying to restart and to no avail, I ripped the back off the stove to discover the broken halves of the feed cup drive coupler laying in the bottom of the cabinet. (These stoves are bottom feeders and use an auger with a feed cup above to stop burn back)

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm bailed out the hopper to discover a large stick (size of ones thumb or small toy) jammed in the cup.

OK its cold, its Sunday morning at 1 am and there is not going to be any parts available until Monday at the earliest.


They say that necessity is the mother of invention.

Well I examined the coupler and it had broken right in two through the set screw holes.

HMMMMMMM the light in my little head flikered a tad and off to the garage to scare up SOMETHING, ANYTHING to fix this problem.

AHHH HA spotted an automotive heater hose clamp sitting on my work bench that was left from a little reapir on the car.

The little clamp fit over the coupler perfectly. Back into the house, stuff the coupler back over the two shaft ends, slid the clamp onto the assembly and tightened it up.

Great
Now as I start pouring the shells back in, I discovered another large stick that surely would cause issues.

Hand fed the shells back into the hopper and got the fire going again.

Back to bed and wait now unil morning to deal with the stick issue.

Headed off to the hardware store and bought a steel bucket and cut the bottom out, installed some 3/8' hardware cloth to shake all the shells through.

End of issue.

Now I have grand kids coming around, this thread has certainly sparked fear in me that one of the grand sons will stuff a little toy in the hopper.

Ohhh yesss, kids, toys and the places they will try to hide them.

Next it will be a small toy stuck in the toilet :bug:

Been there, done that, many years ago with the daughters rubber bath ducky that took a swin down the pot.

Kids are great.

Merry Christmas

Snowy

 

[Murphy118]

My hopper attracts Legos, even had some of the smaller pieces make there way into the burn pot. You can always tell by the greenish blue flame that you’re burning one.

I wish I thought about that for X-Mas morning,,, woulda been cool to see green and red flames in the fire as we opened our presents and had breakfast!!

John

 

[stellep]

I knew the whole story of this thread before I opened it up!