I clean the ash pan, burn pot and surrounding area of my stove every 2-3 days. how often should I clean behind the brick? I've burnt about a ton of pellets.
How often to clean...
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I'm going to tag-on a question. I just got a Harman Accentra insert. I see there are a lot of posts about cleaning, but if any Harman owners would post a quick note about their cleaning regimens, that would be great!
I give the burn pot a quick scrape every day or 2 and shut down the stove for a complete cleaning once a month. I burn 24/7.
Flue pipe is brushed annually.
Flue pipe is brushed annually.
The pellets I am using creates loads of clinkers so I give the burnpot a
good scrape once a day. I clean the glass and vac out ash pan once
a week or so. Rest is cleaned at season's end.
good scrape once a day. I clean the glass and vac out ash pan once
a week or so. Rest is cleaned at season's end.
davevassar said:
pg 10 of the pdf manual says to clean behind the firebox liners (which is your firebrick panels)
semi anually or every 2 tons of pellets. http://www.envirofire.biz/fireplace-products/pellet/freestanding-fireplace.html
I think after a season of burning pellets, you get a feel for how often you have to clean. And, I suspect we all acquire a handful of implements that help up do it quickly and easily.
The scraper that comes with the Harmon P68 is OK, but the old wood chisel from the dump is better. Especially when it's a heavy clinker lot of pellets. I pop open the door, run the chisel down the burn pot, scape back the ash, and I'm done for the daily task.
I looked and looked at the expensive vacuum cleaners, and decided not to get one. I use a small one from Lowe's, with the drywall filter, AND also use the bag filter. That way the drywall filter doesn't get clogged and burned, and the bag is a cheap replacement item. Remember though, all those fires caused by pellet stoves, are often really caused by the vacuum cleaner filled with ashes. When you're done, even if you are positive there were no live ashes, take it outside and leave it.
Cleaning the front glass is Windex and a handful of paper towels.
A small paint brush makes the Harmon cleaning go faster, especially for the upper exchanger part, and the blower behind the ash bucket. I always brush off the blades.
My favorite tool ? The white glove my wife used for cooking, some high temp thing with fingers. I can be in , out, and finishing up the monthly cleaning in under 15 minutes. However the one itme that is always still hot is the cast iron piece on top of the fire pot. With that glove I can pick it up easily. I can also clean the fairly hot front glass using that glove.
Must be more tips out there ?
The scraper that comes with the Harmon P68 is OK, but the old wood chisel from the dump is better. Especially when it's a heavy clinker lot of pellets. I pop open the door, run the chisel down the burn pot, scape back the ash, and I'm done for the daily task.
I looked and looked at the expensive vacuum cleaners, and decided not to get one. I use a small one from Lowe's, with the drywall filter, AND also use the bag filter. That way the drywall filter doesn't get clogged and burned, and the bag is a cheap replacement item. Remember though, all those fires caused by pellet stoves, are often really caused by the vacuum cleaner filled with ashes. When you're done, even if you are positive there were no live ashes, take it outside and leave it.
Cleaning the front glass is Windex and a handful of paper towels.
A small paint brush makes the Harmon cleaning go faster, especially for the upper exchanger part, and the blower behind the ash bucket. I always brush off the blades.
My favorite tool ? The white glove my wife used for cooking, some high temp thing with fingers. I can be in , out, and finishing up the monthly cleaning in under 15 minutes. However the one itme that is always still hot is the cast iron piece on top of the fire pot. With that glove I can pick it up easily. I can also clean the fairly hot front glass using that glove.
Must be more tips out there ?
I give the pot a scrape whenever putting in pellets. Give the glass a little wipe while the door is open. Do the full cleaning every ton.
Keeping the stove clean (burn pot and heat exchanger) will only help efficency, and get more heat from the pellets into the home.
Cheers
Kenny
Keeping the stove clean (burn pot and heat exchanger) will only help efficency, and get more heat from the pellets into the home.
Cheers
Kenny
I clean the burn pot every morning before I leave for work, and I do the full clean once a week. This is something that I really enjoy doing....it's nice to have a clean stove!
I might be cleaning to much. I clean my stove every 2 or 3 days also. Tools I use are: Small screw driver/nut driver set, 2 Inch metal putty knife(for scraping the burn pot), Hoover bagless upright floor vac(rotary brush does not work any more but the vac itself works great.), I use the hose with the brush attachment for vacuuming the the fire box out and all around the blower motors and controls. After I shut the stove down and let it cool for a little while I start the cleaning by scraping the burn pot first and dumping it into the ash pan. Then I clean the heat exchanger, then push all piles of ash from the fire box down into the ash pan. Next I use the vacuum hose with the brush attachment to vacuum out the fire box, remove the brick panels and vacuum them off and behind them and then I clean the glass with just a wet wash cloth and dry with a hand towel. Put the brick panels and the burn pot back in and close the door. Then I move to the back of the stove and tap on the vent pipe with a screwdriver handle to get the ash from inside the pipe to drop down to the cap on the tee. Then I remove the cap from the bottom of the tee vacuum up the ash that falls out and stick the vacuum hose with the brush attachment up the pipe a little ways to vacuum up what might not have come out. Re-install the cap and move on to the side doors, I reach in and vacuum around the blower motors and auger motor. I do this every time I clean it every 2 or 3 days. Every second cleaning I dump the ash pan. So far after every ton of pellets I let the hopper run out and vacuum that out also. After 2 ton I remove the blower motors and clean the dust build up of the blower wheels. Think this is to much? Just trying to keep it working properly as we use this stove as a primary source of heat. Gas bill is to much to run the furnace. Furnace only runs when I shut the stove down to clean.
Curious, do you get much out when you do the tee part? I only check mine in the Spring cleaning, after 3-4 tons, and I rarely get anything more than a coating of ash.
A washcloth for doing the windows. What ! You don't buy the special silicon based, and very expensive, "special" cleaner and cloth ? < smile > Me neither, I use Windex and some blue rough paper towels. Only once, after some real crappy Pennington pellets, did I have to use any effort on the window.
I treat the cleaning as part of the enjoyment of burning pellets. The only parallel I can give is it's like going for a paddle in the kayak. I treat the drive to the ocean, taking the kayak off the car, and at the end of a long paddle, putting it back on the car, as all part of the same enjoyment. Keeping the window clean makes the stove more enjoyable for all. Smiling makes it not work !
A washcloth for doing the windows. What ! You don't buy the special silicon based, and very expensive, "special" cleaner and cloth ? < smile > Me neither, I use Windex and some blue rough paper towels. Only once, after some real crappy Pennington pellets, did I have to use any effort on the window.
I treat the cleaning as part of the enjoyment of burning pellets. The only parallel I can give is it's like going for a paddle in the kayak. I treat the drive to the ocean, taking the kayak off the car, and at the end of a long paddle, putting it back on the car, as all part of the same enjoyment. Keeping the window clean makes the stove more enjoyable for all. Smiling makes it not work !
I clean our stove every other day, or every two days. This entails cleaning the burnpot, vacuuming the inside of the stove out with a brush attachment and then windex the windows and clean the air vents below the glass windows. It's time consuming but anything to keep the stove running efficiently is worth the time to me.
I usually get about a cup to a cup and a half of ashes when I clean the tee. My pipe goes straight up from the back of the stove so that maybe why I get that much. That and the pellets I was using produced alot of fly ash.
granted my climate allows this , but very seldom does more than 2 bags go through my stove between cleanings , i know it can handle a lot more than that but seldom do i do it . usually a "plates off cleaning" is a weekly thing.
as a tip for the vacuum cleaners out there , i made a little attachment out of a 2 ft section of an old garden hose , wrapped duct tape around one end until it was thick enough to stuff into my ash vac hose and seal. this gives me a larger degree of flexability in the hose and i can get to stuff i cant get with the ash vac by itself.
as a tip for the vacuum cleaners out there , i made a little attachment out of a 2 ft section of an old garden hose , wrapped duct tape around one end until it was thick enough to stuff into my ash vac hose and seal. this gives me a larger degree of flexability in the hose and i can get to stuff i cant get with the ash vac by itself.
jed12674 said:
Not trying to be rude, but how often do you clean out the tee? That seems like an awful lot.
I cleaned out the tee after my first ton of pellets ran through and there was just a little "dust" in there.
Maybe I was just lucky this time?
Mike, Red Green would be proud of you!
Now I've gotta try that (already got the tape, just need to find some hose....)
Cheers
Kenny
Now I've gotta try that (already got the tape, just need to find some hose....)
Cheers
Kenny
jed12674 said:
I guess that brand did produce a lot of fly ash because my
vent is a 15 ft vertical run straight up the chimney and I only
get a couple of cups total from the T and from running a brush up
the vent pipe at the end of the season. And that's after running
3 tons through the stove.
Cleaning intervals vary a lot with the stove design. Some require daily cleaning and some weekly or even bi-weekly.
I think it maybe due to the design of the exhaust port of my stove or maybe my chimney. My vent only runs about 5 foot vertically from the back of the stove then it makes a 90 degree turn towards the wall into a 6 inch pipe through the wall into a 6 inch tee, then vertical again for about 16 more foot. From the 3 inch 90 degree elbo inside to the 6 inch tee outside is about 2.5 foot. The 6 inch chimney was there from my wood stove. I replaced the wood stove with the pellet stove and just piped the pellet stove into my existing chimney. Also the pellets that I started with produced a lot of fly ash and a hard deposit build up in the burn pot. I heard a rumor that the company that make them pellets were experimenting by adding switch grass or saw grass into the pellet mix. I read that the switch grass or saw grass will cause a hard ash build up and produce a lot of fly ash. I have just changed to a different brand of pellets and there is still fly ash but not as much as the other brand.
Sorry guys I have been away dealing with Family visiting.
The more often you clean your stove the longer the stove will last.
I (I tell my customers to)cleaned behind the brick of my Windsor/Empress every 50 bags. The stove works so much better when you do.
With any pellet stove if you do a good (not just dump the ash) cleaning once a month the stove will keep you happy.
The more often you clean your stove the longer the stove will last.
I (I tell my customers to)cleaned behind the brick of my Windsor/Empress every 50 bags. The stove works so much better when you do.
With any pellet stove if you do a good (not just dump the ash) cleaning once a month the stove will keep you happy.
jed12674 said:
pellets made with switchgrass will definately not meet premium standards for wood pellets, ash content for premium grade cant be abouve1% standard grade is 3% switchgrass will excede even standard grade for ash content. the bag should show its contents if it doesnt list the switchgrass as an ingredient then i doubt seriously its present especially if manufacturer is a PFI member, they do a pretty good job of policing themselves in that respect
My St. Croix Pepin runs 24/7.
I'm gone 3-5 days each week...my wife will do a quick clean-up once in awhile by cleaning the glass, doing q quick vacuum job of the area around the fire pot and may even pull the firepot and clean it. I'll do a through cleaning every week, dump the ash pan, etc.
I now have a couple of days in burning softwood pellets (after burning one ton of Marth hardwood pelets) and do notice a lot fewer ashes and clinkers in the firepot...good news!
I'm gone 3-5 days each week...my wife will do a quick clean-up once in awhile by cleaning the glass, doing q quick vacuum job of the area around the fire pot and may even pull the firepot and clean it. I'll do a through cleaning every week, dump the ash pan, etc.
I now have a couple of days in burning softwood pellets (after burning one ton of Marth hardwood pelets) and do notice a lot fewer ashes and clinkers in the firepot...good news!
The Quad 1200i required minor cleaning every 2 weeks with winter 24/7 burning. This was a 15 minute process of vacuuming out the fly ash, cleaning the burn pot and the glass. We would also use the heat exchanger scraper every few bags. Once a year, in spring I did full system cleaning before shutting down the stove for the summer. I'm not sure how they did it, but there were only minor accumulations behind baffles or in the exhaust path at spring cleaning time. The majority of the fly ash was trapped in the main firebox area.
Mike, I don't think they are members of PFI. There is no rating label on the bag like the Dry Creek pellets have that says they are a PFI member. The pellets I am talking about say Empire Pellet on the top of the bag and at the bottom it says American Harvest Co. with an address in Lafargeville, N.Y.. This rumor I heard supposably came from an employee that works there. I don't believe every thing I hear, but I wonder because these pellets seem to produce a tremendous amout of ash compared to the Dry Creek brand. It maybe just that though, just a rumor. I don't know, I am definetly not an expert on this. I think for right now I am going to stick with pellets with bags that wear the PFI Member badge.
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