Mendota DXV45 Delayed Ignition Problem

[t c]

Hi!
I started having problems with the exact same unit as the OP (Mendota DVX45). We bought the unit in 2018 (converted to LP) and used it about a half a dozen times that season because it was installed mid-season. Last year it started with the small explosion. Talked to the place we bought it which is about 2 hours away and never got the issue resolved. I blew out around the pilot hood and it seemed to help. This year- I cleaned the unit and it started up fine. I set the pilot light to stay on and tried it about a week later and whoomf- back to the same thing.

I looked at this thread again and I see a difference in the picture in thread #7 and the pilot hood compared to mine. His setup is different to where it appears the pilot flame is directed at the TP, TH and the burner. Mine's directed the two thin wires and a gas log- not the burner. Is this a faulty conversion done at the dealer or is this correct?

Here's a link to a video of what was happening last year. The same thing is happening now but the pilot light is also being extinguished half the time. The unit then locks me out and has to be reset in order to start the pilot light. This doesn't happen every time but it is happening. Here's a link to the video- Mendota. That fireball is loud and freaks me out when lighting it as it sounds like the whole unit is going to explode

The dealer suggested drilling a hole in the burner closer to the pilot light- I'm now thinking this is an incorrect conversion or pilot assembly. Any suggestions?

Does anyone know how to remove this pilot hood? I'd like to get it off to clean it if possible.

i wanted to follow up with a pic. if you are going to drill holes this is about where they should be on a mendota dx model .They should be smaller in diameter than the main burner and in a straight line directly covered by the pilot flame. i marked them in white on your picture whever the center of the pilot flame hits. maybe half way down from the top of the burner. i agree with you that when you buy a supposedly quality unit you shouldn't have to modify it to try to get it to work safely. I feel sorry for the people who don't have mechanical skills. i hope this helps. good luck.

 

[dbr549]

OK- not sure what to do at this point. Things just got real REAL tonight!

I thought by drilling the holes in the burner tubes (as suggested by others and my dealer) would help with the ignition problems and I was convinced by doing so, it cured this "explosion" problem I was having. Outside temps are in the 30s tonight, wife fired up the fireplace and screamed along with a very loud boom from the other end of the house. I rushed in there to find her shaking while the doors on the fireplace were blown open due to the explosion she witnessed. She said it took a long time to ignite after she powered on. So, I stood off to the side and pressed the power button to see for myself. KA- BOOM! The doors (over the glass) blew open and the 2" wide wire mesh cover at the very top, that's held on magnetically, blew completely off and slid down.

Needless to say, at this point, she wants this thing out of our house immediately! And I can't say I disagree! OMG, it's like setting off a boom in your living room!

Mendota will not address, acknowledge or fix this problem. Through the dealer or otherwise! No help, no where. THIS apparently is MY problem, the home owner, to deal with!! Unfortunately, IT APPEARS I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!

I should not have to rebuild/reinstall/correct/swap out orifices' or drill anything anywhere to make this Mendota fireplace work properly. I do not recommend ANYONE to install a MENDOTA fireplace of any kind, specifically using LP gas, until Mendota acknowledges and addresses this problem. Beware- Mendota fireplaces on LP will explode! They are dangerous and life threatening!

Due to my families safety, and as a precautionary measure to not burn down our lovely home, I will be removing this fireplace entirely. The cost will be substantial as it is stoned inplace. The cost of this so called "premium" fireplace, will be our loss (thanks for the quality assurance Mendota!). I would rather have my family than this potential, life threatening device, Mendota has created to install in our homes.

Not sure what it's going to take for this company to resolve their issues or acknowledge their problems. Loss of life I'm sure will get there attention, but it wont be from my family.

SHAME SHAME SHAME ON YOU MENDOTA! I hope you have a good lawyer on retainer, because you have a devastating disaster waiting to happen! Contact me if you want to make this straight! But, at this point, I seriously doubt I'll hear from you! Pity!

Dbr549

 

[Fingerlakes Fireplace]

OK- not sure what to do at this point. Things just got real REAL tonight!

I thought by drilling the holes in the burner tubes (as suggested by others and my dealer) would help with the ignition problems and I was convinced by doing so, it cured this "explosion" problem I was having. Outside temps are in the 30s tonight, wife fired up the fireplace and screamed along with a very loud boom from the other end of the house. I rushed in there to find her shaking while the doors on the fireplace were blown open due to the explosion she witnessed. She said it took a long time to ignite after she powered on. So, I stood off to the side and pressed the power button to see for myself. KA- BOOM! The doors (over the glass) blew open and the 2" wide wire mesh cover at the very top, that's held on magnetically, blew completely off and slid down.

Needless to say, at this point, she wants this thing out of our house immediately! And I can't say I disagree! OMG, it's like setting off a boom in your living room!

Mendota will not address, acknowledge or fix this problem. Through the dealer or otherwise! No help, no where. THIS apparently is MY problem, the home owner, to deal with!! Unfortunately, IT APPEARS I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!

I should not have to rebuild/reinstall/correct/swap out orifices' or drill anything anywhere to make this Mendota fireplace work properly. I do not recommend ANYONE to install a MENDOTA fireplace of any kind, specifically using LP gas, until Mendota acknowledges and addresses this problem. Beware- Mendota fireplaces on LP will explode! They are dangerous and life threatening!

Due to my families safety, and as a precautionary measure to not burn down our lovely home, I will be removing this fireplace entirely. The cost will be substantial as it is stoned inplace. The cost of this so called "premium" fireplace, will be our loss (thanks for the quality assurance Mendota!). I would rather have my family than this potential, life threatening device, Mendota has created to install in our homes.

Not sure what it's going to take for this company to resolve their issues or acknowledge their problems. Loss of life I'm sure will get there attention, but it wont be from my family.

SHAME SHAME SHAME ON YOU MENDOTA! I hope you have a good lawyer on retainer, because you have a devastating disaster waiting to happen! Contact me if you want to make this straight! But, at this point, I seriously doubt I'll hear from you! Pity!

Dbr549

Hang on just a minute here

Just because you the homeowner cannot remedy the problem, doesn't mean this is a total piece of junk. I will admit, the pilot/ burner orientation could be improved. But I also know an inexperienced homeowner is not the ideal repairman.

I have come to some jobs, where the homeowner had replaced the gas valve, and it still didn't work. Turns out it's something else, like the thermopile or switch. It's hard to tell someone else to look for this, or this, because if I was there in person I would see the obvious, and the home owner never thinks of it.
If you have gotten a service tech to look at it, it might be fixed by now.

 

[t c]

OK- not sure what to do at this point. Things just got real REAL tonight!

I thought by drilling the holes in the burner tubes (as suggested by others and my dealer) would help with the ignition problems and I was convinced by doing so, it cured this "explosion" problem I was having. Outside temps are in the 30s tonight, wife fired up the fireplace and screamed along with a very loud boom from the other end of the house. I rushed in there to find her shaking while the doors on the fireplace were blown open due to the explosion she witnessed. She said it took a long time to ignite after she powered on. So, I stood off to the side and pressed the power button to see for myself. KA- BOOM! The doors (over the glass) blew open and the 2" wide wire mesh cover at the very top, that's held on magnetically, blew completely off and slid down.

Needless to say, at this point, she wants this thing out of our house immediately! And I can't say I disagree! OMG, it's like setting off a boom in your living room!

Mendota will not address, acknowledge or fix this problem. Through the dealer or otherwise! No help, no where. THIS apparently is MY problem, the home owner, to deal with!! Unfortunately, IT APPEARS I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!

I should not have to rebuild/reinstall/correct/swap out orifices' or drill anything anywhere to make this Mendota fireplace work properly. I do not recommend ANYONE to install a MENDOTA fireplace of any kind, specifically using LP gas, until Mendota acknowledges and addresses this problem. Beware- Mendota fireplaces on LP will explode! They are dangerous and life threatening!

Due to my families safety, and as a precautionary measure to not burn down our lovely home, I will be removing this fireplace entirely. The cost will be substantial as it is stoned inplace. The cost of this so called "premium" fireplace, will be our loss (thanks for the quality assurance Mendota!). I would rather have my family than this potential, life threatening device, Mendota has created to install in our homes.

Not sure what it's going to take for this company to resolve their issues or acknowledge their problems. Loss of life I'm sure will get there attention, but it wont be from my family.

SHAME SHAME SHAME ON YOU MENDOTA! I hope you have a good lawyer on retainer, because you have a devastating disaster waiting to happen! Contact me if you want to make this straight! But, at this point, I seriously doubt I'll hear from you! Pity!

Dbr549

OMG! So glad no one was injured. I was concerned as soon as i saw your video. mendota sucks, we pay top dollar and all we get is a cosmetically nice looking unit that can't be used. I can't believe they can get away with it. i still have problems with my dx-35 but nothing to the extreme of yours. i still won't let it light when i'm not in the room. will the installer back the unit with another brand? Maybe replace the burner assembly with a different one from another model that has been proven to work. I'm sure you were told that they never had a problem with any of their units. Maybe it's time to contact the local media to let them know about your problem with the brand along with the name of the person who installed it. ,you never know who's attention you'll get. Every gas fireplace burner should light as soon as you here the thermostat click . That's the way it is. or at least how it should be. good luck i wish i could help you out. So Sorry!

 

[dbr549]

Well, thanks for the replies. I wrote that right after I tried it first hand. I'm sure I over reacted....maybe just a little. Yes, I plan on getting a tech out here to look at it as soon as possible. It won't be a Mendota tech. Hopefully they can cure the problem.

And no, I'm not an experienced repairman. Frankly, I shouldn't need one either. I also agree with your comment about it not being a total piece of junk. But it sure comes close in my opinion. We shouldn't have to clear the room, grab the kids an oh.....don't forget about grandma over there, I'm going to attempt lighting our fireplace again.

So hopefully, like you mentioned, someone else with more experience can possible spot the problem <fingers crossed>. Time will tell........

 

[Fingerlakes Fireplace]

Well, thanks for the replies. I wrote that right after I tried it first hand. I'm sure I over reacted....maybe just a little. Yes, I plan on getting a tech out here to look at it as soon as possible. It won't be a Mendota tech. Hopefully they can cure the problem.

And no, I'm not an experienced repairman. Frankly, I shouldn't need one either. I also agree with your comment about it not being a total piece of junk. But it sure comes close in my opinion. We shouldn't have to clear the room, grab the kids an oh.....don't forget about grandma over there, I'm going to attempt lighting our fireplace again.

So hopefully, like you mentioned, someone else with more experience can possible spot the problem <fingers crossed>. Time will tell........

You gave me a chuckle about not forgetting grandma!
I am glad you have a technician coming. It doesn't have to be a Mendota technician, but I would not advise getting an HVAC technician.(or propane company)
I am sure some of them know how a fireplace works, but some of them do not!
If you decide to throw the fireplace out, please tell me where you threw it!

 

[dbr549]

It's been a while but I wanted to follow up on this thread. I had a local fireplace tech come out and diagnose the problem. He said I needed a new pilot assembly. To get it fixed was over $400.00. Why a new fireplace that has barely been used needs parts replaced is not a good sign for Mendota. Regardless it's fixed and worked without exploding last season. Haven't tried it this year yet, but hopefully I won't need to call the bomb squad to light my fireplace! Thank you very much to those who responded!

 

[Moflounder]

I also have a DVX45 installed in 2008. Always had the boom when lit for first time after lighting pilot. Dealer said it was normal.
Question on damper setting.
Does anyone know which way is closed? Everything I have read states ccw.
last time I called for service, they turned it ccw and said that would cure my gas smell during use.

That issue went on till this year. Purchased gas sniffer and traced issue to pilot tube connection to valve. Had to tighten till I thought it would break before it finally sealed. All good now after 2 warranty visits and 3 paid visits by professionals who said normal and nothing wrong.
Bringing me to my issue now that the last turned flu totally ccw.
I changed it to halfway after reading about it but would like input from anyone who owns one.
Determined to finally enjoy the thing with no worries…
Thanks for any help.

fyi Mendoza says contact local dealer. 🙄 yea, right……..