Mt Vernon AE Insert "Check Ashpan" Error Message

[RollinRidge]

Hi All,
Our MV has been great up until last week when it started with above error-meaning the auto clean was jammed. DH followed the instructions - nothing was working. He was going nuts calling the dealerto have them send somone out-2 month old stove shouldn't break.... Then he tried to really FIRMLY pushing the screwdriver into a firepot floor hole (didn't want to break anything before but I think was getting frustrated because the dealer wasn't calling him back) to release the jam and whala - a kernel of corn popped out. (We burned corn 1 time about a month ago) and it released the jam up from above also. Averything went back to normal. Autoclean cycled. Then it happened again yesterday-not another kernel of corn but the autoclean jam. He says there are more "klinkers" now than there used to be. What gives?
DH has been very good above cleaning, vacumming it out.
Same pellet brand.
The weather has gotten colder so it is burning more.
The only difference we can think of is that we got the "ceramic logs" in there now and why would that make any difference? (He thinks the ask is falling down into the pit from the logs).
Any ideas?
thanks
Ridgley

 

[RollinRidge]

Hey-can't you change my title to "burning chick" instead of "chunk"? (That's not at all flattering and at my age I need all the help I can get)
R ;-P

 

[MountainStoveGuy]

the logs do disturb air flow and create more ash, but i doubt that whats causing the jam. Im not selling the AE this year so i cant realy help. I dont know of any other members that are burning it either. If it wasnt the weekend i would call the manufacture for you. I think your going to have to wait for your dealer.

 

[Gooserider]

Hey-can't you change my title to "burning chick" instead of "chunk"? (That's not at all flattering and at my age I need all the help I can get)
R ;-P

Post a few more times and you'll move up to the next level... I forget the exact break points and titles, but its fairly fast on this board. (It's a universal setting, though, and most of us would rather be chunks than chicks ;-) )

Gooserider

 

[Papaw]

Hi All,
Our MV has been great up until last week when it started with above error-meaning the auto clean was jammed. DH followed the instructions - nothing was working. He was going nuts calling the dealerto have them send somone out-2 month old stove shouldn't break.... Then he tried to really FIRMLY pushing the screwdriver into a firepot floor hole (didn't want to break anything before but I think was getting frustrated because the dealer wasn't calling him back) to release the jam and whala - a kernel of corn popped out. (We burned corn 1 time about a month ago) and it released the jam up from above also. Averything went back to normal. Autoclean cycled. Then it happened again yesterday-not another kernel of corn but the autoclean jam. He says there are more "klinkers" now than there used to be. What gives?
DH has been very good above cleaning, vacumming it out.
Same pellet brand.
The weather has gotten colder so it is burning more.
The only difference we can think of is that we got the "ceramic logs" in there now and why would that make any difference? (He thinks the ask is falling down into the pit from the logs).
Any ideas?
thanks
Ridgley

Hi All,
I purchased my MV-AE on January 9th 2007. It was installed by a private contractor on January 11th.
It operated flawlessly the first month. Then I received a call from the dealer, would I be home because he would like to upgrade the unit to get rid of the jet engine sound it generates when starting. I didn't consider the sound to be all that bad. So he came and hooked up a laptop and did his duty. Immediately I noticed the room temperature indicator on the fantastic thermostat was reading lower than the room temperature. About a day later I would get an error message "check ashpan". I came to find out unburnt pellets were jamming the self clean mecanism. I was advised to use the utility setting for the premium pellets because it would burn cleaner. And it definitely does. Now I discover it is doing random cleanings. Like at a setting of 72 it does a random cleaning at 66 degrees. So now frequently I have to do the screwdriver trick to get it to start. I have to stand there with flashlight and screwdriver until it completes twice.
My solution to this is I went back to the premium setting which blackens the window daily, on manual setting, set the demand temperature at 72 and the burn rate at zero so it never reaches temperature therefore it almost never goes into the cleaning cycle, which I would have to start with the screwdriver.
Of course I have called the dealer. The first response was they put him on hold so long that he just gave up. The next response was "I understand completely". The almost good news came about a week and a half ago. There is an upgrade to the motor that works the self clean mechanism. As soon as the parts come in he will be over and repair same. I have heard nothing since. I have had these problems since the beginning of February. I'm sure this will be corrected before spring actually gets here.
03/06/07

 

[elkimmeg]

Been a few bunps in the road for the MV new technology that has nopt been time and field tested in the hands of the consumers.

In all fairness to dealers they too anre learning how to repair them they are being feed the info from Quadra-fire which also is just now working on solutions

Some dealers have shipped back their MV to Quadra-fire and refuse to sell the MV. I'm sure Quad will get it figured out ,but it will take time for them to develope the solutions and fixes

 

[cielomelo]

I also bought a MV AE two months ago and it is been working flawlessly. Until recently, I've been encountering these jams when the auto-cleaning cycle triggers. Similarly to the previous posting I have to stand there with the screwdriver and flashlight to help the fire-pot's floor get to position. During night-time this is bothersome/inconvenient because there's nobody to monitor and clear the jam so the house's temp drops significantly. Each week I perform the scheduled maintenance by vacuuming the inside and tried to clean the area where the ashpan goes but this does not help in anyway. If anybody can come up with a solution to this issue please I would like to hear it or else my best bet will be to contact the dealer and see they can offer a solution. Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[begreen]

Have you tried the auto-clean mechanism with the stove off to see if it is moving freely. Check the spring to see if it is fatigued from the continual reheatings. This is from the manual:

b. Inspect the auto-clean springs for any degradation or
deformation. As the springs heat up and cool down
they can lose tension. If there is a gap showing
above the firepot floor it means the springs have lost
their tension and can not keep the floor in the proper
position, causing ignition problems and fuel falling into
the ash pan. Replace them if that occurs.

 

[RollinRidge]

It's interesting since I first posted that we haven't had the problem since. (OK - now I've done it and jinxed myself). Haven't "done" anything to the stove - this past summer the dealer came out and did the yearly service and updated the computer stuff - but that's all.
So - hopefully it's something that's just worked itself out?
But thanks for all the responses - so when it happens again ('cause now I KNOW it will - see above) I've got some options.
RA
aka "future burning chick"

 

[stoveguy13]

make sure the firepot floor is clean and if that fixs it great if not have the dealer replace the pot and the floor and make sure the board they put in has the updated version for the clean cycle and that should fix it

 

[greggr]

I also bought a MV AE three months ago and it is been working flawlessly but this week its been getting the "Check Ashpan" message. Just like previous posts, I'm seeing the same error. I'm burning hardwood pellets. Is there a fix for this? It looks like some kind of a mechanical issue.
It hangs when the floor pot starts to come into view( sweeps okay to the right, hangs when it moves to left). I have to use a screwdriver to get it going again. Reading the previous posts, it seems this is a common issue. I hope there's a solution for this.

 

[joemomma]

I am watching these threads about the autoclean jams with great anticipation. I have spent several nights lately with a screwdriver and flashlight in hand, waiting to "help" the autoclean move the ashpot floor fully over to the home position. It feels like it's jamming or under-powered because as I help it move, it scratches and moans and feels like a weak system.
When is this problem going to get fixed? I've been bothering my dealer almost daily and they don't seem to know anything yet. I read on another forum that the "powerstroke" board is a possibility but I've gotten nowhere so far. My insert is about 3 months old, had 1 ton of hardwood pellets through it, and I can't believe that the little layer of carbon build-up that I can see is the reason why it doesn't move smoothly.
For those in my position, let me offer a little advice. During the autoclean, I leave the door open and just put a little refrigerator magnet on the sensor on the right hand side. This replicates the magnet that's on the door and allows the autoclean to continue and saves me a little trouble. Plus, I can hear the motor better and can tell when it's stuck. And, it gives me a free 30 seconds to scrape out the pot while I wait for the floor to get stuck.

 

[jtp10181]

Check your control board and see what "REV" it is. "C" is the newest. One of the revisions gave the autoclean motor more power which fixed frequent jamming. If you already have REV C I might have some other ideas for you.

 

[joemomma]

From what I can tell, I have Rev 020. This is what I found under the Properties tab of User Settings. Is that an old or original software version? I just bought this thing.