New Auger, new feed motor, still no feed on Harman insert

[STLSully]

I have a 10 year old Harman Insert that has given me no issues for 10 years. Recently, I've had a lot of hard buildup in the burn pot so I was scraping it every day. One day, I came home from work and the stove was out, with plenty of pellets in the hopper. I cleaned it all out, figuring something had gotten stuck in the auger chamber. After it was clean, I turned it on and the auger turned three times and stopped. The motor seemed to be laboring. I figured after 10 years, I needed a new feed motor. I replaced the motor. Same thing happened. Three turns and stop. My auger was worn and sharp at the edge, so I decided to replace that as well. Still the problem persists. If I clean out the hopper and vacuum the auger chamber, the auger will turn three times and stop, even in test mode. The igniter, feed motor, and combustion blower lights are on. The distribution blower light is not on. No status blinks. HELP!

 

[Bioburner]

Its hard to put a finger on whats wrong with Harmans feed system without really looking at the slide and related mechanisms At least for me.
I know you have posted this earlier

 

[STLSully]

Its hard to put a finger on whats wrong with Harmans feed system without really looking at the slide and related mechanisms At least for me.
I know you have posted this earlier

Would you recommend that I call in a pro? I've been hesitating because of the age of the stove.

 

[Bioburner]

Ten years is not that old for that well designed stove.

 

[Don2222]

Hello
How about a new vacuum switch?

 

[Bioburner]

First thing satisfied is the auger circuit with the vac switch and three revs takes more than a few seconds. Possible bad rear roller bearing?Or its not activating the hopper gate etc properly, but three revs is strange.
A simple jumper around the vac switch could rule out the bad switch or the suspected plugged line or barb.

 

[STLSully]

First thing satisfied is the auger circuit with the vac switch and three revs takes more than a few seconds. Possible bad rear roller bearing?Or its not activating the hopper gate etc properly, but three revs is strange.
A simple jumper around the vac switch could rule out the bad switch or the suspected plugged line or barb.

Although I've cleaned the unit for 10 years, I'm a novice when it comes to electrical. Is the vac switch to which you're referring called the Low Draft Pressure switch in the manual p.31? If that were the problem, would the igniter still work? If I put pellets in the front by hand, the unit will fire up normally. Also, I did find some pellets jammed hopper seal gasket, under the metal guard at the back of the lid. I removed them and tried the unit in test mode. This time the auger made one complete turn and stopped. I have a guy coming on Monday to look at it.

 

[Bioburner]

I hate calling that switch "pressure switch" because it is measuring vacuum. Igniter should not work if the switch is not closed.

 

[heat seeker]

How about "negative pressure switch"?

 

[Bioburner]

Just like "positive political campaign"?

 

[heat seeker]

Just like "positive political campaign"?

At least there is such a thing as negative pressure...a positive political campaign...hmmmm.

On topic - the OP could jumper past both "vacuum switches" to see what happens - only as a test, not to run that way. Does that stove have a test mode to run the motors? That could point to the feed gate sticking or not.
The age of the stove is not important, as long as the basic unit is sound - no holes, no rust, etc. A service call once in a while is a lot cheaper than a new stove. Even a new stove can be a headache, as we've all read here.

 

[STLSully]

Well, as embarrassing as it is, I want to post what fixed my problem. When I replaced the feed motor, I replaced it with a counterclockwise motor. I needed a clockwise motor. The symptom was a few turns upon cleaning out the auger tube and then no more turns even in test mode. Add it to the knowledge base and thanks for everyone's help. On the upside, I found an awesome Harman guy right down the road from me!

 

[Bioburner]

OP error. we all have been there or will eventually.
So you did not order a Harman replacement but tried to use something else or was the motor sold to you as a replacement?

 

[Don2222]

Hello
Did you reverse the motor?
See video

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[Don2222]

OP error. we all have been there or will eventually.
So you did not order a Harman replacement but tried to use something else or was the motor sold to you as a replacement?

Harman motors must turn the opposite direction for their older chain drive machines like the Advance and Accentra FS. So the come both ways.