New Englander Pellet Stove Smoking, filling with charred pellets

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avaughn7

New Member
Jan 22, 2022
1
Xenia, Ohio
Hello! I am new to this thread and I'm desperate for help! We've used the new englander pellet stove in our basement for 9 years with zero issues. This year, it worked a few times and then the blower wouldn't kick on so it kept shutting off. We've tried to start it dozens of times and now it fills our house with smoke. If I leave the door cracked it will keep a nice flame (that I pre-lit) but the burn pot fills with charred pellets and smoke pours out of the auger opening after about 10 minutes. We've begged for someone to come service it, but it's a big box store model so no one will come look at it. It was in our house when we purchased it, so we don't know a lot about it... This is what we've tried:
Replaced gasket seal around door.
Vacuumed, scraped and clean the entire interior.
Took back walls off and vacuumed and cleaned inside and around fans.
Empty bin of pellets and vacuumed it out.
Checked air intake piping for a blockage.
Cleaned out all of the exhaust venting (interior and exterior), which was packed pretty full because- full disclosure- we have never cleaned it out! (We didn't know we were supposed to!)
We're told it could be a bad igniter? But it is the smoking that seems to be the problem. Which seems like an airflow issue?! The last two attempts definetly seem like the smoke is coming from inside the auger as it's feeding pellets. Also, we have not resealed the exterior exhaust piping since cleaning it out, but I don't believe that is the problem because it was smoking before we took apart the pipes. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I mourn the loss of my pellet stove everyday and I'm quite tired of my whole house smelling smokey.
 
Does the combustion fan come on ?
have you had the combustion fan out and cleaned
inside the fan housing and the fan blades?
Have you cleaned all the hidden passageways in the stove?
What model of stove and do you have a manual
Sounds like the stove needs a teardown and a good cleaning
Welcome to the Forum
here is a manual don't have enough information to know if this is the one
but it will give you an idea of what you need to do
 
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Sounds like an air flow problem. Take out the combustion fan and clean it. The thing must be completely caked after 9 years of not being cleaned.
 
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I agree with the previous post to check the convection fan (exhaust fan). Being that you never cleaned the exhaust piping and when you recently did there was a lot of build up, that is a big clue. The convection fan is likely as backed up as the exhaust piping was, which would explain the excessive smoke in the fire box. Good luck!
 
I agree with the previous post to check the convection fan (exhaust fan). Being that you never cleaned the exhaust piping and when you recently did there was a lot of build up, that is a big clue. The convection fan is likely as backed up as the exhaust piping was, which would explain the excessive smoke in the fire box. Good luck!
It was always my understanding that the convection fan is the fan that blows heat out from the unit and the exhaust fan is the one that sucks out smoke and sends it out the vent.
I replaced the convection fan a couple of times in my previous stove so I'm sure it had nothing to do with the exhaust.
The above post appears to have them as one & the same. Am I misunderstanding something?
 
Convection fan -------move air through a heat exchanger to heat the air and exits into the room
Combustion fan ------ pulls air through the burn pot to aid in combustion and removes waste gasses (smoke)
from the stove exiting the chimney outside
 
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Convection fan -------move air through a heat exchanger to heat the air and exits into the room
Combustion fan ------ pulls air through the burn pot to aid in combustion and removes waste gasses (smoke)
from the stove exiting the chimney outside
Thanks for the clarification. So combustion fan pretty much is an exhaust fan but also aids in the combustion. Got it.
 
Thanks for the clarification. So combustion fan pretty much is an exhaust fan but also aids in the combustion. Got it.
You got it
ThePoncho what side of the border NY or Ont.
 
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NY, on Lake Ontario but about 12 miles from where the lake and the St. Lawrence meet.
Guess I am about 100 miles a little North-East of you
Just outside of Perth