new here

[undr]

Hey guys and girls.
New to the pellet stove ownership here, bought a used 2007 Pelpro 120 for 850 including the complete 3 inch vent. Struggling with the burn right now, but i have a feeling it is the pellet's. that said even with the Crabbe pellets (softwood from costco) the clinkers, and the jammed up burn pot. i am still less than half the cost of heating my home with oil / forced air and the house is warm at least. (January cost me 700 for just oil) I think this stove is going to pay for itself this year.

Just saying HI!

 

[Polar Bear]

I am assuming before you ran it for the first time, you gave it its "yearly" maintenance? Who knows what kind of maintenance the previous owner did... or didn't do.

 

[undr]

um no i didn't, i waited until day 3 and realized this cant be right better look up the manual to see what is wrong. Did a proper cleaning (don't think they had in a long time), it was better but still is not right. I got 4 bags of "enviro burn" pellets with it (they sell them at home depot and they are out so i had to try a different kind). the Crabbe pellets were recommended to me from a coworker who has great success with them. I find that i can't get the draft just right, if i close it completly it burns better but it gums up the burn pot, if i open that draft even a little tiny bit it doesn't jam up but the flame goes up and down, almost out to raging flame over and over again. Until i find a better pellet for me i will choke it all the way, and scrape out the burn pot everyday. its a small price to pay for all of the savings over oil.

 

[tjnamtiw]

I'm pretty sure the Pelpro is a 'top feeder' meaning it drops pellets down into the burn pot. If it is, then seeing the flame go up and down is perfectly normal. The pellets drop, which knocks the flame down, then they ignite and the flame goes up until they start burning down, then more pellets drop and on and on and on. If you choke things down, you'll get a lot of soot and possibly creosote. Let it burn!

 

[undr]

when i say no flame i mean when it burns at first there is a 6 - 8 inch flame, after a 20-30 sec the flame slows down to only an inch at best. It is a top feed but an auger feeds the burn pot. if i open the draft at all it popcorn's after the pellets burn down some. the enviro burn pellets didn't do that?

 

[tjnamtiw]

when i say no flame i mean when it burns at first there is a 6 - 8 inch flame, after a 20-30 sec the flame slows down to only an inch at best. It is a top feed but an auger feeds the burn pot. if i open the draft at all it popcorn's after the pellets burn down some. the enviro burn pellets didn't do that?

Still going from 7" down to 1" in 30 seconds isn't that bad. When you say 'popcorns', do you mean that actual pellets get blown out of the burn pot?! If so, they must be really light weight!

Have you been on the Pelpro website and read the manual and read/watched all the videos? There's a lot of info there including how to properly fit the burn box for a tight fit. Maybe yours is too loose and air is blowing up the gaps instead of through the holes.

 

[Polar Bear]

when i say no flame i mean when it burns at first there is a 6 - 8 inch flame, after a 20-30 sec the flame slows down to only an inch at best. It is a top feed but an auger feeds the burn pot. if i open the draft at all it popcorn's after the pellets burn down some. the enviro burn pellets didn't do that?

Mine is a top feeder as well and does the same thing. One minute it's hitting the top baffle, the next it's barely visible from the burn pot. It is normal. I let mine burn for 2-3 days uninterrupted with no issue of gummed up burnpots. Popcorn is fine, it is supposed to happen. The air is tossing the ash out of the burnpot and into the ash pan. When it does that, and it looks like ambers jumping, you're on the right track.

 

[undr]

I have gone to the site. I have watched all of those video's, and even have a copy of the manual for my model. It has a great video for cleaning it properly. The burn pot has been adjusted for as tight a fit as is possible. if i open the draft at all, even an 1/8th inch the pellets fly out of there before they are 3/4 burnt. you should see if i open the draft all the way...lol This is my first experience with a pellet stove, but these crabbe pellets seem awful short compared to the enviro burn ones, nearly half of the length on average and a lot of sawdust. the manual has some instructions about fine tuning your auger, but i looked and the auger feed speed is already at maximum when set to the highest setting (4 which burns two bags a day)

 

[undr]

@ polar bear. cool, i didnt think it was ok. in the manual it says to have the pellets moving around in there but that's it.

 

[Polar Bear]

I have gone to the site. I have watched all of those video's, and even have a copy of the manual for my model. It has a great video for cleaning it properly. The burn pot has been adjusted for as tight a fit as is possible. if i open the draft at all, even an 1/8th inch the pellets fly out of there before they are 3/4 burnt. you should see if i open the draft all the way...lol This is my first experience with a pellet stove, but these crabbe pellets seem awful short compared to the enviro burn ones, nearly half of the length on average and a lot of sawdust. the manual has some instructions about fine tuning your auger, but i looked and the auger feed speed is already at maximum when set to the highest setting (4 which burns two bags a day)

A lot of fines means that you should be looking for a new brand of pellets in the summer/fall for next year

 

[Lake Girl]

Did you clean out the ash traps behind the rear cover plate? Helps if you have a brush (cheap conical dryer lint brush) and set up your vacuum with a small tube to get up into the higher portions of the exhaust pathway. You'd be surprised how much ash clings to the sides up there...

 

[undr]

i dont have a supply for this year...lol, i am going out today to see if i can find something that works before i buy a bunch

 

[Polar Bear]

Did you clean out the ash traps behind the rear cover plate? Helps if you have a brush (cheap conical dryer lint brush) and set up your vacuum with a small tube to get up into the higher portions of the exhaust pathway. You'd be surprised how much ash clings to the sides up there...

She's right. It takes you by surprise how much there is and that it gets into every nook and cranny.

 

[undr]

I bought a dryer lint brush about a foot and a half long before i cleaned it out. i wouldnt have even noticed those ash traps otherwise. they were half full. that said i didnt use a small hose up there though. i will chek that out.

Did you clean out the ash traps behind the rear cover plate? Helps if you have a brush (cheap conical dryer lint brush) and set up your vacuum with a small tube to get up into the higher portions of the exhaust pathway. You'd be surprised how much ash clings to the sides up there...