Newbie Question - Danson Pellet Top Loader: Not feeding

[RFWarrior]

My Danson pellet stove is not feeding any pellets on startup. The main fan comes on and runs and runs for a several minutes and then the stove shuts off. I cleaned out the hopper, moved the auger a tiny bit by hand thinking it might be stuck. The manual doesn't really help and their website doesn't offer any real advice. I checked/cleaned everything.

Anyone have a similar issue?

We are using some different pellets, but I've burned several bags of these up to this point. I don't have the model number handy, but it uses an AcuTron II control board.

Any advice would be appreciated.

James
Portland, OR

 

[AndyL]

Hi, When you are starting your stove The door is closed? correct! If so it could be a blocked vacuum switch.
the switch monitors the pressure within the combustion chamber, if it does not sense vacuum it will not allow the auger to feed.
I,m not sure what side the switch is on but if you remove the side cover where the control is you should be able to see it.
The switch looks like a canister with 2 wires and a tube on it, pull the tube off the switch (remember which barb the tube came off
of there may be 2 of them) and blow through the tube hard This may dislodge any debris on the combustion chamber side. Next put the tube
back on the switch and remove the end on the combustion chamber and again blow through the tube again You might be able to here
the switch change states. Now suck on the vacuum tube and you may be able to here the switch return to the original state.
Your stove may have another vacuum switch to monitor exhaust back pressure (blocked flue) if it does then try the above procedure
on the second switch. Also check the stoves exhaust to make sure it is clean.
Hope this helps.

 

[dixie chick]

I had a similar issue with my Enviro after only a few days of use. After the service person finally called me back he said to unlug the unit for 5 minutes and then plug it back in. It worked. I have now been burning for a few weeks with no problems. I cant help with the technical stuff but try this simple thing first.
Good luck

 

[RFWarrior]

I tried:

1) Unplug for 6 hrs, plug back in - no fix
2) Took off the sides, verified vac tube was clear - no fix
3) Blew out / sucked in, verified vac switch was operational - no fix
4) Cleaned everytying - no fix
5) Tightend up door latch (thinking the vac wasn't strong enough) - no fix
6) Verfied strong outside exhaust when fan is running, exhaust does not appear to be blocked in any way

Any other ideas? I'm thinking maybe the vac switch is out. I can move it manually (with my mouth) but I have to suck in harder than I would expect. However, I don't know much about these switches.

Thanks,

James
Portland, OR

 

[pup55]

Having the exact same problem with my Quradra fire 1200 insert. The stove works great when it is warm but when it is cold or first start up it will not drop pellets. Had a service tech come by and look at it and he changed the control box for $360.00 and it still does not drop pellets on a cold start up. I hope you find the answer to your problem because it might help me .

 

[AndyL]

Another question does the "auger cycle" light blink occasionally indicating that the control is calling for pellets?
Can you visually confirm that the auger motor is running when the cycle light is on.
You could also jump the vacuum switch with some wire to see if it is the problem.

 

[RFWarrior]

The auger light never comes on. Jumping the VAC switch is a good idea. I'll try that and post a reply.

I've only used this dang thing for one winter!

James
Portland, OR

 

[RFWarrior]

pup - $360 for a control box!! I hope it's not that. My board only has like two op amps and another IC and some resistors. It can't cost more than $10 to make.

 

[RFWarrior]

AndyL,

Jumpered the VAC switch. Still nothing. Auger light never comes on.

Any other ideas?

James
(with electric heat running...)

 

[rap69ri]

Any voltage getting to the motor?

 

[RFWarrior]

No AC voltage to transformer driving the auger (should be 115V 60Hz).

Both fans run during startup, but the auger doesn't feed.

-James

 

[rap69ri]

It's either a broken wire from the auger to the control board, or a bad control board. Check the wires for continuity, and hope that that's all it is.

 

[RFWarrior]

The wires look good. I'll get hold of the company for service. I purchased this less than 1 year ago - so it should be covered under warranty. Hopefully we don't freeze until then.

I would try and troubleshoot the control board, but I'm afraid the warranty might be voided. The control boad is pretty simple *looking* and the startup sequence is correct, except for the auger. It just seems to me like another issue. I wish I had a schematic. There are two, what look like relays, connecting to the VAC switch. I'm wondering if something is up with one of these.

-James

 

[rap69ri]

You wouldn't be voiding any warranty by using an ohm meter to check the wires for continuity, but if it's that new the company should fix it for the bubble.

 

[AndyL]

Check the hi limit safety switch. It should be a snap disk type switch mounted on the back side of the firebox
and it might be manually resettable. If so it should have a pushbutton in the center to reset it.
You could also try jumping it out. I thought the schematic was stuck on the inside of one of the removable
housing panels

 

[RFWarrior]

I don't see any switches that can manually be reset. I will try jumpering the switches one at a time during startup and report back.

-James

 

[rap69ri]

Check the hi limit safety switch. It should be a snap disk type switch mounted on the back side of the firebox
and it might be manually resettable. If so it should have a pushbutton in the center to reset it.
You could also try jumping it out. I thought the schematic was stuck on the inside of one of the removable
housing panels

Good catch, I always forget the simple stuff...arghhh

 

[RFWarrior]

Problem fixed. Heat back on!!

So - I called the Danson support number today and the tech told me to check the 'mode'. Turns out my stove was in thermostat mode. I put it back into manual mode and it's working great. My manual didn't have anything about the modes in it, but the updated on on the Danson side does.

Thanks for all your help. I learned some good troublshooting methods along the way.

Thanks again!

James