Old Yankee by Lopi problem

[TKRussell]

I have a lot of experience burning wood. I'm getting older and took someone up on an offer for a free pellet stove. Yankee by Lopi.

I cleaned it out. Everything is clean. Changed the door gasket. Its a new vent. Duravent straight out the wall then up 5 feet outside.

-It rips through pellets faster than the auger spits them out. No matter what the "Heat" dial is set at
-The damper on the right (its a slide -pull in and out- mechanism) makes a small difference in the behavior of the flame. Not stopping my problem
-There's an exhaust damper on the left side of the unit that can be operated with a socket
-There is a gauge that tells how far the damper is open / closed. Its a horizontal slit in the sheet metal with a little metal tab sticking through it
-That metal tab is all the way towards the outside wall of the stove. As far as I can tell (from looking at literature I've found online) that means the exhaust damper is wide open?
-Should I mess around with the exhaust damper?
-Should I be looking at anything else?

Thank you. Hoping to be able to figure this out.

 

[TKRussell]

I have a lot of experience burning wood. I'm getting older and took someone up on an offer for a free pellet stove. Yankee by Lopi.

I cleaned it out. Everything is clean. Changed the door gasket. Its a new vent. Duravent straight out the wall then up 5 feet outside.

-It rips through pellets faster than the auger spits them out. No matter what the "Heat" dial is set at
-The damper on the right (its a slide -pull in and out- mechanism) makes a small difference in the behavior of the flame. Not stopping my problem
-There's an exhaust damper on the left side of the unit that can be operated with a socket
-There is a gauge that tells how far the damper is open / closed. Its a horizontal slit in the sheet metal with a little metal tab sticking through it
-That metal tab is all the way towards the outside wall of the stove. As far as I can tell (from looking at literature I've found online) that means the exhaust damper is wide open?
-Should I mess around with the exhaust damper?
-Should I be looking at anything else?

Thank you. Hoping to be able to figure this out.

Edit: Sooo... I didn't notice there is a reducer going from the 4 inch exhaust flange to a 3 inch. The manual calls for 4 inch. The old user was using a 3 inch vent system it would seem. Would explain why the exhaust damper is wide open. I installed a 3 inch vent to match what was coming out of the stove. Looks like I'm installing 4 inch

 

[TKRussell]

Got into the stove a bit.
-Took the combustion fan out. Cleaned that up.
-Flange that bolts onto the vent adapter was bent right up. Straightened that out.
-Screws that hold the flange to the fan were shot. Replace with bolts? Will add a pic.
-Exhaust damper was seized in the wide open position. Freed that up.

I'll keep posting here with my journey on bringing this thing back to life and my findings along the way

 

[Whitenuckler]

https://www.travisindustries.com/docs/93508108.pdf

You should be burning less than a bag if going 24/7 on low for sure. I will stay tuned.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Edit: Sooo... I didn't notice there is a reducer going from the 4 inch exhaust flange to a 3 inch. The manual calls for 4 inch. The old user was using a 3 inch vent system it would seem. Would explain why the exhaust damper is wide open. I installed a 3 inch vent to match what was coming out of the stove. Looks like I'm installing 4 inch

3 inch might be OK since you only have one 90 outside. Also it's a short run. What about OAK?

 

[TKRussell]

These are regular machine screws. If I did this I'd use stainless?

 

[TKRussell]

3 inch might be OK since you only have one 90 outside. Also it's a short run. What about OAK?

I have an OAK. It's 2 inch dia.
That'd be great if 3 inch would work.

 

[Whitenuckler]

These are regular machine screws. If I did this I'd use stainless?

They don't seem to use any stainless building pellet stoves. I'd inspect them after a few years.

 

[TKRussell]

How do I know if the 3 inch vent is going to work?

What temperature do combustion fans reach?
Can 500 degree rtv be used to seal the exit flange?

 

[Whitenuckler]

How do I know if the 3 inch vent is going to work?

What temperature do combustion fans reach?
Can 500 degree rtv be used to seal the exit flange?

I hooked up my DDM to log what each number 1-7 represented in target ESP temperature. Here are my results:
1-251F
2-308F
3-343F
4-378F
5-411F
6-444F
7-470F

Above are temperatures recorded from a Harman P43

Thread 'Harman "Stove Temp" results'

Feb 10, 2022

I hooked up my DDM to log what each number 1-7 represented in target ESP temperature. Here are my results:
1-251F
2-308F
3-343F
4-378F
5-411F
6-444F
7-470F

• rickwai
• Replies: 48
• Forum: The Pellet Mill - Pellet and Multifuel Stoves

• 

That probe is in the air stream of the combustion air.

High Temp Gasket Maker RTV is good to 650F.

3 inch is what all Harman's have. The size of the pipe depends on the length and how many angles.
4 Inch is always going to be better, but if you already have 3 inch set up, and your length/angles are minimum
it should work fine. If your manual and stove calls for 4 inch then it should be set up with 4 inch.
Your fresh air at 2 inch seems a bit small, but again if it's short it should be good. What is the size of the stove opening?

 

[ARC]

Can 500 degree rtv be used to seal the exit flange?

Yes Permatex ultra red is what I usually use some of the cheaper brands can be runny.

 

[TKRussell]

Thank you for that information.

-I disassembled / cleaned / sealed the combustion fan housing.
-I used the Permatex red gasket rtv.
-The fresh air intake on the stove is 1 3/4". The OAK is 2"
-The flange at the exit of the combustion fan housing is 1.5 x 3 inches. Thats 4 1/2 square inches open for exhaust to flow through. 3 inch exhaust vent has 7 square inches to flow through. Not sure if that's how that works but seems sound enough for me to give try it.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Thank you for that information.

-I disassembled / cleaned / sealed the combustion fan housing.
-I used the Permatex red gasket rtv.
-The fresh air intake on the stove is 1 3/4". The OAK is 2"
-The flange at the exit of the combustion fan housing is 1.5 x 3 inches. Thats 4 1/2 square inches open for exhaust to flow through. 3 inch exhaust vent has 7 square inches to flow through. Not sure if that's how that works but seems sound enough for me to give try it.

When is the first test ? You are doing a great job!

 

[TKRussell]

Thank you
Waiting on gasket material to be delivered. Supposed to be here today. Should be able to fire it up tomorrow.

 

[TKRussell]

Gasket material came this afternoon.

 

[Burnin Since 1989]

Gasket material came this afternoon.

Fire in the Hole! Looking forward to the first fire pic!

 

[TKRussell]

Waiting for rtv to dry on the vent. Will fire tomorrow

 

[TKRussell]

That picture makes the stove look like its in worse condition than it is. Its not that bad.