Pacific Energy Summit Ash Dump Issue

  • Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.

    We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.

    We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
Status
Not open for further replies.

fullbloomal

New Member
Nov 12, 2011
2
Franklin, CT
I recently purchased a PE Summit that came with the "Heritage Package"; pedestal and ash dump. I've only burned a few nights so far, but each time there seems to be excessive air coming up through the ash dump. There are always more flames on the left side of the stove. Last night after I reloaded, I had to immediately slide the air intake all the way closed, but it had little effect on slowing down the burn. I looked underneath and I could see red coals through about a 1/8th-1/4 inch gap all the way around the top of the ash dump plate. The plate looked like it was at its top position, with nothing holding it slightly open. There was a lot of air whistling through there.

My question is, shouldn't there be a gasket that seals off the ash dump when closed? I do not feel like I have very much control over the fire with all of the extra air coming in through that opening. Do other people with with this stove have the same issue or is mine missing something. Thanks for your help,

Alan
 
It sounds like you have a small piece of charcoal wedged in there. Clean it out carefully and be sure the trap door is closing tightly. A gasket wouldn't really help here. It would just trap even more debris. IMO they should just dump the ash dump. It's a poor design. Ours has been used once and now remains closed with a good plug of ash on top.
 
  • Like
Reactions: loon
However, the generous ash bin does make a nice bun warmer. Handy for the holidays.
 
I have the same ash removal system on my PE Spectrum, and I love it. Here's a tip: fill the dumper chute with ash. This will seal any air leaks, and provide a flat floor to build your fire on. When you dump the ashes, always leave some behind in the firebox, to re-fill the chute and provide about a 1/2" bed on top of the firebricks.
 
Thanks for the replies. I guess part of my problem is that I have not burned enough wood yet to build up the recommended 1" ash base. Perhaps fiddling with the dump lever lodged a piece of charcoal in there. If all else fails I will seal it off with the extra firebrick.

Otherwise I am very pleased with this stove. Quite a difference from my previous stove, an airtight Huntsman by Atlanta Stove Works, no smoke comes out of the stack!

Alan
 
I had the same thing happen a couple of times on our Super 27. I was able to clear the jam by opening the door and allowing the coals to fall into the ash pan. I really like the trap door and the ash pan. I had less problems by leaving the door open a crack rather than opening the ash door to get a fire started. After some ash builds up, the is no noticeable air coming through the trap door. The trap door on our new Super 27 closes more tightly and seems to lock into place when closed.
 
Please, take my advice---seal the trap door shut with silicone and shovel the ashes out via the loading door.

Keeping the 'dump chute' full of ashes did not work in my case -- neither did a replacement of the whole ash dump system with all new parts help with the constantly uncontrollable fires.

I agree with BeGreen - their ash dump should be "dumped" - ie--not even available on new stoves.

And while they are at it, PE should redesign their loading door latch. Imagine using one self tapping screw to,
basically, ensure a tight fit on a stove door. The screw on mine turned out to be stripped of its threads. Sometimes the door would seal, other times it wouldn't.
 
IMO they should just dump the ash dump. It's a poor design. Ours has been used once and now remains closed with a good plug of ash on top.[/quote]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New member here, 25 yrs with Taiwanese Consolidated Dutchwest 50K btu front to back stove, catalytic not used. Had to rebuild the air diverter. and grate. The ash pit door and grate under the wood was handy in starting fires with extra draft. Got the black Summit Classic now on its 5th year. The ashdump hole flapper lever is really annoying as it must be held open. First I propped it by drilling a hole in a 3/4" dowel 9.25" from hole to bottom and slid it over the lever and used it to hold flapper open resting it on the floor. Don't use the ash dump hole now (too small) and instead use a metal dustpan from Harbor Fr. after pushing the ashes back with a homemade pusher 4x12" on a handle. However, I use the ash flapper as a "bellows" for starting a log cabin style with kindling in center (fast heat) but must be watched, or a topdown fire (front to back stack of wood from 3" thick to 1" and cedar 1/4" kindling on top lit with a torch. I looked at the spring held lever of ash dump flapper, and noticed at its rear where it rides one can grind in (dremyl tip size of chainsaw sharpener) a bevel that holds the door open when you pull, turn, and release it into the bevel. Works great. Tell me how to post a pict. and I can show it. I think the draft is too little for a topdown fire, and I do not like leaving the door cracked. Our house is a stress-skin panel over post and beam design, (keeps its temp due to south glass when it is 10 deg outside and sunny) = drops 10 deg at nite....and we never do banked fires, but believe in a morning hot fire with dry wood 3" or less thick that makes very little creosote to get temp up 10-15 deg in 2 hrs. With banked fires and large wood I had the creosote perforate the single wall inside pipe (22 ft run up to ceiling) in 8 yrs, then replaced it and used the hot fires and still have the same pipe. Plan to put in SS soon.
 

Attachments

  • SUMMIT ASHPIT FLAPPER HOLD-OPEN.jpg
    SUMMIT ASHPIT FLAPPER HOLD-OPEN.jpg
    174.6 KB · Views: 1,023
I recently purchased a PE Summit that came with the "Heritage Package"; pedestal and ash dump. I've only burned a few nights so far, but each time there seems to be excessive air coming up through the ash dump. There are always more flames on the left side of the stove. Last night after I reloaded, I had to immediately slide the air intake all the way closed, but it had little effect on slowing down the burn. I looked underneath and I could see red coals through about a 1/8th-1/4 inch gap all the way around the top of the ash dump plate. The plate looked like it was at its top position, with nothing holding it slightly open. There was a lot of air whistling through there.

My question is, shouldn't there be a gasket that seals off the ash dump when closed? I do not feel like I have very much control over the fire with all of the extra air coming in through that opening. Do other people with with this stove have the same issue or is mine missing something. Thanks for your help,

Alan

Agree that it should be sealed tighter but I think it is expected that the ash dump trap door is to be covered with ashes level to the firebrick on the bottom of the stove when running. I use my ash drop every day. I push all my coals back, pull all the ash to the front, dump ashes down into the drawer then cover the ash door with ashes and pull the coals foreward. I've been running like this since 2010.
 
I'll tell you what I'm doing about a similar problem with the Buck 91, but first....
A thread title like yours will always bring out several folks telling you to give up and just shovel the ashes out....too much hassle, they say. I'll admit, the ash dump isn't as good as having a grate in the floor of the stove, but to me it's a hassle to shovel 'em; You have to work at it to keep ash dust from flying everywhere (you need good technique, which you also need to use the dump effectively....shaking big coals off the shovel, etc.) Pretty sure these folks end up with more dust in the house than they would like to admit. Sometimes I want to get ash out of the way but don't want to go outside right then to get rid of them....maybe it's cold and windy out....like it's been all winter here so far! ;lol I'd rather just go out once every couple days. I'd say give the dump a chance....try it, you might like it.

Here's the short version of my saga with the Buck 91: The ash dump leaks air around the pan gasket (pan doesn't lock in tight, just slides in.) I made the mistake of removing the high-density OEM gasket and replacing it with the cheap, leaky gasket you find at most stove stores, hardware stores etc. Do yourself a favor and pay a little more for OEM gaskets.
Yes, the lid can be held open by a coal, so make sure you push them away from where the lid seats, then close the lid. I tap mine a couple times with a poker to make sure it's seated. Then, as DuckDog mentioned, you can push some ash around the perimeter of the lid and run a shovel over it to pack it in. I'm not sure how much good this does, though.

Here's what I've been doing for the last couple of weeks and I think it's gotta be working. Not sure since I don't get to observe the full burn too often, but I've been back a couple times and the load has been burning as I expect it to.
The air wash mainly shoots air to the center of the load, and I think the left side was taking off with a combination of the air wash and the air from the dump. When I'm ready to load I shove the coals right, away from the ash dump. I'll stack a couple of splits against the left wall since the side walls are the last wood to burn. Then I'll shove the coals against those splits, over the right side of the ash dump, and proceed to load the rest of the box. My thinking is that the coals will eat up any air coming in through the ash lid and prevent the left side of the load from gassing until later in the burn. I'll even put a split on top of the coals, and it doesn't burn up too fast since the burn progresses from the center of the load out to the sides (I use the 'shot gun air' to get the center burning and the stove up to temp with a fresh load.) Another thing I've done when I've got some ash in the pan, is to put some coals on top of the pile, right under the ash lid....that may catch some of the air, too.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Forgot to mention, on our Summit Classic, I tried placing a terra cotta tile into the ashdump hole to be flush with the bricks. One way to retire the dump and prevent leaks. Now I leave it open to provide extra starting draft. When using my push the ashes back and shovel method, I do open the ash flapper, brush it, and shake the ashpan. I empty it only when about half full. I wish the would weld a center handle bar to the pan, as it would be easier to carry it out to the metal garbage can on our deck with one hand (need 2 now).
----------------------------------------------------------------
"Yes, the lid can be held open by a coal, so make sure you push them away from where the lid seats, then close the lid. I tap mine a couple times with a poker to make sure it's seated. Then, as DuckDog mentioned, you can push some ash around the perimeter of the lid and run a shovel over it to pack it in. I'm not sure how much good this does, though."
 
Status
Not open for further replies.