Pellet Stove repair

[Sharon17]

I live in Central NJ and have owned a Whitfield Cascade pellet stove for the last 7 years. Recently, the pellets have stopped feeding through the hopper. I am not mechanically inclined, so taking it apart is not an option. I have called dozens of fireplace shops, including Lennox Hearth Products trying to locate anyone who works on pellet stoves to no avail. Everyone I have called sells the stoves, installs them but does not do the repairs. Technical support at Lennox gave me numerous people to call, also to no avail.

I would appreciate if anyone can point me in the right direction in getting my stove repaired. Replacing it with another $2500 unit is not an option

Thanks.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

I live in Central NJ and have owned a Whitfield Cascade pellet stove for the last 7 years. Recently, the pellets have stopped feeding through the hopper. I am not mechanically inclined, so taking it apart is not an option. I have called dozens of fireplace shops, including Lennox Hearth Products trying to locate anyone who works on pellet stoves to no avail. Everyone I have called sells the stoves, installs them but does not do the repairs. Technical support at Lennox gave me numerous people to call, also to no avail.

I would appreciate if anyone can point me in the right direction in getting my stove repaired. Replacing it with another $2500 unit is not an option

Thanks.

have you checked with any local chimney sweeps, a lot of them do service work on pellet stoves, annual cleanings and such mostly , but some of them service stoves as well, ie replacing motors and blowers and such. you would want to see if they are familiar with the brand with whitfield being a common brand its a good chance they would be. find out where you might procure parts if needed if they do not have a supplier. i hope this helps ya. if you still have no luck , let me know and i'll look around for you some, might just be able to find someone who can help

 

[hearthtools]

That stove is a small Simple stove
Not a lot of fancy stuff.
Whitfield made it to sell in the Hardware big box store market.

Sounds like your pressure switch is tripped. due to blocked flue or the small port the vacuum hose is connected to is plugged up.
Pull the hose off the Round pressure switch and Blow to clear.
See trouble shooting on my site for Pressure switch/Vacuum switch fix.
http://www.hearthtools.com/parts/lowlimit.htm

That stove is small and light
When we service them I like to send 2 guys out
they Carry the stove out side vacuum out the ash
then blast it with a leaf blower and or Air Compressor.
that stove uses One motor for both the Room air (convection blower) and the combustion blower
Are you sure the blower is working because if it is not blowing the vacuum switch will not close to let the auger feed.

We stock most parts for that stove
http://www.hearthtools.com/parts/replacement_parts_for__Cascade_WP5.htm
Get what you need soon
lennox is no longer going to make parts for stoves older than 10 years old.

 

[stoveguy2esw]

yep, and there he is, you da man rod!

 

[GVA]

Pretty soon Rod is gonna have to charge admission to his site ;-)

 

[stoveguy2esw]

Pretty soon Rod is gonna have to charge admission to his site ;-)

tell me about it , i popped in a couple times and was amazed at how much stuff he has crammed in there , great site rod!

 

[hearthtools]

I know it is not the best looking site but has been 10 years of adding here are there on my spare time.

the Hearthtools.com website alone had over 700 HTML pages
and over 1700 images.
they I have the other sites
(broken link removed)
www.aireze.com
www.allmist.com

 

[Sharon17]

Thank you for your help and your replies. I have contacted Lennox, chimney sweeps, fireplace stores etc. Needless to say, I have spent the last month and a half trying to find someone who can repair my unit. Customer service at Lennox gave me a ton of people to call, some have not returned the calls, the other half have no knowledge of the Whitfield stove. Apparently, I can find people who will clean it, sell me a new one and even install one. But no one in NJ can service or repair them. I am at a complete loss of what to do. I have run through the phone book, dealers, distributors, with no luck. I would appreciate anyone's input -- Thanks!

 

[mtalea]

He is the man,A real fountain of information......I was wondering what that air hose and round thing is on my stove...of corse I have a different model but sounds logical to me.Hey rod on the jamestown is it the same...if so what can I do to mine to see if all is well?

 

[Gooserider]

Moved to the pellet room for obvious reasons...

Gooserider

 

[webbie]

Thank you for your help and your replies. I have contacted Lennox, chimney sweeps, fireplace stores etc. Needless to say, I have spent the last month and a half trying to find someone who can repair my unit. Customer service at Lennox gave me a ton of people to call, some have not returned the calls, the other half have no knowledge of the Whitfield stove. Apparently, I can find people who will clean it, sell me a new one and even install one. But no one in NJ can service or repair them. I am at a complete loss of what to do. I have run through the phone book, dealers, distributors, with no luck. I would appreciate anyone's input -- Thanks!

This is a problem in the Pellet World - the lack of "generic" installers and servicing companies to take care of folks after the warranty expires.

You have probably already contacted the "pellet specialists" in your area that completed the educational program?
(broken link removed to http://www.nficertified.org/pages_consumers/consumers-1.html)

If you run out of industry specific options, a skilled HVAC (plumbing heating type) should be able to follow Rods lead in terms or replacing your parts.

 

[pegdot]

Great link, Craig. Thanks! IS there someplace you can go to learn to repair pellet stoves? Don't laugh! I'm serious! Sort of.....

 

[hearthtools]

Great link, Craig. Thanks! IS there someplace you can go to learn to repair pellet stoves? Don't laugh! I'm serious! Sort of.....

Check out all the Parts pages on my site. for each manufacture. http://www.hearthtools.com/parts/index.html
Most pellet stove are about the same type of systems just a few different ways of wiring things up.

there are a number of trouble shooting guides I wrote and some from each manufacture
This is how I teach my guys.

 

[mkmh]

This is kind of a long shot, but I think if I were in your shoes I would consider posting a free ad on CraigsList.org; seeking an experienced general handy-person or other to diagnose and repair your stove. I would be as specific as possible with the make and model of stove as well as the symptoms of your problem.
If it were me I would request some references (and check them) and ask people to explain in e-mail why they think they are qualified to fix your stove. Quite frankly, there are lots of folks out there that could get this figured out and fixed for you. You just need to find one of them and set up some terms that are mutually agreeable.

I would let people know that you are willing to pay cash, and that terms are negotiable. You'll have to be extremely cautious with how you manage the situation, but I think if you're careful that you could have your stove up and running by Christmas.

 

[Shane]

Great link, Craig. Thanks! IS there someplace you can go to learn to repair pellet stoves? Don't laugh! I'm serious! Sort of.....

There are numerous classes taught throughout the year for NFI certifications, do a search for Dave Pomroy. I just ordered the books and then went and took the tests at a local test proctoring place. I read the gas one but passed the tests for the wood and pellet without actually reading the manuals.
The chimney sweep institute of america has an actual facility in Indiana for training as well. I don't know what they offer specifically for training concerning pellet stoves though.