Perhaps the non-ignite cured for now?

[tiger]

Earlier, I posted that I had to wait over a month to 12/30/15 for a service call on my Accentra insert’s failure to ignite or at least poorly with one or more time-outs, but only having this problem after cleaning. Meanwhile I was eventually getting it to light and tossing in a small handful of ash after cleaning did seem to help.

Well, the technicians left a little while ago. They started with a deep cleaning of the entire stove and chimney (I was considering asking about that anyway) and then turned it on. The burnpot got hot but the pellets were not lighting off and it was mused whether the pellets (Lignetics) might be the issue - yeah, wish me luck trying to return almost two tons.

So, out came the insert again and the ignitor changed (apparently, not fun to try when the ignitor is still hot). I watched and the work is done through a smallish hole, I presume I could someday manage to do it myself but am glad this time to watching over someone’s shoulder.

Once all back together, it fired up in about 4 minutes, far better than the usual 8-on-a-good-day. Hopefully that will continue and hopefully this ignitor will last for a while. Anyway, I asked for the old unit and the package the new one came in, and I think at the least I plan to keep a new spare on-hand. I told the technician that with my luck, I’d need one just as the product “goes on National Backorder”.

 

[Funnydirt14]

I just replaced my igniter a few weeks ago and it's not fun. Now it works like a champ when I need it.

 

[alternativeheat]

Sounds like it.

 

[bogieb]

They were musing that Lignetics were the issue? Hu, those are normally thought to be among the better pellets - maybe not top notch, but certainly better than most of the middling to lousy pellets I usually run - and I haven't found a pellet that wouldn't light.

Glad they decided to not take the lazy man's way out by sticking with the "blame the pellets" stance and they went ahead with replacement of the ignitor - and even happier that it seems to have cured your issue!

 

[tiger]

Glad they decided to not take the lazy man's way out by sticking with the "blame the pellets" stance

Me too, but I'll say they raised the issue, then dismissed it. They both picked up a couple of pellets to examine, tried breaking the longer ones in half, I think they were looking for excess moisture -- and didn't find any. Fair enough.

Went back home a few hours later to find my wife had just turned it back on in anticipation of some guests coming by (who cancelled, my wife had been cooking like crazy but these things happen), not sure who turned what knobs, her or the techs, but it was going like a blast furnace in there! I turned it back but the living room was briefly at 84.

Is there a good place to buy ignitors, or just direct from Harman? I haven't looked for a (broken link removed) yet.

 

[Funnydirt14]

Me too, but I'll say they raised the issue, then dismissed it. They both picked up a couple of pellets to examine, tried breaking the longer ones in half, I think they were looking for excess moisture -- and didn't find any. Fair enough.

Went back home a few hours later to find my wife had just turned it back on in anticipation of some guests coming by (who cancelled, my wife had been cooking like crazy but these things happen), not sure who turned what knobs, her or the techs, but it was going like a blast furnace in there! I turned it back but the living room was briefly at 84.

Is there a good place to buy ignitors, or just direct from Harman? I haven't looked for a (broken link removed) yet.

(broken link removed to http://www.ebay.com/itm/Harman-Pellet-Igniter-Hot-Rod-XP3520-3-20-677200-USA-NOT-MADE-in-CHINA-/161886015216?hash=item25b1288ef0:g:8BUAAOSwHPlWdI5j) I bought from this guy. There are others that are cheaper, but this guy got it to me in three days and the connecters are exactly like the one's on our stoves.

 

[tiger]

(broken link removed to http://www.ebay.com/itm/Harman-Pellet-Igniter-Hot-Rod-XP3520-3-20-677200-USA-NOT-MADE-in-CHINA-/161886015216?hash=item25b1288ef0:g:8BUAAOSwHPlWdI5j) I bought from this guy. There are others that are cheaper, but this guy got it to me in three days and the connecters are exactly like the one's on our stoves.

Thanks, my wife has an eBay/PayPal account, I'll ask her to grab one.

Long weekend, had a fire every day (I've been shutting it down at night), fires up every time in five minutes or less now!

 

[tiger]

Interesting. After three weeks of the stove lighting after 4-5 minutes, yesterday it took 8-9 minutes and a lot of smoke in the stove before it fired. Hmm, also, the coldest day here in quite a while, even mid-day when I turned it on it might have been barely 20F and breezy. I wonder if weather conditions impacted it? Maybe a downdraft or something, or just cold air in the chimney is harder to displace?. It ran great after it fired up.

 

[tiger]

Update: every day this week, ignition in 6-9 minutes, not as good as the <6 minutes of the previous three weeks but I'm still OK with that if it gets no worse. If it ever warms up again to near-average temps perhaps I'll know if ambient temp affected it. My weekly clean-up-ette seemed to have no effect -- that's good news compared to before I had the ignitor changed.

 

[tiger]

Further update: it has warmed up here again, and for the past week or so, it fires up in perhaps 4.5 to 6 minutes; I think that answers the question although I still do not know why.