Quadra fire 1000 issues

[PelletHead]

Hello fellow pelletheads! I just purchased a used Quad 1000 and haven't had any luck keeping it running steady. I have cleaned it, adjusted feed rate, air intake, replaced the thermostat, rerouted and adjusted the thermocoupleand last but not least begged and pleaded with 200lbs of metal to stay running. If I leave it alone, the blower turns on, the cycle starts, auger feeds and it ignites for a small fire, shutdown and repeats. I can hit the reset every 2-3 minutes to get it to burn long enough for the green light to come on and flash. Upon hitting the reset during this I can get the green light to stay on and eventually get the red light to flash. At this point it will burn for a few hours then it shuts down. I have checked the vacuum hose and it is clear, bypassed the vacuum switch by jumping it and there is no difference. It is a brand new vent I installed just 2 days ago so all is clear. I am wondering if there are leaks around the doors as the gaskets are old... Any help I could get from you Gurus would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[Bob Sorjanen]

Have you checked the gaskets doing the dollar bill test?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

When you cleaned that unit what did you do in regards to the combustion blower?

When you plug the stove in what lights come on, on the controller?

 

[PelletHead]

I havent tested the gaskets in any way. And when I cleaned I didnt do anything with the combustion blower except vacuum around it. When I plug it in the blower comes on, the auger starts to feed and a small pot fire starts but the 200 degree light does not turn on unless I continue to hit the reset for a while. The green light then flashes and the control panel "clicks" with each flash. If I continue to hit the reset through this the green will go solid then the red will start to flash but never go solid. It will then burn anywhere from 1 hour to 6 hours then go off and start the cycle again but never continue to burn on it's own.

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Is your thermocouple clean and its end against the inside of its ceramic cover?

It must touch the ceramic.cover.

What I was looking for with the lights at plug in was an indication if the thermocouple was bad.

The combustion blower likely has some ash between the impeller and the motor mount plate and that can interfere with the stove's ignition in general.

 

[PelletHead]

Oh, gotcha. Yes, the thermocouple is clean and is against the end of the ceramic cover. I will check the combustion blower. Do I have to pull it out in order to check that?

 

[PelletHead]

Is there anyplace where I can get the gasket/seals for the doors in the front? When I was home at lunch I was hearing a slight air suction near the bottom cleanout door....

 

[mralias]

Is there anyplace where I can get the gasket/seals for the doors in the front? When I was home at lunch I was hearing a slight air suction near the bottom cleanout door....

We need a general idea where you are unless you want to but online.

 

[PelletHead]

I am located right near Grand Rapids, Michigan. But am more than willing to get online. I found one for $45, is that a good price?

 

[mralias]

I am located right near Grand Rapids, Michigan. But am more than willing to get online. I found one for $45, is that a good price?

I would think you could do better at a local stove store for 3/4 7' rope door gasket. Pellethead.com has it for $24.95. I have never used them before. What parts are you looking to replace besides the door gasket? Do a google search by part number. I'm sure others from your area will also chime in.

Also found this on Amazon.
Rutland Grapho-Glas ® Gasket Pellet Stove Rplmnt Kit-Cmt & 3/4"X7' Rope $18.52

 

[PelletHead]

Very good, I will check that out while trying to troubleshoot everything else. Thank you!!

 

[DexterDay]

The air you heard is probably the air wash. Do not fill that area with gasket material.

Is the ceramic cover sticking out far enough into pot to be hit by flame?

The T/C is not reaching temp fast enough. Have you tried opening the feed gate??

I would open it 100% and start there. You keep mentioning a Smallish flame. The flame should be largest at start up. There needs to be enough fuel to satisfy the T/C in the allowed time.

 

[PelletHead]

Dex, what and where is the airwash? Is that around the hinge at the bottom of the cleanout door? The ceramic cover and the TC is extended an inch over the pot and is about 1/8th inch above the rim of the pot. I have had the feed gate wide open and it still does the same thing. I get a lot of sparks flying out of the firepot sometimes whens pellets drop. Almost like there is too much air from under the fire pot. Not sure what to think of that.

 

[imacman]

Get that comb. blower out & cleaned, and do the dollar bill test on the door.

Open the door (cold stove), insert dollar bill along edge of gasket, then close & latch the door as per normal.....the dollar shouldn't be able to be pulled out easily or at all, w/o tearing it. Repeat this all around the gasket on all sides of the door. If the bill slides out pretty easily, you need to replace the door gasket.

Double check the ash pan too.

 

[DexterDay]

Air wash would be on the door. The clean out (trap door) on the bottom of the pot shouldn't have a gap thicker than a dime. If there is a large gap, it needs tightened up a little.

 

[PelletHead]

Ok. I pulled the comb motor off and cleaned. I repositioned the TC. I did the dollar bill test on the door and it was loose. I tightened that up to where I can't barely tug the dollar. I tightened the ash pan door. Then I pulled out the control box and on 2 of the metal connections it looks like there had been an arch at some point cause the metal was gone. There is still enough so that there is connection.... Really did not like seeing that. I have jumped the thermostat because one of the connections that was burned was to the thermostat control. That didn't help. Took the vacuum hose off while it was in start up and it stopped the auger, so that is working properly. Really not wanting to spend $375 on a new control box.... HELP!!

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Post a picture of the damaged contacts maybe someone can suggest a fix. If that was to the t-stat it would explain all kinds of issues because if the connect went bad while the stove was burning it would shut down ....

 

[PelletHead]

Well, in frustration (and a couple beers) I hit the top of the control box after hitting restart for about 20 mins (it usually works, you know that it does) and the green light started flashing and is now on solid. Auger is still running and am waiting to see if operating temp light comes on. How do I post a picture on here?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

The upload a file button lower right below the reply box.

 

[PelletHead]

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

How good are your soldering skills?

You could carefully flow some solder onto each of those damaged lands or solder a small metal patch to them or even find some gold conductive paint to do a repair job (mask and paint).

Maybe even adding another set of contacts on a separate pcb and soldering your existing lands by wires to a new board.

It is all going to depend upon a steady hand and good technique.

What shape is the socket in for those two locations? There may be damage there as well.

Hopefully someone that has done a lot of board repair can add another choice.

 

[PelletHead]

I can solder and have a steady hand but didn't know that you could fix those like that. I will check the contacts in the sockett. Do you think that could be the cause of my problems?

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Well it sure looks like it will be part of your problems.

You can fix pcb problems a number of ways the trick is in getting a good bond with what is still there and not laying down a thick mess.

Others may drop by and add some suggestions.

I would personally go with the last suggestion I made of the 4 since it would allow both an easy means of soldering, remove the need to get just a thin layer on the board and provide a entire new set of contacts for the socket to engage but I have no idea how you would place the resulting package into the same area in the stove.

 

[PelletHead]

Well, I am jumping to any type of Celebration yet, but I bought a new thermalcouple and so far all is performing properly! Thanks to everyone,especially you Smokey for all your help!! I am sure I will be back on here asking more questions about how to set things perfectly if that was the fix!! Burn on