Hello everyone... I have a quadrafire 1200 I that won't feed the pellets. Anybody have any ideas on what can be going on here. Everything else is working...
Thanks
Thanks
Quadrafire 1200 I
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Hi.
I bought the stove used. It is new to me though. I plug in the unit and the blower works and when I turn on the thermostat the igniter will light up pellets I have put in the pot, but the stove will not drop the pellets to keep fire going. I have hit the reset button as the manual says and still I get nothing. Hope this helped...
I bought the stove used. It is new to me though. I plug in the unit and the blower works and when I turn on the thermostat the igniter will light up pellets I have put in the pot, but the stove will not drop the pellets to keep fire going. I have hit the reset button as the manual says and still I get nothing. Hope this helped...
Probably your thermocouple. If it feeds initially but then fails to feed after that. Check the thermocouple, remove the ceramic cover that protrudes into your pot, make sure the solder joint is still intact at the end and that it extends a min. of 1" into the firepot. If the solder joint is gone its a sure bet you'll need to replace that thermocouple. Another way to check is to look at the control box while firing when the stove reaches 200* a green light should come on and when it reaches 1000* then a red light comes on. If neither comes on then the thermocouple is not sending a signal to the board allowing the auger to run. Check all connections and make sure that he thermocouple wires are hooked up properly as they are polarized. I think that's in the manual as I don't remember which wire goes where off the top of my head. Another small possibility is that you don't have your feed rate set high enough and the initial fire is not enough to warm the thermocouple.
What was the history of the stove? Was it working in the previous installation when the stove was removed?
Here are some more tips that are not all in the manual:
In the hopper, there is a rod, with a wingnut lockdown, that controls the feed. On my stove this is at about 25-30 on the feedrate scale that sits below the L of the rod. Also, make sure there isn't a blockage in the feed system (mouse nest?)
If that is ok, the next thing to check is to assure that the stove door is sealing tightly. If there is an air leak, the stove will not feed pellets. The door clamps should be snug so that the gasket compresses. If a dollar bill is inserted so that it is clamped in the gasket when the door is closed, it should pull out with some resistance.
Next thing - is the exhaust blower coming on when the stove starts?
If the exhaust blower is coming on, is the exhaust port and flue pipe unobstructed? Downdrafts or poor venting systems can cause this problem.
From this point on, there is a certain degree of mechanical and electrical skill needed. If you are not comfortable with this, stop here and call a qualified Quad repair person. You want to keep the integrity of the nice safety systems on this stove in good working order.
If exhaust blower is working and exhaust is correctly installed per spec the next thing to check is the vacuum switch. The vacuum switch assures that there is negative pressure in the combustion chamber. The vacuum switch may have failed and can be checked with a multimeter to see if it is closing the switch.
There is the possibility that the auger motor has failed or decoupled from the auger. Inspect. Can you hear the auger motor running when you press the reset button? If yes, look at the coupler that joins the motor to the auger. Assert that it is tightly coupled by trying to turn the auger manually.
Here are some more tips that are not all in the manual:
In the hopper, there is a rod, with a wingnut lockdown, that controls the feed. On my stove this is at about 25-30 on the feedrate scale that sits below the L of the rod. Also, make sure there isn't a blockage in the feed system (mouse nest?)
If that is ok, the next thing to check is to assure that the stove door is sealing tightly. If there is an air leak, the stove will not feed pellets. The door clamps should be snug so that the gasket compresses. If a dollar bill is inserted so that it is clamped in the gasket when the door is closed, it should pull out with some resistance.
Next thing - is the exhaust blower coming on when the stove starts?
If the exhaust blower is coming on, is the exhaust port and flue pipe unobstructed? Downdrafts or poor venting systems can cause this problem.
From this point on, there is a certain degree of mechanical and electrical skill needed. If you are not comfortable with this, stop here and call a qualified Quad repair person. You want to keep the integrity of the nice safety systems on this stove in good working order.
If exhaust blower is working and exhaust is correctly installed per spec the next thing to check is the vacuum switch. The vacuum switch assures that there is negative pressure in the combustion chamber. The vacuum switch may have failed and can be checked with a multimeter to see if it is closing the switch.
There is the possibility that the auger motor has failed or decoupled from the auger. Inspect. Can you hear the auger motor running when you press the reset button? If yes, look at the coupler that joins the motor to the auger. Assert that it is tightly coupled by trying to turn the auger manually.
Thanks Shane and Begreen... I will check all of those things and let you know how it turns out.
Begreen, according to the guy I bought the stove from it was all in working condition, but I was told that it needed the igniter. (Replaced it) The blower is coming on when the stove is plugged in.
Thanks again and I hope one of these things will do the trick.
1Cookie
Begreen, according to the guy I bought the stove from it was all in working condition, but I was told that it needed the igniter. (Replaced it) The blower is coming on when the stove is plugged in.
Thanks again and I hope one of these things will do the trick.
1Cookie
1cookie said:
Cookie, I forgot one very obvious thing. Do you have a thermostat on this unit? Is the red light lit on the control panel indicating it is calling for heat? If not, it needs a thermostat connected to the thermostat terminals or they must be jumped with a small piece of wire **temporarilly** to test the unit. The stove will not deliver pellets unless it is being called to heat. This is a low voltage connection (24v) pair of screws at the bottom right side of the right panel opening, near the power connection. The thermostat goes on the two inner screws of the terminal block. See pic below and page 15 of the manual.
If you do have a thermostat connected that is for sure calling for heat (red light on control panel) and if no pellets come down the chute and no auger motor turns when you push the reset button, then proceed to check the door seal and vacuum switch. In this case, don't think this is the the thermocouple because when one pushes the reset button, the thermocouple is temporarilly ignored and the auger is turned on to load an initial batch of pellets in the burn pot. If you are not hearing the auger motor (it's very quiet) and seeing pellets, either the auger system has a problem (clogged or not driving), or the safety systems have kicked in (vac switch). There is one last possibility that there has been a failure of the control unit, but that sounds unlikely if the unit was working fine beforehand.
If the initial load of pellets -is- delivered after pushing the reset button, then follow Shane's good advice on the thermocouple.
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Hi.
Yes, I do have a thermostat connected and the red light indicator comes on. The handful of pellets that are put in the pot ignite
The pellets just don't drop. Do you know if the vacuum switch needs to be reset manually or does it reset itself when all else is
working properly? I don't know if the auger is turning I can't hear anything. Then again, if it's quiet how can I. I have been told my hearing isn't the greatest..
Yes, I do have a thermostat connected and the red light indicator comes on. The handful of pellets that are put in the pot ignite
The pellets just don't drop. Do you know if the vacuum switch needs to be reset manually or does it reset itself when all else is
working properly? I don't know if the auger is turning I can't hear anything. Then again, if it's quiet how can I. I have been told my hearing isn't the greatest..
The vacuum switch can't be reset. Examine the the rubber hose coming from the switch carefully. Did the hose get accidentally knocked off of it's connection to either the switch or stove? Are the spade lug connectors both connected to the two terminals on the vacuum switch? Is the hose in good condition or dry and cracked? To examine the auger operation, remove all pellets from the hopper so that you can look into the chute that the auger resides in. Turn on stove, trigger it with the reset button and watch to see if the auger turns.
I'm hesitant to give you more instructions without knowing your comfort level mechanically and electrically. The safety systems are in place for a reason and what ever is done to test, must be restored correctly. The next step I would do requires pulling the stove so that you can access the backside, removing all pellets and temporarilly disconnecting the ignitor. You will need to have a multimeter to check continuity and voltage. It also would help (but not totally necessary) if you can read the schematic. If this is approaching your discomfort level, then it's best to have a service person check it out. You'll have to let me know.
I'm hesitant to give you more instructions without knowing your comfort level mechanically and electrically. The safety systems are in place for a reason and what ever is done to test, must be restored correctly. The next step I would do requires pulling the stove so that you can access the backside, removing all pellets and temporarilly disconnecting the ignitor. You will need to have a multimeter to check continuity and voltage. It also would help (but not totally necessary) if you can read the schematic. If this is approaching your discomfort level, then it's best to have a service person check it out. You'll have to let me know.
Thanks so much for the information. I will let you know how everything works out just as soon as I get a chance to get back to the stove. I really do appreciate all the help / ideas everyone has given me.
1Cookie
1Cookie
I have found this link very useful in reparing
the few stoves I have worked on.
good luck to you
John
http://www.hearthtools.com/pellet/service_tips_and_trouble_shootin.htm
the few stoves I have worked on.
good luck to you
John
http://www.hearthtools.com/pellet/service_tips_and_trouble_shootin.htm
wahsega said:
I've tried this site a couple times for this manual and always get a file is damaged alert. Has anyone else been successful?
****** Got it. Had to use Internet Exploder *******
Hello!
Well, I checked into all the things everyone has told me to look at and found that the cute that the auger is in is caked full of hard dirt. The question now is how in the heck to I get it out of there? It's kind of hard to get into the chute through the hopper.
HelP...... Please....
Thanks for all the other information on other service manuels too.......
Well, I checked into all the things everyone has told me to look at and found that the cute that the auger is in is caked full of hard dirt. The question now is how in the heck to I get it out of there? It's kind of hard to get into the chute through the hopper.
HelP...... Please....
Thanks for all the other information on other service manuels too.......
Was the stove sitting idle in a garage for awhile? Any kids in the neighborhood? Sounds like you may have to remove the auger unless you can poke a metal rod up through the coils of the auger to break up the soil clod. If it is just dirt, it should break up with a little persistance. I have a long 3/8" drill bit on an 18" extension. that would be one of the tools I'd try to use. Poke it up through the coils of the auger from the interior of the stove.
If it is really seriously impacted, it may take disassembly. My hopper is full of pellets so I can't look in to see how it was put together right now. Usually I approach this kind of problem with "how did they assemble this?" and reverse the process. You might want to call Quad tech support or visit your local Quad dealer's service person for some tips. Quadrafire's # is: 1-800-926-4356.
If it is really seriously impacted, it may take disassembly. My hopper is full of pellets so I can't look in to see how it was put together right now. Usually I approach this kind of problem with "how did they assemble this?" and reverse the process. You might want to call Quad tech support or visit your local Quad dealer's service person for some tips. Quadrafire's # is: 1-800-926-4356.
Hi BeGreen..... Yes, this stove was sitting in a garage. We tried pulling the auger doesn't even budge to come out. The dirt around it is so hard. It was late so wasn't able to disassemble anything. You are right though, it has to come apart some how. I we will try again tonight hopefuly. We will try the 3/8 bit and extension. I will let you know how things go.. Thanks
!!
!!
How goes the auger mining expedition Cookie? Any progress? It sounds like the auger is almost cemented in. Any more thoughts on what happened? I'm wondering what could have done this. Mud wasps?
Hello BeGreen,
Well the mining expo is still going. We haven't gotten back to it yet. Still scratching our heads as to how to get up into the auger. You are right it seems as it is cemented in. I don't know what did it but I curse it out every time I try getting the dirt out. I don't know what to do? AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHHH
Well the mining expo is still going. We haven't gotten back to it yet. Still scratching our heads as to how to get up into the auger. You are right it seems as it is cemented in. I don't know what did it but I curse it out every time I try getting the dirt out. I don't know what to do? AAAAUUUUGGGGHHHHH
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL......
Thought I would let you know that we haven't given up on the stove yet. We just haven't got around to it again. I guess we still have no idea on what to do to get the auger motor out. I will keep you posted...
Cookie
Thought I would let you know that we haven't given up on the stove yet. We just haven't got around to it again. I guess we still have no idea on what to do to get the auger motor out. I will keep you posted...
Cookie
HI Everyone..... No update on the Quadrafire yet.... I am now dealing with a broken dishwasher. GRRRRR. If it's not one thing it's another... Hope everyone is having a good year so far.
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