Quadrafire Classic Bay 1200i - No Pellets, Mystery Spring

[cb1200i]

Hoping someone can help diagnose a problem.

Stove has been working well with no issues. Yesterday morning, it stopped running. Wife was home, vacuumed out stove, but it would not feed any pellets. (So I think that's why it stopped running - no fuel). When i got home, I checked the ash pan, and there was a 1-inch spring (1/4" OD) with a spring "cap" that was maybe 1/2" long. Picture attached. Any clue on what it is and where it came from? (I can't find it on any parts lists or diagrams). Since stove was vacuumed out, I don;t know if there were more pieces or not (I have not gone through ash vacuum to find out!)

For the stove: When it starts its cycle, there is a faint clicking (maybe 3 clicks) and combustion fan comes on, nothing else happens (It seems like there is no auger advancement). I don't see any call lights on on the controller. Fan cycle times out.

I haven't done any other diagnostics. Was hoping someone could point me in the right direction?

(Thank you for your time)

 

[Johnny_Fiv3]

Stove model?

 

[DMKNLD]

Hey cb1200i,

Part of your burn pot linkage spring maybe ? The burn pot linkage lives over the ash pan, so if the pull rod mechanism came apart it would end up in the pan.

Is your clean out plate partially open ? If so, that could keep the vacuum switch from closing, and thus shut down the feed motor. Open up the ash pan door and look to the left of the burn pot and igniter to visualize the linkage mechanism.

Post back on what you find and we can go from there. Regards, DK

 

[cb1200i]

Johnny_Fiv3: The stove is a Quadrafire Classic Bay 1200i

DMKNLD: The firepot spring and linkage appear to be alright. Linkage works, clean out cover closes normally. The spring isn't as strong as new, but it does apply enough pressure to pivot/close the cover. I can not see any obvious locations for the spring any where below the firepot. I original thought the spring applied vertical/upward pressure to keep the clean out cover pushed against the bottom of the pot - but I can't figure a logical spot for it to accomplish that.

I found the spring/cap in the cleanout pan, but it could have been dropped from the auger mechanism, through the firepot, then landed in the clean out pan (I didn't check the pan before pulling the linkage, and wasn't paying enough attention to see if it 'pinged' if it dropped from firepot. Since we vacuumed out the firepot, I would have vacuumed up any other pieces if it fell from above.

The 'cap' has 'cross-hair' indentations on the top of it, and a small center hole. Is the auger motor a stepper motor that would index on the spring/cap? (Just guessing - I'm at a loss). Just got back from work, and I'm going to empty the hopper and look at the auger to see if there is something obvious. I don't have the stove model that has the hopper lid switch. I'm at a loss as to what it is, but it must be important!

Once again, I appreciate the time people put into this forum to help us newbies out. Thank you.

 

[DMKNLD]

Happy to help, brother! There is no spring or cap on the auger motor or feed screw assembly, but certainly it is conceivable that it could have come from the hopper via the auger tube, as pellets can often be that long.

Does it sound like the auger is trying to turn when you start it up ? I'm wondering if there might be something in your auger tube possibly obstructing the feed screw, which may be your clicking sound you mentioned hearing? It's amazing what people report finding in their auger that jammed it up - most recent was an OP who found a potato peeler in her Quad Santa Fe auger tube !

It's not too hard to remove the whole auger assembly after unplugging the stove and removing the auger cover heat shield inside the hopper, then disconnecting the auger motor wiring. There are 2 nuts on the mounting studs that hold the auger motor and bracket mount in. Here's a recent link to a post by wagsthe with some good tips he had on removing his CB insert auger assembly when he had to replace his failing auger motor. https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...eeching-noise-in-auger-motor-assembly.151279/

If your auger isn't jammed / obstructed, the next thing to do IMO would be to help talk you through how to bypass your vacuum switch - to rule out a vacuum issue causing your no-feed auger issue. I don't have a CB model, so I'm kinda winging it here, but I'm sure Quad tech kap will sign on and give some thoughts on any other place a spring and cap like that could come from, and any other ideas on your auger feed problem.

The spring almost looks like one of the four springs that are part of the Quad Mt Vernon AE burn pot auto-clean mechanism, but nothing I could find on a CB model parts diagram looked familiar to your pic. I'll private message kap if he doesn't sign on sometime this evening. Collectively we'll do our best to help get you back running, OK? Cheers, DK

 

[cb1200i]

DMKNLD, Thank you! Empty out the hopper and tried to get the auger out. Wasn't really sure how it came out, removed the two nuts and it was still tight. Ended up pushing the auger up from the bottom of the chute to break the joint. Couldn't get it completely removed, but was able to ensure the chute/auger was totally empty. Put it back together, cycled the thermostat, and the auger turned. Feed it some pellets, and after a few cycles to 'prime' the auger, I have a fire! So my issue was a clogged auger, although I didn't notice anything foreign or packed pellets.

Thank you for your guidance - it helps having folks who are willing to share their knowledge!

So back to my original post, with the spring and cap: I'd still like to know if it is part of the stove (Does anyone recognize it)? or if it was just foreign material that got in the bag of pellets somewhere along the way!

 

[DMKNLD]

Put it back together, cycled the thermostat, and the auger turned. Feed it some pellets, and after a few cycles to 'prime' the auger, I have a fire!

Shweet ! Glad you're back up and running. Heat is good !

Are you burning longish pellets - ie consistently greater or equal to an inch or so in length? If so, I'd wager that you had a pellet jam up at the top of your auger tube, that more than likely broke loose when the auger assembly came free from the stud mounts, with the pellet 'plug' dropping back down the auger tube? That is a common occurrence that frequently causes auger jams.

No clue where your mystery spring and spring cap might have come from, nor whether that was related in any way to your auger jam, or was just coincidental occurrences. It certainly could have gotten into the pellet bag during mill production. I found a 4" X 1" chunk of a shredded steel-belted conveyor belt in a pellet bag one time. Luckily I saw it before it got sucked up by the auger !

I hope any other CB owners will chime in to offer any thoughts on whether that spring is 'indigenous' to your stove. Regards, and stay warm. DK

 

[kappel15]

As nice as that spring and cap look, they couldn't have gone thru a fire in the pot. kap

 

[DMKNLD]

As nice as that spring and cap look, they couldn't have gone thru a fire in the pot. kap

The mystery deepens ! I was wondering if the spring started out silver colored and came out black after a short burn cycle? But you're right - that bad boy gets hot, so would likely be carbon scorched at the least.

Does the CB have a secondary spring mechanism on the linkage ? Nothing I could find in the various parts diagrams showed that, but that was my first thought, not knowing if there was something different on the CB inserts.

 

[cb1200i]

I have to admit, I am not burning high quality pellets: Cheapos from big box store. Most of the pellets are 1/2" or smaller, with the occasional >1". Might have been a fluke jam(?).

I cleaned out the stove on Saturday, including the ash pan, so I know there was no spring then! When the stove went out, my wife cycled it several times after vacuuming it out, so maybe spring caused the jam and eventually worked its way to the cold pot??? Can you guys rule out that it was a part of the stove? That's my main concern. If it is 'foreign' material, then I'm good and will just chalk it up as an unsolved UFO.

 

[DMKNLD]

When the stove went out, my wife cycled it several times after vacuuming it out, so maybe spring caused the jam and eventually worked its way to the cold pot???

That's my theory too cb and kap,

Spring and spring cap connected to it are in the pellet bag from mill production 'detritus', spring gets pulled into the auger and bridges the pellet drop chute, which causes a pellet jam at the top of the auger tube. After several resets the spring falls down the pellet chute into the cold burn pot, which then got dumped into the ash pan during cleaning. Stranger things have no doubt happened !!

Important thing is you're back up and running - it's all good at that point, regardless of the cause. Cheers X 2 to you guys. DK

 

[kappel15]

That spring is not from the stove. Must of came in a bag of pellets. kap