As anyone that owns a US Stove Company stove can tell you the owner’s manual is lacking a lot of detail. This will be my second season with my 5500M stove and. I have gained much knowledge from hearth and I have picked up some pearls of knowledge along the way.
The most common issue I had and others have had is getting proper draft. Draft problems can be over draft or under draft. Over draft would mean half burnt pellets being ejected from the burn pot or a blow torch like flame. Under draft would result in a build up in the burn pot of lazy flame. I had a under draft issue that presented its self intermittently. See this video http://youtu.be/qtZktwnjYjE To address draft problems here is a email that I got from USSC;
“Possible Causes for a vacuum issue:
Gasket around door or glass not sealing properly.
Clean-out slides on front of unit open.
Clean-out slides inside firebox not closed properly.
Unit has not been cleaned: firebox, underneath firepot, behind clean-outs on inside of unit, brass port inside firebox clogged, vacuum hose clogged-brittle-cracked, exhaust pipe clogged, exhaust pipes not sealed, improper venting—excessive horizontal length—too many elbows—vented INTO chimney, and the last thing to rule out is a faulty pressure switch itself.
90 to 95% of the time a faulty pressure switch is NOT the problem.
Just because the unit will run with the pressure switch “jumped” does not mean the pressure switch is faulty. It simply means we have told the unit to “ignore” the vacuum problem.
Cleaning firebox: clean thoroughly, remove firepot-clean underneath, clean brass port in firebox, remove ceramic brick(6039-6041)—tap on the back wall of the firebox several times to loosen any accumulated soot or ash-lift clean-out slides-remove any and all soot and ash—may need to use a flexible brush or some customers use a straightened wire clothes hanger and push any build-up in between the two clean-outs to one side or another and then remove.
Check gasket around door and glass and make sure it seals all the way around-that it is not frayed or burned allowing any gaps.(some 5500-5510 have gaps at bottom of glass gasket)
Make sure the door seals—doing paper test.
UNPLUG UNIT.
Remove side panel—left side facing stove—locate pressure switch-remove hose from pressure switch-blow through to make sure it is not clogged or cracked. Make sure it is connected well to the brass port going into the back of the firebox,--AGAIN—make sure it is not brittle cracked or damaged—reconnect hose to pressure switch making sure the clamp is tight.
Make sure the exhaust piping has been cleaned—all of it, not just the clean-out tee removed and emptied.
Make sure the piping is sealed—especially the first piece attached to the exhaust pipe.
THESE UNITS CANNOT BE VENTED INTO A CHIMNEY. THE PIPE-(3” or 4” PELL VENT)- MUST RUN ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP.”
Although this email didn’t help me I felt it Important to post. One of my issues was my Airwash system could not breathe. The window gasket went 100% around the glass. Please reference this video for more detail http://youtu.be/YsJCMtoZvrg . Symptoms of having a blocked Airwas should be pretty obvious but, black glass within a few hours, draft issues, ash build up on bottom of glass and door, and a big pile of ash falling on the floor when opening the door. If your careful you can cut it without destroying it, also the glass comes out pretty easy once you remove the four screws be careful!! The difference was night and day I could burn for days without dirty glass on a low setting (HR-1). But my draft issue still was present on higher settings (HR3). To solve this problem I had to raise the draft settings but 25. Normal setting is 400, to raise the draft setting press the AUX up and Draft Up at the same time once you see a number let go. Then adjust with AUX up 25points. This resolved my draft issue completely. I hope this is useful to someone.
Adjusting the feed rate is similar;
Press AUX up and Heat Range up to adjust the upper limit ( HR-5)
Press AUX down and Heat Range down to adjust the lower limit (HR-1)
This will readjust the levels in between. Currently I am set to a HR-1 of 1.15lbs and a HR-5 of 4.25lbs
If anyone needs or would like more detail about the above items let me know I can take some pictures or whatever is needed.
Happy Burning!
The most common issue I had and others have had is getting proper draft. Draft problems can be over draft or under draft. Over draft would mean half burnt pellets being ejected from the burn pot or a blow torch like flame. Under draft would result in a build up in the burn pot of lazy flame. I had a under draft issue that presented its self intermittently. See this video http://youtu.be/qtZktwnjYjE To address draft problems here is a email that I got from USSC;
“Possible Causes for a vacuum issue:
Gasket around door or glass not sealing properly.
Clean-out slides on front of unit open.
Clean-out slides inside firebox not closed properly.
Unit has not been cleaned: firebox, underneath firepot, behind clean-outs on inside of unit, brass port inside firebox clogged, vacuum hose clogged-brittle-cracked, exhaust pipe clogged, exhaust pipes not sealed, improper venting—excessive horizontal length—too many elbows—vented INTO chimney, and the last thing to rule out is a faulty pressure switch itself.
90 to 95% of the time a faulty pressure switch is NOT the problem.
Just because the unit will run with the pressure switch “jumped” does not mean the pressure switch is faulty. It simply means we have told the unit to “ignore” the vacuum problem.
Cleaning firebox: clean thoroughly, remove firepot-clean underneath, clean brass port in firebox, remove ceramic brick(6039-6041)—tap on the back wall of the firebox several times to loosen any accumulated soot or ash-lift clean-out slides-remove any and all soot and ash—may need to use a flexible brush or some customers use a straightened wire clothes hanger and push any build-up in between the two clean-outs to one side or another and then remove.
Check gasket around door and glass and make sure it seals all the way around-that it is not frayed or burned allowing any gaps.(some 5500-5510 have gaps at bottom of glass gasket)
Make sure the door seals—doing paper test.
UNPLUG UNIT.
Remove side panel—left side facing stove—locate pressure switch-remove hose from pressure switch-blow through to make sure it is not clogged or cracked. Make sure it is connected well to the brass port going into the back of the firebox,--AGAIN—make sure it is not brittle cracked or damaged—reconnect hose to pressure switch making sure the clamp is tight.
Make sure the exhaust piping has been cleaned—all of it, not just the clean-out tee removed and emptied.
Make sure the piping is sealed—especially the first piece attached to the exhaust pipe.
THESE UNITS CANNOT BE VENTED INTO A CHIMNEY. THE PIPE-(3” or 4” PELL VENT)- MUST RUN ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP.”
Although this email didn’t help me I felt it Important to post. One of my issues was my Airwash system could not breathe. The window gasket went 100% around the glass. Please reference this video for more detail http://youtu.be/YsJCMtoZvrg . Symptoms of having a blocked Airwas should be pretty obvious but, black glass within a few hours, draft issues, ash build up on bottom of glass and door, and a big pile of ash falling on the floor when opening the door. If your careful you can cut it without destroying it, also the glass comes out pretty easy once you remove the four screws be careful!! The difference was night and day I could burn for days without dirty glass on a low setting (HR-1). But my draft issue still was present on higher settings (HR3). To solve this problem I had to raise the draft settings but 25. Normal setting is 400, to raise the draft setting press the AUX up and Draft Up at the same time once you see a number let go. Then adjust with AUX up 25points. This resolved my draft issue completely. I hope this is useful to someone.
Adjusting the feed rate is similar;
Press AUX up and Heat Range up to adjust the upper limit ( HR-5)
Press AUX down and Heat Range down to adjust the lower limit (HR-1)
This will readjust the levels in between. Currently I am set to a HR-1 of 1.15lbs and a HR-5 of 4.25lbs
If anyone needs or would like more detail about the above items let me know I can take some pictures or whatever is needed.
Happy Burning!
