Vistaflame Vf100-1 ignition issues

[jasonc721]

Hey awesome folks!

This stove was installed when I bought the house 3 years ago. A couple of months ago the igniter died so I bought two of these:
Pellethead
Enviro, Vistaflame, Regency and Hudson River 300W Igniter 50-1067Enviro, Vistaflame, Regency and Hudson River 300W Igniter 50-1067

Installing the new igniter was no big deal but now the stove doesn't seem to get hot enough to start the pellets. I've tried both igniters and, even with multiple start sequences, the pellets just won't catch.

I see the igniter glow. the burn pot gets hot, yet 9 out of 10 times the pellets don't fire up.

What else should I be looking at to see why the pellets aren't catching on fire?

 

[johneh]

Is the burn pot in the right way? High curved lip to the front
Is the burn pot liner pot in correctly ? Tabs in their slots
Welcome to the forum

 

[jasonc721]

Is the fire pot in the right way? High curved lip to the front
Is the fire pot in correctly ? Tabs in their slots
Welcome to the forum

Yup! Just double checked and the higher side of the fire pot is in the front and tabs are in the slots.

The stove was working well for almost 3 cold seasons. It's only been since I replaced the dead igniter that this issue came up.

 

[jasonc721]

Is the burn pot in the right way? High curved lip to the front
Is the burn pot liner pot in correctly ? Tabs in their slots
Welcome to the forum

And thank you!

 

[johneh]

Maybe some stupid questions
Have you done a complete cleaning of the stove from the air intake
to the exhaust termination? Is the combustion fan working on start-up
Are the holes in the burn pot clean and open?
When the fire is going is the flame lazy ( yellow with black tips)?

 

[jasonc721]

Maybe some stupid questions
Have you done a complete cleaning of the stove from the air intake
to the exhaust termination? Is the combustion fan working on start-up
Are the holes in the burn pot clean and open?
When the fire is going is the flame lazy ( yellow with black tips)?

There are no stupid questions! This is my first pellet stove so I don't even know what I don't know.

I haven't performed a full cleaning of the air flow path in 6 months. I'll get that done this weekend.

Will check the combustion fan working. The startup sequence seems normal.

I've taken a wire wheel and other implements of crud removal to the burn pot and the liner. They are clear.

When the fire is going, it looks great! No lazy flame and the flue / damper control works well to improve air flow if needed.

 

[johneh]

Have you changed pellets?
and what pellets are you using?

 

[jasonc721]

Have you changed pellets?
and what pellets are you using?

No change to the pellets. I'm using Lignetics "Premium Quailty" Been using them for the entire cold season.

 

[johneh]

I don't know what to say ! If the igniter is red hot and the burn pot is in the right way
two larger holes side by side facing the igniter and pellets in the pot it should light up
within 8 min. Unless the hole the igniter is mounted in is plugged where the wires come out
The igniter needs air pulled by it and into the burn pot

 

[jasonc721]

I don't know what to say ! If the igniter is red hot and the burn pot is in the right way
two larger holes side by side facing the igniter and pellets in the pot it should light up
within 8 min. Unless the hole the igniter is mounted in is plugged where the wires come out
The igniter needs air pulled by it and into the burn pot

Appreciate the areas to look at!

This weekend I will clean the entire air path and make sure the combustion fan is working as expected.

Since that's going to require pulling the stove out of the fireplace, I'll also look to see if there's any other blockages.