Winslow PS40 1 short and 1 long blink

[Winslow40]

So here is what has been done thus far
-New door gasket
-New vacuum switch
-Cleaned flu passage ways
-New venting to the outside world (straight and short run)

so we still get the 1 short and 1 long blink, which is indication that the vacuum switch is open. What should my next steps be? This think used to work flawlessly so not really sure what's changed as we always keep up on maintenance and cleaning on a regular

What am I missing?

 

[johneh]

Maybe a dumb question is the combustion fan working?

 

[Winslow40]

It appears to be running. What I was told is I need to take it out and see if the blow fan part is still in one piece. Not sure if this is a far reach or what but I did find something on this berried in some other threads...

 

[johneh]

If the stove is plugged with ash or the combustion motor/fan
is not working you will not have any vacuum or some other
vacuum leak Also is the vacuum switch hose in good condition?
Did you clean out the hose nipple on the stove?
A paper clip works well

 

[Winslow40]

I have not inspected the vacuum hose or nipple. I guess I will go that direction next

 

[Winslow40]

I have not inspected the vacuum hose or nipple. I guess I will go that direction next

So I was able to get back to the cabin. I pulled out both the combustion blower and the convection blower cleaned the fins on the fan blades and vacuumed out all other debris, cleaned out all other passage ways and vacuumed out all debris, I did not find anything really alarming as the stove is maintained regularly. Put it all back together and the unit would still fail. I pulled vacuum line off and made sure it had a clear passage way, check for cracks or pin holes and also sent a drill bit thru the nipple it connects to. reconnected and the unit still failed. I went ahead and jumped out the the vacuum switch and the stove ran fine. What I noticed is I can plug and unplug the hose to the vacuum switch and you can here it click on and off as you attach the vacuum line. It appears the vacuum is very light but it does not appear that it takes much to pull in the switch. I did not have my volt meter with me up north so I guess the next step is to make sure we are getting continuity across the terminals when the switch is pulled in by vacuum.

Is there anything else here that I am missing or I should be looking at. for instance, what is the next step in the start up phase after the vacuum switch is made? Is there a next device I need to be looking at?

What's odd is back at home I had the original vacuum switch that I thought was bad, and when checked with a meter is test out fine. so my assumption is the next time I go up to the cabin the newly installed vacuum switch is going to check out fine also....I assume its rear for the dry contact to fail....


On another note maybe I am understanding how this pressure switch is supposed to work.

when the combustion blower turns on, does this create a little vacuum and cause the vacuum switch to be made?

In the furnace world or hot water heater world, you see a switch that after the blower is running, it makes the switch to tell the igniter is OK to ignite...

 

[johneh]

On another note maybe I am understanding how this pressure switch is supposed to work.

when the combustion blower turns on, does this create a little vacuum and cause the vacuum switch to be made?

Short answer Yes
If your switch clicks and the auger does not work replace the switch
Especially if you jump the switch and your stove works OK

In the furnace world or hot water heater world, you see a switch that after the blower is running, it makes the switch to tell the igniter is OK to ignite...

When you start the stove the igniter is on a timer via the control board
shuts off at the end of the time most stoves it is 15 minutes

 

[Winslow40]

Short answer Yes
If your switch clicks and the auger does not work replace the switch
Especially if you jump the switch and your stove works OK

When you start the stove the igniter is on a timer via the control board
shuts off at the end of the time most stoves it is 15 minutes

switch does click and auger does work.....what happens on a start up is it puts some pellets in, eventually they ignite, the auger continues to shoots pellets in ever so often, the flame eventually gets really tall and then eventually it trips and locks out. 1 short and 1 long red blink

I have put a jump in to jump out the switch and its ran flawlessly for 2 days...

 

[johneh]

See page 27

http://www.homeandhearth-mainst.com/winslow.pdf

 

[Winslow40]

See page 27

http://www.homeandhearth-mainst.com/winslow.pdf

Every thing under that section has been addressed, including a new switch (unless it was out of box failure) Everything seem fine when bypassing it with jumper...so either the switch was bad out of box or some how it looses the switch closure somehow. I guess I really need a meter up there to monitor the position of the switch during a start up cycle.

 

[johneh]

Have you checked this switch?
Proof of Fire Snap Switch (Closes at 140°F) This switch is installed on the combustion blower (see E in Figure 52) and shuts the stove down if it senses no fire in the Burn-Pot

 

[Winslow40]

Have you checked this switch?
Proof of Fire Snap Switch (Closes at 140°F) This switch is installed on the combustion blower (see E in Figure 52) and shuts the stove down if it senses no fire in the Burn-Pot

Have not confirmed as I didn't have meter up at the cabin. That said doesn't make sense that bypassing the vacuum switch with jumper and it works fine. Unless I just happen to get lucky and that proof of fire switch is intermittent. That proof of fire is after the vacuum switch from a sequence of operation I beleive..

 

[Winslow40]

So today I got to the stove with a meter and have proven that the proof of flame and vacuum switch are functioning electrically as intended. The stove is actually functioning normally and I can not get it to fail today as it is typically an intermittent issue.

what is the sequence after the proof of fire switch is close. whats supposed to happen?

It still seemed like it took quite a while before the blower motor for the heat came on. The switch was made but the blower was not running. It seems like there must be a timer/program that runs after a given time and when switches are made.

The pellet feed seems to be feeding and working just fine all the time...

 

[johneh]

From your manual
Convection Blower Operation Your Winslow™ PS40 stove comes equipped with a temperature activated convection blower that extracts heat from the stove. After the stove warms up, a heat activated switch will turn the fan on. The speed of the fan varies with the burn rate of the stove. The fan will continue to extract heat after the stove shuts off and until it is cooled down

what is the sequence after the proof of fire switch is close. whats supposed to happen?

The stove continues to run heating your home
The control board has been told that a fire is going on and that it is OK to run