# Burning an Englander on very low setting successfully.........



## MCPO (Nov 26, 2009)

..............not mine but my neighbors 25 PDV . The larger 2000 sq ft model.  
 The recommended factory settings  on the bottom 3 touch pads were 6-4-1 but holy moly, he was going thru a lot of pellets and the heat was way too much for this time of year so we made some adjustments.   
   We been running just fine for many days now at 1-4-1 with a nice clean yellow/orange dancing flame and plenty of heat in this not so cold weather .
 The window mostly stays pretty clean for 12-18 hrs before it starts getting brown on the right hand side and progressinly getting worse but it wipes right off and seems normal to me.
 Actually we`d like to get it down a bit more and maybe by closing the slide plate in the hopper  a bit would help . 
 Just wanted to let other Englander users know that you don`t have to be stuck at 6-4-1 if it`s too much heat. I think those buttons are there for a good reason.


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## rottiman (Nov 26, 2009)

what are the heat and fan settings set @?  I run mine @ 2 and 6 and my bottom settings @ 4-4-1 (factory recommend 6-4-1) Mine purrs along and the pellet consumption is really good.  My experience has been that the more fastidious you are about a clean stove and vent the better it runs.  Really love this stove. I have had it for a month and a half and don't have a bad thing to say about it.  Mike and his crew are great fro help as well........................


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## Excell (Nov 26, 2009)

rottiman said:
			
		

> what are the heat and fan settings set @?  I run mine @ 2 and 6 and my bottom settings @ 4-4-1 (factory recommend 6-4-1) Mine purrs along and the pellet consumption is really good.  My experience has been that the more fastidious you are about a clean stove and vent the better it runs.  Really love this stove. I have had it for a month and a half and don't have a bad thing to say about it.  Mike and his crew are great fro help as well........................



Don't you find it to noisy with the fan on 6 ? I usually run mine one above the feed rate  2-3  .We had a couple of colder days and I moved it up to 3-4 for a while .
I am talking about the top buttons .


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## MCPO (Nov 26, 2009)

rottiman said:
			
		

> what are the heat and fan settings set @?  ........................





1-4-1.    I think the Englander pellet stoves are very much effected by pellet quality and thats why we read of users with their settings all over the place.  However the board controls do allow for a lot of user settings , confusing as it is .
 The downside to all this control is that it contributes to their difficulty of operation especially for those with little or no practical or mechanical experience.  Personally There`s no reason why so many folks have to keep asking what the bottom 3 buttons do.
 The manual helps but it`s also vague and having to call the factory just to get info on proper settings should not have to be.
 That said, at least you can get to talk with an Englander factory tech.


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## geek (Nov 26, 2009)

good info Gio, thanks.

BTW - I think rottiman was asking about the 2 buttons on top (heat and blower)...

..


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## jtakeman (Nov 26, 2009)

Yes Gio, Great info.

Seems there is a mystery with the lower buttons on those Englanders. Most don't trust themselves to mess with them. I too love to tinker, As long as I know how to go back. I bet you will find more people tinkering after this post. Patiently play and learn from the changes.

Keep up the good work! And thanks for sharing.
jay


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## joefraser (Nov 26, 2009)

I find my stove will just aboutgo out at the low feed at 1.  I think if I had to run it that low I'd just shut it off for a few hours tilll needed.


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## MCPO (Nov 26, 2009)

joefraser said:
			
		

> I find my stove will just aboutgo out at the low feed at 1.  I think if I had to run it that low I'd just shut it off for a few hours tilll needed.



Interesting! Yeah , it`s probably a combination of pellets, settings, and a particular installation eg: draft . piping configuration , etc. that lets one stove burn one way and another stove differently.


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## MCPO (Nov 26, 2009)

jtakeman said:
			
		

> Yes Gio, Great info.
> 
> Seems there is a mystery with the lower buttons on those Englanders. Most don't trust themselves to mess with them. I too love to tinker, As long as I know how to go back. I bet you will find more people tinkering after this post. Patiently play and learn from the changes.
> 
> ...



 Geez , I hope no one takes my sole experience with this one stove as gospel  , but I don`t see a whole lot wrong with trying different settings that could work to someones benefit. After all Englander did put them on there and I`d hate to think it`s for factory tech use only.
 And as you say they should know how to get back to those previous settings before tinkering..


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## imacman (Nov 26, 2009)

Yes, it seems that the lower 3 buttons are quite a "mystery" to many, especially those of you that never owned an Englander.  I was the same way when I had my Astoria.

I have my 10-cpm set at 1-3-1 or 1-4-1, depending on the pellet.  I'm test burning some Pres-to-logs right now, and they seem happy on 1-3-1.  The Premiers I was burning needed 1-4-1 (extra air) on the low 1 or 2 heat setting.


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## gottahavvitt (Nov 26, 2009)

How do you know what the bottom settings are (3 buttons). There are no led lights. to help with the adjustments.
can someone post a step by step?


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## imacman (Nov 26, 2009)

To change the lower button settings:

1.  Make sure stove is "off"
2.  Press the button you want to check/change....red light above it should come on, and present setting will be displayed in the upper right display.
3. Press either both "up" arrows at the same time to increase number, or both "down" to lower it.
4. Let display go out completely, and then turn on stove.


BTW, you can press any of the lower 3 buttons at any time, even while stove is running, and it will tell what it's set at in the display.


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## gottahavvitt (Nov 26, 2009)

Thanks Macman
I just checked the settings and they are at 1-5-1.


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## Excell (Nov 26, 2009)

I just moved my middle setting from 4 to 5 and am trying it there I think it is going to be good .It seemed a little rich at 4 .


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## rottiman (Nov 26, 2009)

Excell said:
			
		

> rottiman said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I do not find it noisy @ all as it is located in my garage.  I have installed power duct fans in the wall to my family room near the ceiling to move the heat into the house.  As well, by keeping my laundry room door open into the garage I get lots of heat circulation.  If i find that I have too much heat in the garage I have opened the cold air return on my oil furnace.  I just kick on the furnace fan and I get total circulation to my 1750 sq ft one floor house, and I have even heat distribution throughout the entire house.  All seems to work well................


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## Excell (Nov 27, 2009)

Excell said:
			
		

> I just moved my middle setting from 4 to 5 and am trying it there I think it is going to be good .It seemed a little rich at 4 .



 It is way better on 5 ,it has a cleaner flame ,and the window doesn't get dirty as fast .


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## Excell (Nov 27, 2009)

rottiman said:
			
		

> Excell said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
Good stuff I am glad it is working for you . I also have my stove in my garage ,but I work out there all day that is why I find the fan noisy . I wish I could get some of my extra heat into my house as well .


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## imacman (Nov 27, 2009)

Excell said:
			
		

> It is way better on 5 ,it has a cleaner flame ,and the window doesn't get dirty as fast .


 ;-)


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## DeriusT (Dec 5, 2009)

I also have the 25PDV, and my bottom 3 buttons seem to work very well as far as heat and fuel consumption when set at 2-9-1.  As I understood from the factory rep the middle bottom button is how much air the system draws in to feed the fire.  Is this correct?  The pellets seem to last quite awhile, and burn completely to ash.  At factory settings it would dump tons of pellets and they would not get burnt up all the way.  

The factory rep also said that there is a reset that you can do.  I think it is by holding up and down arrows on the blower speed and plugging in the unit.  You will get a letter a, b, c, or d, when you do this.  He explained that the letter in this setting was also very important on how well the stove operates.  Anyone else have any information about this?  

Only problems I have been getting is alot of darkening of the glass recently.

Thanks all.



Derius


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## DeriusT (Dec 6, 2009)

Thanks.  There is definitely such a setting, and can only be seen when holding in the two blower speed buttons and plugging in the unit. (i think those are the two buttons)  and the setting can be changed to a,b,c, or d.  The rep told me a few years ago what those letters did and meant, but I have long since forgotten, and now no one seems to know what I'm talking about.  sigh


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## packerfan (Dec 6, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> Thanks.  There is definitely such a setting, and can only be seen when holding in the two blower speed buttons and plugging in the unit. (i think those are the two buttons)  and the setting can be changed to a,b,c, or d.  The rep told me a few years ago what those letters did and meant, but I have long since forgotten, and now no one seems to know what I'm talking about.  sigh



I'd be curious to know as well.


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## HEMI (Dec 6, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> Thanks.  There is definitely such a setting, and can only be seen when holding in the two blower speed buttons and plugging in the unit. (i think those are the two buttons)  and the setting can be changed to a,b,c, or d.  The rep told me a few years ago what those letters did and meant, but I have long since forgotten, and now no one seems to know what I'm talking about.  sigh


I know exactly what your talking about......reps had me change that also.   can't remember what they were for though.


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## DeriusT (Dec 7, 2009)

I'd love to get a rep in here and explain those settings.  They have to influence something...

My stove is burning great, and burning everything to ash, with great heat, but I can't seem to get the flame under control.  It always has a very high, very fierce flame.  It centers right in front of the auger hole, and it scares the crap out of me that it is going to somehow ignite pellets before they reach the end of the auger.  That would be.......bad....


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## imacman (Dec 7, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> I'd love to get a rep in here and explain those settings.  They have to influence something...
> 
> My stove is burning great, and burning everything to ash, with great heat, but I can't seem to get the flame under control.  It always has a very high, very fierce flame.  It centers right in front of the auger hole, and it scares the crap out of me that it is going to somehow ignite pellets before they reach the end of the auger.  That would be.......bad....



I'd like to know about the A,B,C,D, etc "settings" too....never heard of them before.

DeriusT, what stove do you have?


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## DeriusT (Dec 7, 2009)

I have the 25-PDV from Englander.

I bought it used 3 seasons ago.  (it was made in 2001)

I love the thing, just having trouble with that flame.  And I sure do wish I could remember what those 'letter' settings do.  Great stove though, very pleased with it overall.

I have only replaced the auger motor and room air blower, as well as the front glass gasket and hopper lid gasket.  All other parts are original.


The only problems i'm having right now (since switching pellet brands) seems to defy logic.  I run at 1-variable-1 or 2-variable-1 or it just burns too hot and I gotta open windows. lol

The problem is that the fire is seeming to be more concentrated around the auger than last years burn, and it looks like the flame is sometimes trying to travel along the auger a bit, or into the auger hole.  This worries me.

And the higher I turn the second bottom button, the smaller the flame.  The lower the air, the more fierce, and hot the flame, nearly looking like a bonfire!  Getting a little worried and want to get it settled down to eating pellets good this season, so I don't feel I have to watch it so much...

Hope I made some sense with all my rambling...


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## geek (Dec 7, 2009)

I usually run my 25-pdv at low heat/blower speeds such as 1-2, 2-4 and the last couple nights at 3-6.

The bottom 3 buttons I keep them at 4-6-1


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## imacman (Dec 7, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> ....I love the thing, just having trouble with that flame........The problem is that the fire is seeming to be more concentrated around the auger than last years burn......And the higher I turn the second bottom button, the smaller the flame.  The lower the air, the more fierce, and hot the flame, nearly looking like a bonfire!......



The second button is low burn air, and the higher you set it, the more air gets fed.  A pellet stove flame is NOT supposed to be tall....it's supposed to be shorter, and active.....that's what gives the most heat.  Just like a welding/cutting torch....add more air, flame gets shorter & hotter.

I think your mistaking a lower air setting with a hot flame....tall "bonfire" flames are not as hot.

I seem to remember you saying that you have the bottom 3 buttons at 2-9-1??  Way too much air (9)....that's where the very short flame is coming from, and too low on the fuel (2).  I'd try 4-6-1, or maybe 5-6-1.


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## Amatuer Adventurist (Dec 7, 2009)

First off great thread.  This is the first pellet stove I've owned and I bought the 55-SHPEP.  After I installed it, it was running great.  Shortly after though the flame became huge, curling up around the glass and into the baffles.  It was eating a bag of Clean Energy pellets on the 1 feed rate in less than 12 hrs.  In fact if I increased the feed rate at all it would back pellets up into the feed shoot where they would just sit and smolder.  I called Tech Support and they sent me a new control board saying mine was bad.  I literally just got done installing it when I found this thread.  I checked my new bottom button settings from the factory and they're 1-4-1.  I plugged my old board back in and it's 5-1-1.  That seems to explain why it fed so fast.  Now I wonder why they just didn't have me check those bottom settings before sending me a new board.  It must be either myself or my girlfriend in the dark adjusted it on accident.  

I have a few really novice questions about the stove .

What exactly does the heat range and blower speed setting do?  Heat range seems to be feed rate of pellets and blower speed is how often the blower comes on forcing hot air into the room?  Does that mean after I let it cool down and clean it out then turn it back on I want to crank the blower speed up to 8 or 9 to get the temp back up?  Then after the house is warm again fine tune it down to where it keeps it a nice even temp.  Do those bttons control how well the pellets burn also.  I read in the book they don't recommend the blower speed high than the feed rate.  Why is that?  

For the bottom three buttons the low fuel feed seems to be set how much fuel the auger feeds?  Low burn air is the air intake?  Whats air on temp?  

I just burned 4 bags of Clean Energy pellets.  The burn pot was just 1 big clinker and it had a tacky feeling to it when I cleaned it.  Is that the pellet or the way I had the settings?  

When does everyone clean theirs out?  I've been shutting mine off before I leave for work in the am to empty and clean it then turning it back on in the evening.  During the day when we were gone I'd let the forced air keep the house at 62.  I didn't trust that flame curling around under the baffles like it was.   Now I want to run it full time.

Also so anyone have the thermostat for the stove?  How well does it work?  We're thinking of getting one and just wondering if its worth it.

Thanks


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## imacman (Dec 7, 2009)

Amateur Adventerist, 

Yes. I'm suprised that Mike & his crew there never asked you to try a different setting...strange.  That "5" setting on the LFF is the reason for sure.   I have my 10-cpm set at 1-4-1, and seems good....

As for the other questions:

Yes, heat setting is what controls how many pellets go into the burn pot.  Blower button just speeds air up or down.  BTW, you can't go lower than the heat setting....for example,.heat setting "4"....blower can't go lower than "4", but can go higher.  Yes, you CAN raise the blower up after cleaning if you want.

Yes, you are correct on the bottom 3 buttons.  But they ONLY affect the stove when using the heat setting 1 or 2.....above that they have no affect.  Air On temp is the temp that controls when the blower turns on after turning the stove on....unless you burn corn, it stays in the "1" setting always.

As for the clinker you got, could be the pellet, could be the settings you had, or a combo of both.  Run the stove w/ the new settings, and if you still get a clinker, try different pellets.

Cleaning is a personal preference type of thing.  I clean my firebox & burnpot every 3-4 days. I do a bigger cleaning (as per the manual) after about 20 bags.  Entire stove, blowers, & pipe should be cleaned after each ton.

Don't be afraid to let it burn all day...these stoves have a LOT of safety systems.  And yes, MANY people use stats on their stoves....makes using it so much easier, and more comfortable.

Hope all this helped.....keep us informed.


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## Panhandler (Dec 7, 2009)

Amatuer Adventurist

macman made a lot of good points. As for cleaning, I open the door ion the morning, after work, and before bed with the stove running and clean it up with a tablespoon, removing ash, clinkers, etc. to improve airflow and efficiency of burning. Then once a week(or more often when burning at high settings) I'll shut it down and give it a good cleaning.


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## geek (Dec 8, 2009)

mac, have you tried different setting, for example 4-6-1, or those numbers only apply to the englander model you have.

I think I tried 1-4-1 on my 25-pdv and for whatever reason I don't remember I went back to 4-6-1

..


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## imacman (Dec 8, 2009)

geek said:
			
		

> mac, have you tried different setting, for example 4-6-1, or those numbers only apply to the englander model you have.
> 
> I think I tried 1-4-1 on my 25-pdv and for whatever reason I don't remember I went back to 4-6-1
> 
> ..



Geek, we have totally different stoves.  The 10-cpm is a single auger top feeder, and has the stirrer.  Actual original settings were 1-1-1, but it was a dirty burn on heat 1 & 2, so i raised it to 1-3-1, and then 1-4-1, and that seems good with the Premier pellets I'm burning right now.  

1-4-1 on your stove won't work, I'm guessing.   I think your better off with the 4-6-1, or 5-6-1.


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## geek (Dec 8, 2009)

roger that..!!


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## DeriusT (Dec 8, 2009)

Any further luck on info about those mysterious englander settings?

Still having flame issues, and have tried lower air.  The flame is constantly a bonfire, reaching the top of the stove regardless of air setting.


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## imacman (Dec 8, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> Still having flame issues, and have tried lower air.  The flame is constantly a bonfire, reaching the top of the stove regardless of air setting.



What did you change your settings to?  Are you sure you don't have an air leak somewhere else?  Hopper lid, door gasket, etc?  Have you done the dollar bill test on door gasket?  Is hopper lid latch adjusted correctly?


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## DeriusT (Dec 9, 2009)

It is a brand new window and hopper gasket this season.  I failed to find any air leaks.

I will continue to test.  Maybe we could get someone from englander to explain these other settings?  They could be useful.


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## billybono (Dec 9, 2009)

these settings only have an effect if your running the stove on 1 or 2 .........  on 3 and above these  dont get used


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## imacman (Dec 10, 2009)

billybono said:
			
		

> these settings only have an effect if your running the stove on 1 or 2 .........  on 3 and above these  dont get used



Billy, I think he's referring to another set of "mystery" settings that Derius talked about in post #18 of this thread, not the lower 3 buttons.


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## DeriusT (Dec 10, 2009)

Correct macman.  Holding down the up and down blower speed buttons and plugging in the unit will cause a letter to appear in the blower speed window, just like when you check the settings on the lower 3 buttons.  However, this will be a letter instead of a number.  A,B,C or D, (but in lower case).

As an update I found what 'may' be causing some of my flame issues.  We get a very fierce wind at times in this part of the country, and it seems like that wind, when coming from just the right angle, can possibly be blowing very hard right into my cold air intake pipe.  Enough to actually feel the air blowing thru the stove when the door is open and the fire is out.  I may have to put an upward or downward facing elbow on my air intake pipe...

Will update again once I do to see if this fixes the problem.


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## imacman (Dec 10, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> .....I may have to put an upward or downward facing elbow on my air intake pipe...



Downward ONLY!

Now that we know HOW to get those a,b,c,d letters in the display, what do they mean?


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## DeriusT (Dec 10, 2009)

Yeah. HAHA!  I thought about upward facing as soon as I logged off......

I wish some enlightened individual would explain these settings to us.  I actually tried to call englander, but the on-hold time was horrible.

I was under the impression that englander employees and servicemen frequented this site?


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## imacman (Dec 10, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> .....I was under the impression that englander employees and servicemen frequented this site?



There are 2 Englander people that are on the forum, but mainly Mike Holton who is the Senior tech @ Englander.  He goes by the name "stoveguy2esw".  He is a GREAT guy, and is ready to help anyone, even people that have competitors brand stoves.  

He is on here occasionally these days, and I can only figure that it's because with the heating season in full swing now, they are pretty busy.  But if you need to get in touch w/ him, send him a PM, or email him at his office:  stoveguy2esw@yahoo.com

Since Englander also makes wood burning & gas stoves, he does spend some of his time in the Hearth Room and It's A Gas forums too.


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## DeriusT (Dec 10, 2009)

Thanks macman.  I will throw him a PM and see if I can get him to post the answer in this thread for everyone.


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## 86 toy (Dec 11, 2009)

[quote author="macman" date="1260429593]

Now that we know HOW to get those a,b,c,d letters in the display, what do they mean?[/quote]


i have been playing around with this the last couple days. i unplugged the stove and plugged it back in holding both up and down arrows for the blower setting when i release the arrows stove displayed a "d" in the heat range window. so i changed it to c with the heat range down arrow. i figure i can change it back if something goes wrong.here is what i found. on c my stove burns very hot i burned it that way for 2 days then changed it to b. on b the igniter didn't even come on to light the fire. so i tried a. a lit the fire but didn"t produce much heat the pellets were barely being fed into the burnpot on heat range 7. i think this setting may be to set the control up for different model stoves. maybe someone else on here can check to see what letter comes up when you plug the stove in holding down the blower arrows to see if it changes with models or not


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## gripper93 (Dec 11, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> Any further luck on info about those mysterious englander settings?
> 
> Still having flame issues, and have tried lower air.  The flame is constantly a bonfire, reaching the top of the stove regardless of air setting.


 mine does the same thing.  As for your worries I also was worried and called Englander they said that as long as your hopper gasket and all gaskets are tight and there is no air going into the box it is impossible to catch the hopper on fire it would die out.  I would like to add that I think it is ALMOST impossible.


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## billybono (Dec 11, 2009)

> i have been playing around with this the last couple days. i unplugged the stove and plugged it back in holding both up and down arrows for the blower setting when i release the arrows stove displayed a "d" in the heat range window. so i changed it to c with the heat range down arrow. i figure i can change it back if something goes wrong.here is what i found. on c my stove burns very hot i burned it that way for 2 days then changed it to b. on b the igniter didn't even come on to light the fire. so i tried a. a lit the fire but didn"t produce much heat the pellets were barely being fed into the burnpot on heat range 7. i think this setting may be to set the control up for different model stoves. maybe someone else on here can check to see what letter comes up when you plug the stove in holding down the blower arrows to see if it changes with models or not



  there is the answer i think....same control board installed on different stoves 

  the a,b,c or d denotes the stove your running that board on

  a tech might have you change this setting if they suspect the board was programmed to the wrong stove...if the stove acts wildly its a real liability issue


  im sure mike has not answered because this is a setting you should not mess with

  my 2 cents


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## billybono (Dec 11, 2009)

macman said:
			
		

> billybono said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



  im following the conversation. every one is talking about changing the low air, low feed, low blower settings. i was making sure everyone was aware after you put the stove above a 2 they dont matter. the way the conversation sounded to me there were a few posters unaware of that fact.thats all


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## DeriusT (Dec 11, 2009)

My stove did not default to d, and neither did my buds.  I believe ours defaulted to a or something.  I changed it to d on the recommendation of an englander tech some years ago, then forgot about it until I got on this board and saw people play...er..uhm...testing their settings, ahem....and decided to try to remember what those other settings meant, as I had seen no one yet mention them.

If I remember right, (and thats a big if considering my memory skills) the tech told me that setting had something to do with overall room size or some such.  I PM'ed the lead tech for englander that hangs out on the forum as MacMan suggested, but have not gotten a reply yet.  I asked him to kindly post his knowlege about it in this thread, so we wait....

I messed with the settings a bit, but did not notice so drastic a set of changes as the other user mentioned.  (my stove although a 25-PDV, predates the igniters so I don't have that function)

PS. As a side note, I am burning Somerset Premium Hardwood Pellets.  This brand burned great last year, but this year so far, a lot of pellets burning black but not to grey ash, and a lot of sticking together in a huge solid mass in the burnpot.  Is this what you all refer to as clunkers?  The same brand burnt much better last season.  They are what the local TSC carries.


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## packerfan (Dec 12, 2009)

DeriusT said:
			
		

> My stove did not default to d, and neither did my buds.  I believe ours defaulted to a or something.  I changed it to d on the recommendation of an englander tech some years ago, then forgot about it until I got on this board and saw people play...er..uhm...testing their settings, ahem....and decided to try to remember what those other settings meant, as I had seen no one yet mention them.
> 
> If I remember right, (and thats a big if considering my memory skills) the tech told me that setting had something to do with overall room size or some such.  I PM'ed the lead tech for englander that hangs out on the forum as MacMan suggested, but have not gotten a reply yet.  I asked him to kindly post his knowlege about it in this thread, so we wait....
> 
> ...





Just wondering if you heard anything yet.


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## Whirlyduck (Dec 12, 2009)

I am going to go home and play. I have sat down and timed every heat setting in regards to top auger time on and time off, as well as bottom auger time. I have a chart made to determine what settings replicate what settings. Such as, heat 2, lff 5 is equal to heat 3 settings (within reason anyways). I am interested in seeing if changing these letters might not change bottom auger speed or possibly combustion blower speed. I currently have the issue where I have a dirty burn on low heats. The flame will go out then about 20 to 30 seconds later the new pellets arrive and re ignite. my low heat settings on heat 1 are 5, 1, 1 just to keep it lit. I want to be able to turn her down even lower but have way to much air moving through the burn pot. I just hooked up the thermostat and love it, however I am striving on max efficiency and hate the fact the fire goes out every min or so. I will keep youins updated.


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## imacman (Dec 12, 2009)

Whirlyduck said:
			
		

> .......I currently have the issue where I have a dirty burn on low heats. The flame will go out then about 20 to 30 seconds later the new pellets arrive and re ignite. my low heat settings on heat 1 are 5, 1, 1 just to keep it lit. I want to be able to turn her down even lower but have way to much air moving through the burn pot.....



IMO, your settings for that stove are way off for a good low burn.   

If the stove is REALLY clean, then settings like 4-5-1, or 4-6-1 should work well.  On your present setting, 5-1-1, you have a lot of pellets going in, but hardly any air to burn them.....that would be the cause of your dirty burn.  But then you said that you have "way to much air"......something doesn't add up there.  Too much air wouldn't allow a dirty burn to happen.


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## Whirlyduck (Dec 12, 2009)

If I turn the air up, the flame goes out even quicker. I have only had this stove for a month. Built in June of 01. Totally cleaned everything while I was waiting on the hearth to dry. I have played extensively with thees settings leaving it to burn for about 30 mins to an hour before making slight adjustments. Heat 1,  lba at 1, pellets dance slowly once they are half burnt. If I turn the lff down to 4 she will go out within 30 to 45 mins. i was going to call them to see if there was a way to get into the settings and turn down the cumb fan from the board. this might be a way the though.


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## Whirlyduck (Dec 12, 2009)

Just to add... Those settings mentioned give me a burn time of 26 hours per 40lbs. Also, is my terminology off? dirty burn being when the flame goes out then has to reignite? the pot is completely burnt. imagine the pellets being delivered in 10 pellet bunches. they flare up, burn down then have just enough snuff to ignite the next batch.


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## imacman (Dec 12, 2009)

I'm confused.

In your first post, you stated you had a "dirty burn" on low burn.  That means that you have too many pellets, lazy orange flames w/ blackish tips, and pot starts filling up.

Then you say you have "too much air" (lean burn), it would result in very short, yellow-white flames, and pellets burning too fast and stove going out eventually.

From what you describe above, "If I turn the lff down to 4 she will go out within 30 to 45 mins.", so there's my confusion.....is it a dirty burn, or lean burn??

I'm tending to think that a call Monday to Englander tech support, (or maybe Mike will chime in here), is in order.


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## Whirlyduck (Dec 12, 2009)

flame description. huge roaring flame that lasts no more than min and half then the pot smolders until the next batch is delivered then process is repeated. flame is equal to a higher heat setting just smaller in base diameter. i still haven't got the lingo down so please excuse me for using terms incorrectly! i have off the next 5 days and was planning on calling anyways.


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## imacman (Dec 12, 2009)

Whirlyduck said:
			
		

> flame description. huge roaring flame that lasts no more than min and half then the pot smolders until the next batch is delivered then process is repeated. flame is equal to a higher heat setting just smaller in base diameter. i still haven't got the lingo down so please excuse me for using terms incorrectly! i have off the next 5 days and was planning on calling anyways.



Your saying that you don't see pellets coming into the burn pot more often than every 1 1/2 minutes?  Something isn't right there..... pellets should be getting pushed into the burnpot every 10-15 seconds, from what I know of your stove.


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## Whirlyduck (Dec 12, 2009)

I agree. My brother and his neighbor have Englanders and neither one of them does this. I have read on here somewhere however that they have the tendency to do this. Being an older model, I don’t know what the former owner might have had done to it. Inside the hopper, directly above the top auger, there is an added piece. it is no more than a piece of tubing that was laser cut and welded on to another piece of tubing the same dia as the auger tube. when I got the stove home, the plate was loose so I cleaned the area and re- hi temp silicone it back where it was. about a week ago now, I removed said plate to see what effect it had..... used 40 lbs in 7 hrs. needless to say I re-installed the plate. I was hoping this would even out my feed, instead it allowed twice the pellets down the gullet. I have yet to pull augers and look for issues, however I don’t feel as if this is the issue. 

Since I have the times for the top auger cycle, I am prob going to call and see if they are correct. currently the auger runs on a 16 sec cycle. it ranges from 1 sec on 15 sec off, to 4 sec on 12 sec off. the later being heat setting 9. the bottom auger runs at 40 sec/ rev throughout the heat settings. each heat setting adds roughly .5 sec to the top auger rotating time and removes .5 sec from the dwell time. when on low heat, the cycle time changes .25 sec per level.

Not knowing the ratio of the top auger gear box, I cannot figure out the rev/ cycle but it seems like it needs to be better timed with the lower auger in order to achieve a better feed consistency.  I am not trying to re engineer this stove, heck, I love it so far. I am just trying to tune it up so it burns the way I feel it should.


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## imacman (Dec 13, 2009)

Whirlyduck said:
			
		

> ....... Being an older model, I don’t know what the former owner might have had done to it.......


I think it's time for you to call Englander tech help line, and get one of Mike Holtons guys to go through checking the settings on the stove, and also find out about that piece in the hopper.

Make sure you have the model and serial # handy when you call.  Their great people to work with and I'm sure that eventually you'll get it straightened out.


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## DeriusT (Dec 13, 2009)

The rep said that the a,b,c,d setting has to do with the model stove you have.  It allows englander to use the same control board on multiple stoves.  (thanks stoveguy2esw)

Macman, the problem I am still having is regardless of setting, I am getting a roaring hot bonfire type flame.  (often as wide as burnpot and above door glass)

He mentioned something about possibly needing to clean the heat exchanger area, so I will try that and see what happens...

Thanks to everyone for all the help.


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