# Englander 25-PDV Upper Auger Jams Daily



## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

I bought an Englander 25-PDV almost exactly one year ago.  We used it about a dozen times last year without problems, then had to return to our other house, so it didn't get used.  This year we moved to the house with the pellet stove full time, and have had nothing but problems with it.  The second time we tried to use it in November, the upper auger jammed.  I removed, cleaned, and reinstalled it, and it worked for one night.  The next morning I took it apart, and found the auger had cracked.  After 30 minutes of waiting on hold for tech support, Englander agreed to send me a new auger and they also sent a new auger motor.  I installed both and it has jammed daily since.  One of the times that it jammed, the gearbox stripped out in the auger drive motor.  I swapped in the old one and called Englander again, and they agreed to send me another auger and motor, which haven't arrived yet.  I have filed our current auger as smooth as possible, so I don't have any confidence the new auger will fix the problem.  We are burning eco-flame pellets which work fine in our other pellet stove, a Travis Avalon.  

I would appreciate any help to fix this problem and sorry for the long rant.


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## Darryl (Dec 27, 2012)

Just a thought, but have you removed the lower auger to see if something is blocking it ? I had an issue earlier this season where two pieces of cardboard made it down to the bottom auger and blocked it from feeding the pellets to the burnpot. This in turn jammed the upper auger with pellets as there was no where for the pellets to go.


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## WoodPorn (Dec 27, 2012)

Have you inspected the upper auger housing for any foriegn material??
Is the lower auger spinning when this happens?
I don't think your issue is with the auger or motor...


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## imacman (Dec 27, 2012)

When you replaced the auger & motor, did you do an auger alignment, as per the Englander website?

http://www.englanderstoves.com/manuals/ReplacingAndAligningAugers.pdf


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## kenstogie (Dec 27, 2012)

what imacman said. plus checking the pellet path sounds like a possiblilty too.  Just curious but whats the difference between the PVDC  and the PDV?


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## imacman (Dec 27, 2012)

kenstogie said:


> .....Just curious but whats the difference between the PVDC and the PDV?


PDV is bigger unit.  2000sq. ft vs. 1500 sq ft.


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## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

Darryl said:


> Just a thought, but have you removed the lower auger to see if something is blocking it ? I had an issue earlier this season where two pieces of cardboard made it down to the bottom auger and blocked it from feeding the pellets to the burnpot. This in turn jammed the upper auger with pellets as there was no where for the pellets to go.


 
I didn't think this would be the problem because it feeds well when the upper auger is turning.  I did remove it and check it today when I received my new upper auger, and it was clear of obstructions, only 5-10 loose pellets came out with it.


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## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

WoodPorn said:


> Have you inspected the upper auger housing for any foriegn material??
> Is the lower auger spinning when this happens?
> I don't think your issue is with the auger or motor...


 
I have checked the housing each time that I have removed the upper auger, well over a dozen times.  Usually I find a clump of pellets impacted into the end of the feed tube above where they drop to the lower auger.


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## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

imacman said:


> When you replaced the auger & motor, did you do an auger alignment, as per the Englander website?
> 
> http://www.englanderstoves.com/manuals/ReplacingAndAligningAugers.pdf


 
Yes, I align the auger per the instructions each time I install it.  After installing and tightening the bearing flange, I can still turn the auger easily by hand.


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## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

kenstogie said:


> what imacman said. plus checking the pellet path sounds like a possiblilty too. Just curious but whats the difference between the PVDC and the PDV?


 
As far as checking the pellet path, I have removed both augers and and cleared both feed tubes.  The only part that I can't fully inspect is the vertical tube between the upper and lower feed tubes.  I have shoved a fish tape down that tube and not freed a significant number of pellets.


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## BenM (Dec 27, 2012)

As a follow-up, I received and installed my replacement auger today. I was pretty disappointed by the quality of the replacement part. Here are the pictures of the original auger that cracked and the replacement one that I received today. I didn't do any clean-up of either auger.


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## Shaw520 (Dec 27, 2012)

BenM said:


> The only part that I can't fully inspect is the vertical tube between the upper and lower feed tubes. I have shoved a fish tape down that tube and not freed a significant number of pellets.


...that may be where the obstruction is.


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## BenM (Dec 28, 2012)

Shaw520 said:


> ...that may be where the obstruction is.


I'm pretty sure it isn't because after I remove the upper auger and clear the jam, the stove operates perfectly until the next jam.  Usually 10-20 pounds of pellets between jams.  

As I expected, the same thing happened with the new auger; it burned great for 3 hours, then jammed and the fire went out.  I freed it, and inspected the feed tube.  The jam occurred in the same place.  Here is a picture from the back of the stove with the upper auger removed:





The jam always occurs with the auger in the same orientation:  with the set screw between 8:00 and 10:00 viewed from the end of the auger, and the jam is always in the same left upper quadrant of the end of the feed tube.  Upon removing the auger, you can see that the forwardmost part of the end of the flight is jammed obstructed by the clump of pellets.  I have even had it jam so badly that it slipped the auger on the setscrews in the bearing block and also wedged itself against the plastic gasket at the bearing end.  I guess I'll be calling tech support again tomorrow, but please keep suggestions coming.


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## slvrblkk (Dec 28, 2012)

Try a different pellet...I know it works fine in the other stove but that doesn't mean the Englander will like it....or vise versa......Had an identical problem with my PDVC and it was the NEWP I started using.......I'd use a different pellet and it was fine....was very frustrating


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## WoodPorn (Dec 28, 2012)

Are those pellets damp?
I would *Definitely *try at least 1 bag of a fresh/different pellet
2 augers, 2 motors, ....same issue...the only constant is the pellet.


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## Shaw520 (Dec 28, 2012)

slvrblkk said:


> Try a different pellet...I know it works fine in the other stove but that doesn't mean the Englander will like it....or vise versa......Had an identical problem with my PDVC and it was the NEWP I started using.......I'd use a different pellet and it was fine....was very frustrating


I agree,... try different pellets,... the combination of moisture and size maybe the culprit.


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## msh227 (Dec 28, 2012)

I would agree with trying different pellets also..... I have burned Lignetics and the Premium Hardwood Pellets from TSC with good results.  I have the PVDC and also have jamming issues to the point where I keep the back cover off the stove because I'm tired of removing it.  That being said I'm still pleased with the stove for the price I paid ($600, new).

Do you screen your pellets to remove the fines?  If not you could try that at a minimum to reduce the amount of particulate that could become jammed.


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## Shaw520 (Dec 28, 2012)

msh227 said:


> I paid ($600, new)


 
wow,.. great price!,.. care to reveal your source ??


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## msh227 (Dec 28, 2012)

Sure... I bought it in Nov. 2010 from Home Depot their price was just over $1,000 got them to give me a 10% military discount got it down to $900 and change, and at that time the government had an energy rebate which took another $300 off the price.


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## BenM (Dec 28, 2012)

WoodPorn said:


> Are those pellets damp?
> I would *Definitely *try at least 1 bag of a fresh/different pellet
> 2 augers, 2 motors, ....same issue...the only constant is the pellet.


 
I forgot to mention that the problem first arose with a different brand of pellets.  The first thing I tried was switching.  It jams with all three brands I have tried.  Also switching brands isn't very practical for me since I have 4 tons of the eco-flame pellets stored in a dry barn.


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## BenM (Dec 28, 2012)

msh227 said:


> I would agree with trying different pellets also..... I have burned Lignetics and the Premium Hardwood Pellets from TSC with good results. I have the PVDC and also have jamming issues to the point where I keep the back cover off the stove because I'm tired of removing it. That being said I'm still pleased with the stove for the price I paid ($600, new).
> 
> Do you screen your pellets to remove the fines? If not you could try that at a minimum to reduce the amount of particulate that could become jammed.


 
Haven't tried screening the pellets since the brand I am using seems to have very few fines and they haven't been a problem with the Travis.  I will try it though since that is the one thing I haven't tried with any of the brands I have been using.  How fine of a mesh do people use?  Does somebody have pictures or a description of the setup they use?


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## stoveguy2esw (Dec 28, 2012)

loosen the allen setscrews on the top auger bearing and slide the auger itself back a bit see if that helps. looks like the pellets are getting trapped against the front of the tube


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## Don2222 (Dec 28, 2012)

Hello

You can also smooth out the Auger tube with Emory cloth from Home Depot and then use Dry Moly Spray on the chute. Clean out the stuck pellets and check that area for burrs and then hit it with the Dry Moly Spray.

I did not know you could pull the top auger back much. How much can you pull it back Mike?


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## CT Pellet (Dec 29, 2012)

BenM said:


> New WoodPorn said: ↑
> 
> I forgot to mention that the problem first arose with a different brand of pellets.


 
A little light, a bell, a fog horn, a flashing strobe, a fire alarm and an all out air-raid siren just went off in my head. If nothing else except the pellet has changed since the problems began, then trying a different pellet might be the logical next step. Those pellets look like chit, all dusty and crumbly. Possibly because they got wet bot also possibly from getting ground up in a defective feed system. Lets rule out the pellet first before we go switching out a few more hundred dollars in parts. I have serious reservations that this is a stove issue.


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## BenM (Dec 29, 2012)

stoveguy2esw said:


> loosen the allen setscrews on the top auger bearing and slide the auger itself back a bit see if that helps. looks like the pellets are getting trapped against the front of the tube



I have the auger as far back as possible without having it rub on the plastic gasket.  Do you mean I should move the auger forward toward the front of the stove?


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## BenM (Dec 29, 2012)

CT Pellet said:


> A little light, a bell, a fog horn, a flashing strobe, a fire alarm and an all out air-raid siren just went off in my head. If nothing else except the pellet has changed since the problems began, then trying a different pellet might be the logical next step. Those pellets look like chit, all dusty and crumbly. Possibly because they got wet bot also possibly from getting ground up in a defective feed system. Lets rule out the pellet first before we go switching out a few more hundred dollars in parts. I have serious reservations that this is a stove issue.



I think you misunderstood what I was saying.  I have experienced this problem with three different brands of pellets, including two that had worked fine last season.  The pellets look bad in the picture because they have been ground into a big clump by the auger.  When I put them in the hopper, they are smooth and pretty uniform in size, with very little fines in the bag.


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## BenM (Dec 29, 2012)

Don2222 said:


> Hello
> 
> You can also smooth out the Auger tube with Emory cloth from Home Depot and then use Dry Moly Spray on the chute. Clean out the stuck pellets and check that area for burrs and then hit it with the Dry Moly Spray.
> 
> I did not know you could pull the top auger back much. How much can you pull it back Mike?



I considered trying to smooth it out, but it is very difficult to access the inside of the auger tube, especially the end of the tube where the pellets tend to clump.  I will try to find the extension shaft for my dremel and see if I can reach it with that.  I don't recall ever seeing Dry Moly Spray, is there a brand to look for?


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## Ncountry (Dec 29, 2012)

Note ....I have no clue how your system works....Is it possible for 1 auger to turn and not the other? The 1st thing that came to mind was that the augers were out of time. lower auger does not turn causing upper auger to build up and bind the system? May not even be a possibility , just throwing it out there.


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## BenM (Dec 29, 2012)

Ncountry said:


> Note ....I have no clue how your system works....Is it possible for 1 auger to turn and not the other? The 1st thing that came to mind was that the augers were out of time. lower auger does not turn causing upper auger to build up and bind the system? May not even be a possibility , just throwing it out there.


 
The bottom auger turns constantly, and the upper one cycles on and off to regulate the fuel flow.  Apparently the duty cycle of the upper auger depends on the output setting on the control panel.  The augers are driven by independent motors, and there isn't any mention of timing in the auger installation/alignment procedure, so I don't think it's a timing issue.  I will ask about that the next time I call tech support.


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## Harvey Schneider (Dec 29, 2012)

Ncountry said:


> Note ....I have no clue how your system works....Is it possible for 1 auger to turn and not the other? The 1st thing that came to mind was that the augers were out of time. lower auger does not turn causing upper auger to build up and bind the system? May not even be a possibility , just throwing it out there.


That's a good point. If there is a problem causing the lower auger to intermittently stop, it would cause a jamb. If the lower auger then started running again only the jambed upper auger would be left as evidence.


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## stoveguy2esw (Dec 29, 2012)

Harvey has a point, if the lower auger stops, the upper doesn't know this and it will keep feeding until it gets impacted, the auger motor has a tremendous amount of torque so it would literally hammer the fuel to the front of the auger.

if you want to discuss it i'll be in the office monday (we're shut down for new years day on tuesday and reopen on wednesday and back on a regular schedule for the rest of the season. PM me a daytime phone number and i'll work in a call to you to go over this when i get back in my office.


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## WoodPorn (Dec 30, 2012)

stoveguy2esw said:


> Harvey has a point, if the lower auger stops, the upper doesn't know this and it will keep feeding until it gets impacted, the auger motor has a tremendous amount of torque so it would literally hammer the fuel to the front of the auger.
> 
> if you want to discuss it i'll be in the office monday (we're shut down for new years day on tuesday and reopen on wednesday and back on a regular schedule for the rest of the season.* PM me a daytime phone number and i'll work in a call to you* to go over this when i get back in my office.


 
This is why I own and love my Englander.....Where else are you going to find a senior (and I don't mean old) tech ask you for your # so he can call you?

Owning an Englander.....~$1000
Maintenance on an englander.....~minimal
Having the support at your fingertips to do anything needed.....PRICELESS!

Great job as usual Mike.


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## Shaw520 (Dec 30, 2012)

stoveguy2esw said:


> if the lower auger stops, the upper doesn't know this and it will keep feeding until it gets impacted,


 
real good point,... my lower auger started doing that intermittently before I replace it...


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## stoveguy2esw (Dec 30, 2012)

any news? havent heard from the OP in a bit, hopefully he will fill us in on progress, my offer still stands , PM me a phone number and i'll try to give you a ring tomorrow.


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## BenM (Dec 30, 2012)

stoveguy2esw said:


> any news? havent heard from the OP in a bit, hopefully he will fill us in on progress, my offer still stands , PM me a phone number and i'll try to give you a ring tomorrow.



I'm still here and still having issues.  I haven't figured out how to PM you yet, but I will today.  As an update, after I freed the first jam with the new auger, it actually ran for 1.5 days with out a jam.  I was hoping it had somehow been resolved, but woke to a cold house again this morning.  

If the lower auger was stopping and causing the upper to jam, then restarting, I would think I would find unburned pellets in the firepot at least sometimes, because if the lower auger stopped long enough for the upper auger to jam, I would expect the fire to go out.  

At any rate, I will definitely take you up on the offer for help, and I'll log back in this afternoon to figure out the PM

Thanks again to everybody, and please keep the suggestions coming.


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## stoveguy2esw (Dec 30, 2012)

look over to the left of the screen where you see the name of the person who posted below the name you will see "start a conversation" click that and then put in the screen name of the person you intend to talk to on a PM. this works outside of view so you can post a phone number without it being publicly viewed. i do this a lot with folks who have my stoves so i can help them.

im going to PM you so you will have a way to reply


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## BenM (Dec 30, 2012)

stoveguy2esw said:


> look over to the left of the screen where you see the name of the person who posted below the name you will see "start a conversation" click that and then put in the screen name of the person you intend to talk to on a PM. this works outside of view so you can post a phone number without it being publicly viewed. i do this a lot with folks who have my stoves so i can help them.
> 
> im going to PM you so you will have a way to reply



Thanks for the info.  I sent you a PM.  I'll update the thread with the outcome so others can hopefully benefit.


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## BenM (Dec 30, 2012)

Shaw520 said:


> real good point,... my lower auger started doing that intermittently before I replace it...


 
What was it that you replaced- the lower auger motor?  And how did you know it was stopping intermittently?


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## Shaw520 (Dec 31, 2012)

BenM said:


> What was it that you replaced- the lower auger motor? And how did you know it was stopping intermittently?


I had two occasions where my stove quit unexplained,... then I happen to catch (visually) the lower auger stop during operation,.. I changed out the lower auger motor,.. problem solved.


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## imacman (Dec 31, 2012)

Shaw520 said:


> I had two occasions where my stove quit unexplained,... then I happen to catch (visually) the lower auger stop during operation,.. I changed out the lower auger motor,.. problem solved.


That is not likely in this situation....the OP has had 2 new auger motors recently sent by Englander and installed in his stove.  If the auger is running intermittently, then I'd suspect electrical connections or auger interference in the auger tube.


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## Shaw520 (Dec 31, 2012)

imacman said:


> That is not likely in this situation....the OP has had 2 new auger motors recently sent by Englander and installed in his stove. If the auger is running intermittently, then I'd suspect electrical connections or auger interference in the auger tube.


if he's replaced both motors then I would agree.


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## imacman (Dec 31, 2012)

Electrical problem w/ auger can be diagnosed by disconnecting the power leads to the lower auger, and making a power "test" cord out of an old lamp cord.  Connect to lower motor (120 vac, so properly insulated, of course!!), plug it in and observe the auger....it should run constantly.  Then start up stove and observe.


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## Harvey Schneider (Dec 31, 2012)

imacman said:


> Electrical problem w/ auger can be diagnosed by disconnecting the power leads to the lower auger, and making a power "test" cord out of an old lamp cord. Connect to lower motor (120 vac, so properly insulated, of course!!), plug it in and observe the auger....it should run constantly. Then start up stove and observe.


Good approach. The other possibile cause that occurs to me is that it could be a bad triac on the control board


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## BenM (Dec 31, 2012)

Just as an update, I talked to Mike this morning.  He was very helpful, and gave me some ideas to check on the next time it jams.  Also, yesterday I swapped my upper auger motor onto the lower auger since I know it is good, and I installed the original motor back onto the upper auger.  It had been replaced because the shaft was damaged when the auger bound up and broke, but I was able to clean it up with a file enough to install it on the upper auger.  

So far, it has been running for a day and a half since I swapped the motors; it went out once, but didn't bind and was able to restart on its own.   If it continues overnight tonight, I will be inclined to declare it solved.  If it does go out again, I will make a test lead to bypass the control board as imacman suggested.  

Thanks to everybody for the great suggestions, and I'll keep you posted.


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## kenstogie (Dec 31, 2012)

Damn!! A+ to Mike Holton for going above and beyond the call.

My used 25pdvc is running very well (thanks to the knowledge from folk here I must say) so I don't know when my next Pellet stove purchase will be.... but it will be an Englander.


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## imacman (Dec 31, 2012)

Keep us posted.


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## BenM (Jan 1, 2013)

Well, after 2 days it jammed up again.  I pulled the lower auger as Mike suggested and looked up the vertical drop chute between the upper and lower feed tubes.  It was completely jammed with pellets, which Mike said indicates that the lower auger had stopped.  

I followed imacman's suggestion and made a power cable to bypass the control board to power the lower auger motor.  So far it is running, but it has fooled me before.  Unfortunately, I have to leave town for three weeks, so hopefully it will continue to work for my wife until I can return to address it.  I will continue to update the thread, but don't expect much activity for the next three weeks.


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## NEStoveOwner (Jan 2, 2013)

I have seen the Englander motors fail intermittently.  One time i had a failure because of poor crimping on the male spade.  When it would heat up the connection between the spade and the winding wire would cause intermittent connection.  As part of motor maintenance i would solder it.  I have also seen the windings short out.  When the stove gets up to temp the length of winding gets "shortened" through the short therefore not delivering the torque it needs to drive the auger.  I just had MK motor failure this week on the lower auger.  Stove runs for an hour or so and than the lower auger will pause when the tip of the spiral is at about 5 oclock.  It will sometimes resume spinning.  If it waits too long to resume and pellets in the pot have died out it will keep dumping pellets into the burn pot. 

See my motor analysis here:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/englander-auger-motor-failure-and-replacement.30454/


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## BenM (Jan 3, 2013)

NEStoveOwner said:


> I have seen the Englander motors fail intermittently. One time i had a failure because of poor crimping on the male spade. When it would heat up the connection between the spade and the winding wire would cause intermittent connection. As part of motor maintenance i would solder it. I have also seen the windings short out. When the stove gets up to temp the length of winding gets "shortened" through the short therefore not delivering the torque it needs to drive the auger. I just had MK motor failure this week on the lower auger. Stove runs for an hour or so and than the lower auger will pause when the tip of the spiral is at about 5 oclock. It will sometimes resume spinning. If it waits too long to resume and pellets in the pot have died out it will keep dumping pellets into the burn pot.
> 
> See my motor analysis here:
> https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/englander-auger-motor-failure-and-replacement.30454/


 
Thanks for the info.
An interesting note is that the replacement motors I got from Englander were Gleason Avery.  I noticed when installing them that they were missing some of the raised bosses the original motors had, and the sealing gasket is distinctive.  Unfortunately, the first GA motor that I received is the one that stripped out the gearbox the first time the auger jammed, so I am running one of the originals along with one of the GA motors.  I will have my wife swap them this weekend so the GA motor will be on the continuously-running lower auger.  One more item I noticed is that the motor shaft on the GA motor is much harder than the original.  My remaining functional original motor's shaft is practically severed because it gets damaged a bit more each time the auger binds.  I have been filing it smooth to reinstall it, and tried to do the same to the GA motor and instantly discovered that its shaft is hardened.  Next time I'm home, I will disassemble the gearbox to find out what gave out on the GA motor and post some pictures.


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## imacman (Jan 3, 2013)

So, can we assume that the direct wired lower auger is continuing to run w/o any jams?


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## BenM (Jan 3, 2013)

imacman said:


> So, can we assume that the direct wired lower auger is continuing to run w/o any jams?


 
I thought I had updated the thread, but apparently I didn't.  Unfortunately, it jammed after only a few hours being directly wired.  I felt the motor while it was running (lower auger motor) and it was quite hot.  I am going to try to walk my wife through swapping the two motors since the one that is currently on the upper auger motor is the newest one and is one of the Gleason Avery manufactured motors.  I would have put it on last time, but I assumed they were a poorer quality motor since the first one broke its gear train the second time the auger jammed.  I'll keep updating, but the stove is currently sitting cold with a pellet jam that my wife can't fix until the weekend.  She's a nurse and works 12+ hour shifts, so she can't do anything with it until her day off.


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## smwilliamson (Jan 3, 2013)

I deal with this issue quite often. What Mike from Englander is saying is true. You need to loosen the two allen set screws on the auger shaft, with the motor shaft set collar on the auger shaft, slide the pivot bearing back against the set collar, THEN tighten the pivot bearing's two set screws tight. This will enable the auger to freely turn without hitting the plastic seal AND allow the auger to "knock down" fines which it is trapping at the fore end of the feed chute.


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## stoveguy2esw (Jan 4, 2013)

when the feed chute was jammed with pellets  did you see anything in the chute itself which may have caused pellets to catch? were the surfaces relatively smooth? im starting to wonder if we have something in the drop chute which is catching pellets and filling up behind the stoppage , when this is the case the lower auger would just feed out as if the off button was pushed the upper would be impacted cause the pellets would have nowhere to go, the upper auger would simply drive them up against the front of the top tube.

when you get home, pull the lower auger again and very closely examine the drop chute , an inspection mirror would be helpful (mirror on a stick like a dentist uses) let me know what you find. might be a bad casting, if so fixing it may be a bit more involved but can be done.


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## BenM (Feb 24, 2013)

smwilliamson said:


> I deal with this issue quite often. What Mike from Englander is saying is true. You need to loosen the two allen set screws on the auger shaft, with the motor shaft set collar on the auger shaft, slide the pivot bearing back against the set collar, THEN tighten the pivot bearing's two set screws tight. This will enable the auger to freely turn without hitting the plastic seal AND allow the auger to "knock down" fines which it is trapping at the fore end of the feed chute.


 

I just wanted to update this thread for all those who helped me and for anybody in the future who has this problem.  I apologize for taking so long to respond, but I have been out of town a lot.  

As it turns out, smwillamson was correct.  The problem was that the auger was not spaced correctly.  When Mike had originally suggested that I adjust the auger toward the back, I interpreted that as toward the back of the stove, leaving more space between the end of the auger and the end of the feed tube, when he probably meant I should adjust it toward the back of the feed tube/ front of the stove.  What I ended up doing was loosening the set screws on the pivot bearing, then installing the auger, then sliding forward until it contacted the end of the feed tube and rubbed lightly.  I then tightened one set screw and removed the auger so I could tighten both set screws and then reinstalled/realigned the auger.  It has since been working flawlessly.  

Again, thanks to everybody who helped with this problem, and thanks to smwilliamson for explaining what the issue is and how to correct it.


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## Don2222 (Feb 24, 2013)

Ok, Guys

To set the spec.

Where should the pivet bearing and auger collar be in relationship to the end of the Auger? See Green Arrow.
Should the auger collar be even with the end of the Auger,
Or in back by x inches?
Or in front by x inches?

Yellow arrow shows one of the two pivet bearing allen head set screws.
Red arrow shows auger shaft collar bolt that holds motor to auger.


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## Don2222 (Feb 24, 2013)

stoveguy2esw said:


> when the feed chute was jammed with pellets did you see anything in the chute itself which may have caused pellets to catch? were the surfaces relatively smooth? im starting to wonder if we have something in the drop chute which is catching pellets and filling up behind the stoppage , when this is the case the lower auger would just feed out as if the off button was pushed the upper would be impacted cause the pellets would have nowhere to go, the upper auger would simply drive them up against the front of the top tube.
> 
> when you get home, pull the lower auger again and very closely examine the drop chute , an inspection mirror would be helpful (mirror on a stick like a dentist uses) let me know what you find. might be a bad casting, if so fixing it may be a bit more involved but can be done.


 
Hi Mike

A few weeks ago I had to fix the top auger binding.
To ascertain all the complexities in this dual tandem auger system, I only removed the top auger, cleaned and smoothed the auger and the auger chute, then sprayed the top auger and chute with dry moly and re-installed the top auger and slapped a brand new Gleason-Avery motor on it. To my surprise, nothing changed and the top auger still kept binding when the stove was fired. So I shut down the stove and removed the bottom auger. It was black as night with carbon even though it turned ok. I then proceeded to totally clean and smooth the bottom auger and chute, then sprayed them with dry molly. The stove has been working fine ever since! Goes to show both augers must be clean and turning freely according to their best specification especially the bottom auger!


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