# That burn plate that rides on top of the burn pot....Accentra



## 3650 (Nov 28, 2011)

pellets keep pushing it away from firewall.  flames ride up behind it. anyone else have this issue?


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## newf lover (Nov 28, 2011)

Are you talking about the flame guide? Whatever, there's something very wrong. Can you be more specific, accentra insert or free standing? What do you mean by firewall?


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## Marc P (Nov 28, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> pellets keep pushing it away from firewall.  flames ride up behind it. anyone else have this issue?



On my Accentra insert, the flame guide you mention sits with the Nautical Medallion section resting on top of it. I don't see how the flame guide could be pushed up with the heavy Nautical Medallion piece holding it down.


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## 3650 (Nov 28, 2011)

this is a 2004 fs accentra.  the flame guide on this model is removable...nothing sits on top of it.  it is being pushed away from the back of the stove by the pellets.


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## imacman (Nov 28, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> this is a 2004 fs accentra.  the flame guide on this model is removable...nothing sits on top of it.  it is being pushed away from the back of the stove by the pellets.



Are you the original owner, or did you buy this used?


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## newf lover (Nov 28, 2011)

The flame guide on a P68 is heavy iron that has grooves that sit on the sides of the burnpot and is removeable. No way it could be pushed by pellets. I don't know what the flame guide is made of on an Accentra. but it seems to me either it warped so is easily moved by pellets, or there is a cr#$pload of pellets being fed into the burnpot which is causing it to lift up. How long have you had the stove? If you had it last year, I assume it worked fine.  Does it look like there is an abnormal amount of pellets in the burnpot which would indicate something is up with the feeder mechanism or control board? Hopefully another Accentra owner will chime in. I'm having trouble visualizing this whole thing as I don't think that could happen on a P68 without a massive amount of pellets being pushed into the burnpot.


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## Marc P (Nov 28, 2011)

Check out this picture and let us know what piece you are referring to. You can see what I mentioned above about the nautical medallion plate sitting on top of the flame guide.


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## 3650 (Nov 28, 2011)

i bought it used last fall. i wonder if it has developed a large speed bump that is causing the pellets to rise?  ive shut it down.  this flame guide is completely different then the one in the picture. the medalion on this stove is permanantly attatched to the back of the stove. it is cast into it, i believe. the flameguide is a loose piece that has two grooves on either side that ride ontop of the burn pot.  it isnt that difficult to slide forward. poor design which is probably why they changed it to the type in the pic.

update: it did have somewhat of a speedbump..no more then normal.  maybe since its colder its pushing more pellets increasing the effects of the speedbump


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## Bank (Nov 28, 2011)

I have an 08 Accentra, and the flame guide is just as pictured in the post by Mark. I don't know how pellets could lift that thing. If I don't clean under the burnpot where the igniter is; the pellets just overflow the burn pot into the ash pan and then when the igniter finally catches, oh boy, it's like the shuttle taking off in there.


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## 76brian (Nov 28, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> poor design which is probably why they changed it to the type in the pic.



That's the same design as every other Harman pellet stove and they have proven to be great stoves, so your "poor design" comment is unjustified.

I'd be more prone to say "poor cleaning".


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## imacman (Nov 28, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> this is a 2004 fs accentra.  the flame guide on this model is removable...nothing sits on top of it.  it is being pushed away from the back of the stove by the pellets.



I'd be interested in seeing a pic of your stove's burnpot/flameguide setup.


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## 3650 (Nov 28, 2011)

76brian said:
			
		

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hmmm ...if the loose flame guide wasnt a poor design why did they incorporate it into the medalion making it one piece?

why is it when someone cant explain an issue they always fall back on the lame "poor cleaning"  excuse?


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## 76brian (Nov 28, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

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I have a P43, it has no medallion... it has the exact same flame guide that just sits on top of the burn pot, exactly like you describe (and exactly like in the picture above, but the model in that pic is slightly recessed, the P43 has it sticking out from the rear wall of the burn chamber). It is exactly like the other Harman stoves, as follows:






There is nothing holding that flame guide in place except gravity, and there's absolutely no way any pellets are going to move that piece unless there is an abundance of build up or something that forces the pellets upwards. It's just too heavy to move that easily.

If there is any kind of a "speed bump" that has "developed", it's ash buildup and you need to scrape the hell out of it.


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## 3650 (Nov 28, 2011)

pretty much youve proved my point.  youre comparing apples to oranges.  they changed the design on the accentra, which you dont have, and i suspect because of poor design.  so until you can get an apple to compare to my apple i dont see how your stove is relevant.


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## Trickyrick (Nov 29, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> pretty much youve proved my point.  youre comparing apples to oranges.  they changed the design on the accentra, which you dont have, and i suspect because of poor design.  so until you can get an apple to compare to my apple i dont see how your stove is relevant.



You want advice but attack when the people here as questions and give advice.  Can we get a picture of your unit.  It would help to see it assembled and then a picture of the two pieces unassembled.  This would help everyone to see what you are talking about.  

I suspect someone may have modified or replaced one of the two parts prior to you getting the stove since you are saying it has done this as long as you have used it.

Please try to remember these guys have no skin in the game and are helping in their free time.  You do not like what they give for advice then don't listen.  

As to why people turn to poor cleaning as a fall back.  Well based on the info you have given so far the most likely cause is that carbon has built up in the pot to the point that it is choaking flow of pellets and the only direction is to push the guide up.  OH and 90% of the problems to stoves get traced to poor maintanence.  The rest are failed electronics (including motors and boards) and a very small percentage are defects or design issues.  As for changes to design.  If something buys more efficiency as this change does, then it isn't "poor design" but simply an improvement.

My 2 cents take it for whatever it is worth.


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## Defiant (Nov 29, 2011)

Do you have a free standing Accentra ? Medallion is not removable in these. Maybe your stove does not have a corresponding flame guide?


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## 76brian (Nov 29, 2011)

3650 said:
			
		

> pretty much youve proved my point.  youre comparing apples to oranges.  they changed the design on the accentra, which you dont have, and i suspect because of poor design.  so until you can get an apple to compare to my apple i dont see how your stove is relevant.



If you bothered to read, that was not my burn pot, that was a burn pot from a P61, which is identical to the burn pot on the P43, and mostly identical to every other burn pot in every other Harman stove I have ever seen, INCLUDING the Accentra free standing, and it's exactly like you described except for the fact mine doesn't have a decorative medallion behind it, big deal. They ALL have that cast iron flame guide that sits with its grooves on the edges of the burn pot.

The bottom line is the pellets don't push that guide off in anyone elses stove, so the only variable here is you or the previous owner. As TrickyRick said, 90% of the problems with these stoves are caused by poor maintenance, and considering you bought yours used, who knows what was done. Harman's been making these things for 30 years, I've never heard of one that was a poor design, and the Accentra is not a new model, I think it would have been known by now.

Look; I'm just trying to help, If the help is not good enough for you, then fine, there's no need to be a d!ck about it. Someone else asked for pics; If your flame guide doesn't look like that, then post pics or stuff it.


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## Dougsey (Nov 29, 2011)

My compass is non-removable as well so the flame guide just sits on top of the burn pot. I've never had an issue with it moving but I seem to remember a thread some time ago about someone with this problem.


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## imacman (Nov 29, 2011)

Defiant said:
			
		

> Do you have a free standing Accentra ? ....



The OP stated it was an insert in his 2nd post.

That said, I will make a 2nd request from the OP for a pic of the part(s) in question.


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## Avtek (Nov 29, 2011)

My Accentra FS (free standing) had the moving flame guide issue my first year of burning. Turned out to be slightly contacting the tip of the auger during it's feed cycle. How ever never saw flames behind the guide. May be erosion at the bottom of the flame guide or a warping of the flame guide in your unit.


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## jedidiah578 (Nov 29, 2011)

imacman said:
			
		

> Defiant said:
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This was his second post.    "this is a 2004 fs accentra.  the flame guide on this model is removableâ€¦nothing sits on top of it.  it is being pushed away from the back of the stove by the pellets. "  


2004 Freestanding unit.


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## 76brian (Nov 29, 2011)

Avtek said:
			
		

> My Accentra FS (free standing) had the moving flame guide issue my first year of burning. Turned out to be slightly contacting the tip of the auger during it's feed cycle. How ever never saw flames behind the guide. May be erosion at the bottom of the flame guide or a warping of the flame guide in your unit.



Neat... The guide could be warped, or perhaps the auger is somehow protruding too far out of the tube? Perhaps it was removed at some point and not reinstalled correctly?

Or maybe a build up of crud near the end?


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## aaronnoel (Nov 29, 2011)

hey this is a long shot, maybe flame guide is fine and the flame on the rear fire wall is caused by a bad burnpot gasket. I understand it most likely not this but everything should be on the table.


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## forya (Nov 29, 2011)

If it's an "04, everything should probably be "gone over" anyway.  I would pull the burn pot replace the gasket, replace all the door/hopper seals , and the flue seal.  and probably get a new flame guide.  and while it was apart I would inspect the auger, and probably pull it out and clean the auger tube.


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## 3650 (Nov 29, 2011)

i wasnt attacking anyone, just trying to point out that a guy with a p series probably isnt going to have the same issue im having with my accentra.  as far as i know the only stove with the same burn pot is the advance. although they look similiar to the rest of the harman burn pots im pretty sure they arent.  then there was a pic of an accentra burn pot ithat appeared to have the flameguide incorporated into the medallion. maybe i cant see the picture right on my phone but it sure looks that way to me so i took this to be a design change and assumed that the reason was due to the flame guide being pushed. anyway i should have specified i was only looking to other accentra owners to see if they had this issue.  i cant post pics from this old phone (dont have a pc) as i have to use opera mini just to be able to post threads from it.  i cant get it to post pics at all. id like to have the moderator close the thread since its just becoming a non productive flame war.  thank you.


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## imacman (Nov 29, 2011)

jedidiah578 said:
			
		

> This was his second post.    "this is a 2004 fs accentra......



ooops...yep, I looked at the wrong post....my fault.


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## kinsmanstoves (Nov 29, 2011)

Still waiting on that pic.

Eric


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## imacman (Nov 29, 2011)

kinsman stoves said:
			
		

> Still waiting on that pic.
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> Eric



The OP states that he has no computer, and can't post pics from his "old phone".  He now also wants a mod to close the thread.


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## kinsmanstoves (Nov 29, 2011)

You can take a thirsty guy to the bar but can not make him drink.

Eric


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