# Harman ignitor install tip.



## Tonyray

Once you have the 2 ignitor screws removed and the whole cradle hanging down, your next step is to cut the straps that hold the two igniter wires together in the rear of your stove. Before pulling the whole igniter with the wires attached thru on the front of your stove, take a magic marker and mark the two wires very clearly then pull them through from the front. This way after you have the new igniter installed and the two wires connected, you simply pull the two wires from the rear back until you hit the magic marker spot. Now you know the wires are in the exact same spot they were before you pulled them.


----------



## johnvictor

Running on a thermostat requires either replacing the igniter every 6 months or cleaning your stove more often. The two modes either turn your stove off [burning up igniter to relight] or toggling between high/low settings [burning on low soots up stove] when thermostat is satisfied.

We have a 25 yr old Whitfield that is bulletproof. I installed two [US Stove 5520] thermostat controlled units in flip houses this past winter. Each of them ended up being "not worth" running on thermostats. Of course the houses were unoccupied so YMMV.

If I were to buy a Thermo controlled stove I would shell out for a Harman or better, find one on Craigslist. It seems many folks move to gas etc., after a few years with a pellet stove. I suspect the real reason folks are dissatisfied is because the "through the wall" exhaust design is faulty and does not allow for sufficient draft. Run your exhaust through the ceiling or at least use 4" exhaust pipe. [of course the added draft lessens efficiency but makes the stove burn much hotter/cleaner.


----------



## Overfireinthehole

johnvictor said:


> Running on a thermostat requires either replacing the igniter every 6 months or cleaning your stove more often. The two modes either turn your stove off [burning up igniter to relight] or toggling between high/low settings [burning on low soots up stove] when thermostat is satisfied.
> 
> We have a 25 yr old Whitfield that is bulletproof. I installed two [US Stove 5520] thermostat controlled units in flip houses this past winter. Each of them ended up being "not worth" running on thermostats. Of course the houses were unoccupied so YMMV.
> 
> If I were to buy a Thermo controlled stove I would shell out for a Harman or better, find one on Craigslist. It seems many folks move to gas etc., after a few years with a pellet stove. I suspect the real reason folks are dissatisfied is because the "through the wall" exhaust design is faulty and does not allow for sufficient draft. Run your exhaust through the ceiling or at least use 4" exhaust pipe. [of course the added draft lessens efficiency but makes the stove burn much hotter/cleaner.


Hey new fella! Hot rod igniters like the one your Whitfield has are not designed to culver on and off frequently, and the burn pot on your stove is supposed to be emptied every fire, so that the holes are clear and free of debris that would prevent airflow and block igniter hole. Most stoves that run off a thermostat use. Coil igniter or a finned cartridge that is meant to stand up to the wear and tear. Your right that your stove shouldn’t run off a tstat, but Tony has the Cadillac of pellet stoves with an igniter that will last 10+ years running on thermostat mode. Also, pellet stoves have forced draft. You don’t need natural draft until you get above 30 ft or equivalent of venting. On a perfect world, everyone would have a 2 ft horizontal run of pipe so they could clean it easily and cap it for the summer. Keep trying to help people, but don’t think all pellet stoves are the same.


----------



## railfanron

I have a Harman P43 and I run the stove 7-24s in the heating season on thermostat only. I just replaced the igniter at 5 years. It still worked but seemed to short out occasionally and it would blow the control board fuse.  Using an average of 12 times a day that's over 2 thousand times the stove ignited successfully. My Propane furnace igniter lasted about the same amount of time. Do I clean my stove? Yes but I don't clean it as often as I probably should so maybe if I cleaned it perfectly it might have lasted 10 years.
Ron


----------



## DAKSY

"Running on a thermostat requires either replacing the igniter every 6 months or cleaning your stove more often. The two modes either turn your stove off [burning up igniter to relight] or toggling between high/low settings [burning on low soots up stove] when thermostat is satisfied. "

Not true, at least in my case...
Going on 10 years with my P61A on the OEM igniter. 
I clean it thoroughly once a ton, or 3 times each season...
I run it constantly on the thermostat (Room Temp)...


----------



## Bill Pitman

railfanron said:


> I have a Harman P43 and I run the stove 7-24s in the heating season on thermostat only. I just replaced the igniter at 5 years. It still worked but seemed to short out occasionally and it would blow the control board fuse.  Using an average of 12 times a day that's over 2 thousand times the stove ignited successfully. My Propane furnace igniter lasted about the same amount of time. Do I clean my stove? Yes but I don't clean it as often as I probably should so maybe if I cleaned it perfectly it might have lasted 10 years.
> Ron


When I do a monthly cleaning, one of the things I do is clean the igniter.  I use a vacuum to clean the burn chamber. Then use canned compressed air & blow up thru the igniter, to clean & make sure there is no debris within the fins....
3rd year burning with a Harman P43.....
Bill Pitman


----------



## Tonyray

Bill Pitman said:


> When I do a monthly cleaning, one of the things I do is clean the igniter.  I use a vacuum to clean the burn chamber. Then use canned compressed air & blow up thru the igniter, to clean & make sure there is no debris within the fins....
> 3rd year burning with a Harman P43.....
> Bill Pitman


Yep... i used compressed air also . Have learned to keep my mouth shut when my face is in there..lol.. harman ignitor is solid and durable. I had a bare wire spot and must have shorted my 1st one out when fingering out the ash in the compartment..so many burners obsess about saving  prob the cheapest essential part on the stove. 80 bucks. I wont burn a different mode just to "save it ".its part of the harman technology we all paid for..


----------



## MSmith66

DAKSY said:


> "Running on a thermostat requires either replacing the igniter every 6 months or cleaning your stove more often. The two modes either turn your stove off [burning up igniter to relight] or toggling between high/low settings [burning on low soots up stove] when thermostat is satisfied. "
> 
> Not true, at least in my case...
> Going on 10 years with my P61A on the OEM igniter.
> I clean it thoroughly once a ton, or 3 times each season...
> I run it constantly on the thermostat (Room Temp)...


I agree, I still have the original 13 fin ignitor. 15+ yrs.


----------



## camdids

Haven't been on for quite a time so may be out of touch a little with trends.
Reading this it amazes me how long a lot of people leave it before cleaning out there stove. I know there's general recommendations, but I have found when I was burning almost 24/7, in the very early days of $4 a gallon of oil, I cleaned once a week. As I started cutting back , it became once every two weeks..  I have continued this and since 2008, have replaced the Igniter once. I do not even think it was dead when I replaced it. I had a couple of times when the stove did not light, but after found other reasons it could have been.
I have had friends with stoves who are having lighting issues, and it almost always comes down to how often the stove is cleaned.


----------



## N00bHeater

Haven't replaced my ignitor on my harman xxv yet (7 winters now). I burn 24/7 all winter. I do clean out my stove every 2-3 weeks quite regularly whenever I need to empty the ash bin. I unscrew where the ignitor is and do a quick vacuum in that area. 

The only part I've replaced is my stove is the exhaust blower, the motor was getting quite noisy and seemed on it's last legs lately. It was a pain in the butt with the stove kiddy cornered plus the wing nuts were in a terrible position to get a tool to loosen because they were rusted pretty good.

I agree with camdids above, when mine doesn't want to light, it's always because it needs cleaning.


----------



## Pete Zahria

N00bHeater said:


> I agree with camdids above, when mine doesn't want to light, it's always because it needs cleaning.



*On 2 stoves (P68's) that I know of... Douglas Firs do not like to start with the igniter.*
*If my stove empties, just for insurance, I put a couple of handfuls of
whatever other brand I have, then fill it with DF's.
Always takes off..
*
*Dan*


----------



## Tonyray

Pete Zahria said:


> *On 2 stoves (P68's) that I know of... Douglas Firs do not like to start with the igniter.*
> *If my stove empties, just for insurance, I put a couple of handfuls of
> whatever other brand I have, then fill it with DF's.
> Always takes off..*
> 
> *Dan*


I burn Northern warmth supreme firs.. ignitor fires them up every time..


----------



## Pete Zahria

Tonyray said:


> I burn Northern warmth supreme firs.. ignitor fires them up every time..



*Cool.*
*We have 2 in the family, and neither is a 100% guarantee.......
*
*Dan.*


----------



## Tonyray

Pete Zahria said:


> *Cool.*
> *We have 2 in the family, and neither is a 100% guarantee.......*
> 
> *Dan.*


Can see why... interesting...same ignitors or have u replaced over time??


----------



## Tonyray

Meant to say Can't...


----------



## Pete Zahria

Tonyray said:


> Meant to say Can't...



*I knew that..*


----------



## SidecarFlip

Maybe some day I'll move into the 21st century with an ignitor stove...lol

My ignitor is a handfull of pre soaked in charcoal lighter fluid pellets and a wood farm match.  Works every time.

Actually, my control board has the lugs for an igniter but the burn pot has no place for one...


----------



## SailorGirl

Last year we bought a house with a Haman PF100 Pellet Pro Furnace installed in 2005.  We had a local guy who works on wood pellet stoves and furnaces come and give us a tour of the furnace and clean it. He said we should buy an igniter and have it on hand, because that is the most likely thing to fail. So, I am looking for a source for a replacement igniter. I've looked through the forum and believe the consensus is to buy an OEM igniter. Do you agree? Is there a source for such a thing. The part  listed in the manual is Igniter Element Assembly 1-10-06620. When I search online I haven't been able to locate that part.  Can you help with sourcing a replacement igniter? Thanks


----------



## Tonyray

SailorGirl said:


> Last year we bought a house with a Haman PF100 Pellet Pro Furnace installed in 2005.  We had a local guy who works on wood pellet stoves and furnaces come and give us a tour of the furnace and clean it. He said we should buy an igniter and have it on hand, because that is the most likely thing to fail. So, I am looking for a source for a replacement igniter. I've looked through the forum and believe the consensus is to buy an OEM igniter. Do you agree? Is there a source for such a thing. The part  listed in the manual is Igniter Element Assembly 1-10-06620. When I search online I haven't been able to locate that part.  Can you help with sourcing a replacement igniter? Thanks











						Harman 450 Watt Igniter for the HF60, PF100, PF120, PC45 & PB105, 1-00-10450
					

Buy Harman stove igniters here. This igniter is compatible with the following Harman stoves: HydroFlex 60 PF100 & PC45 PB105. Formerly part number 3-20-00450




					pellet-stove-parts-4less.com


----------



## Tonyray

I would go with the pricier ignitor. The cheaper ones are more likely to fail.. or, buy a few cheaper ones. U may get lucky and might last awhile.  Can also call them to confirm part number etc..


----------



## SailorGirl

Tonyray said:


> Harman 450 Watt Igniter for the HF60, PF100, PF120, PC45 & PB105, 1-00-10450
> 
> 
> Buy Harman stove igniters here. This igniter is compatible with the following Harman stoves: HydroFlex 60 PF100 & PC45 PB105. Formerly part number 3-20-00450
> 
> 
> 
> 
> pellet-stove-parts-4less.com


Great, thank you!


----------



## DAKSY

I get mine at woodmanspartsplus. Never had an issue with their products.


----------



## Marc S.

Bill Pitman said:


> When I do a monthly cleaning, one of the things I do is clean the igniter.  I use a vacuum to clean the burn chamber. Then use canned compressed air & blow up thru the igniter, to clean & make sure there is no debris within the fins....
> 3rd year burning with a Harman P43.....
> Bill Pitman


Just gave me a new tip, compressed air.  Thanks


----------



## Tonyray

Marc S. said:


> Just gave me a new tip, compressed air.  Thanks


tip.... keep your mouth closed when u zap it with compressed air..lol


----------



## Marc S.

Tonyray said:


> tip.... keep your mouth closed when u zap it with compressed air..lol


Yup, I have had a few "dust" moments.


----------

