# Pellet Newbie : Ecoteck Installed



## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 26, 2011)

Newbie to the Pellet world : trying to fight the high cost of propane heating.
Have been doing lots of reading, this forum is a great source of info : Special thanks to smwilliamson.
Expect stove delivery, this week, of an Ecoteck Elena 48K BTU 85% pellet stove. I had been pondering an Ecoteck or a Quad Edge-60 for more than a year, and recently some really good Ecoteck clearance prices (plus free shipping and no sales tax) pushed me off the fence. I would have preferred the Edge-60, but the price is about $2000 too high. I also liked the Enviro line of stoves, but my wife wouldn't go for the look of the Omega/Maxx.

I will self-install, with proper permits and inspections (of course), but would like some feedback/comments on my flue design. The stove will be in the corner of a one-story sun-room, out the back and then up, with the vent-cap about 3 feet above the edge (gutter) of the "A" frame roof. The 3 inch stove exhaust goes to a 3" to 4" adapter, then 45 elbow, then 90 elbow, 2 ft horizontal thru-the-wall, then T, to an 11 foot vertical rise. (This is all 4" Duravent Pellet Pro). I will install an OAK too.

I appreciate any comments or advice. Thanks.


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## jmcp (Sep 26, 2011)

Is that the stove that you can vent into other rooms if its is I would be curious to know how well it works.


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## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 26, 2011)

No, my model is without the venting feature. The one with that feature was another $700....too big a price for that.


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## jmcp (Sep 26, 2011)

Still a good looking stove.


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## WoodPorn (Sep 26, 2011)

Be sure to silicone your flue seams..
Welcome to the forum, and prepare for an odd addiction taking over soon!
What pellets will you be burning?

Be sure to post up some picture as we all like to see the work of others.

Brian


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## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 26, 2011)

I bought 2 tons of C&C Smith "Wood Pellets" (very imaginative product name).......... I hope they are worth the premium I paid for them ($239/ton), versus Home Depot or Lowes stuff at $197/ton.


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## WoodPorn (Sep 26, 2011)

at 239 you're still not doing too bad.... only a buck a bag over HD


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## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 26, 2011)

So, dumb question : Do only the flue seams that are inside the home need silicone seal? or also the ones outside?


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## jtakeman (Sep 26, 2011)

Congrats! 

Don't forget the pictures, Please!


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## imacman (Sep 26, 2011)

Pelleting In NJ said:
			
		

> So, dumb question : Do only the flue seams that are inside the home need silicone seal? or also the ones outside?



Only the interior ones.


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## blazeitup (Sep 28, 2011)

that is an awsome machine u hav there just make sure ur dealer sets the recipe for the vent run ur doin, also b aware that when u change ur fuel u may hav to adjust ur pellet to air ratio. i only say this bcause we had a customer who was new to the pellet world and etched his glass on the door! just remember bright yellow flame and slight movement in the burnpot.
ps. read the manual please its not a fire starter i swear thats what people do with them!


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## CrowBean (Sep 28, 2011)

what did you end up getting for a price on the ELENA, if you dont mind me asking?


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## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 28, 2011)

Blazeitup : I am doing a self install, I have the dealer Tech manual. In it, it refers to the 4 or 5 levels of combustion blower trim settings availible to compensate for the flue configuration used, but it does not call out any target value for a magnahelic pressure reading. The manual just implies that you choose the blower trim speed setting depending if the flue is described as a free-flowing configuration or not. How do you recommend setting this? See my first post at the top for my flue configuration. Wa the glass etched because the stove was running too "rich", or too "lean"? Thanks

CrowBean : I got the "Elena Steel" (no ceramic on the sides) for $3690, free shipping, and no sales tax. They have various models availible. These are the best prices I have ever seen on these Ecotecks. Certainly not cheap, but there are not alot of choices in the US for a contemporary looking unit.


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## CrowBean (Sep 28, 2011)

That's a great price. When I was looking the low model was around that price. I just got a wittus ego installed which looks very similar and same features


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## CrowBean (Sep 28, 2011)

That's a great price. When I was looking the low model was around that price. I just got a wittus ego installed which looks very similar and same features


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## blazeitup (Sep 28, 2011)

[quote author="Pelleting In NJ" date="1317230349"]Blazeitup : I am doing a self install, I have the dealer Tech manual. In it, it refers to the 4 or 5 levels of combustion blower trim settings availible to compensate for the flue configuration used, but it does not call out any target value for a magnahelic pressure reading. The manual just implies that you choose the blower trim speed setting depending if the flue is described as a free-flowing configuration or not. How do you recommend setting this? See my first post at the top for my flue configuration. Wa the glass etched because the stove was running too "rich", or too "lean"? Thanks

yeah its kind of a tough stove to get exactly right more like trial and error, rule of thumb on low flame just above burnpot and no build up of pellets and on high just bellow heat exchanger and no build up in burnpot. unfortunatly i dont really know what to set it to but i can tell u is u can adjust it while its on.Its under select recipe,code b9, there r 4 different main screen choices scarce draught, low draught, off (which is what the stove gets shipped as), medium draught, and high draught. then u fine tune it by holding down 6 and 7 simultaniosly. i think you will chose medium draught due to the fact u will hav some sort of natural draft with ur set up. about the glass etch guessing it was to rich and burnpot overflow but not totally sure 1 year after sale customer demanded free replacement of glass and to not pay for a service call, god knows what the real reason was failure to clean excetra, but just b aware of proper flame characteristics. this stove is very advanced good for some bad for others certainly not set it and forget it like ronco! any other ? feel free b glad to assist


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## Pelleting In NJ (Sep 29, 2011)

My Ecoteck was delivered yesterday, ordered my flue pipes today (Dynamitebuys).......now just need to decide what to do for the floor protection......I think my township inspector wants to see at least an inch thick pad....even though Ecoteck just specifies a non-combustible floor protector that is at least 0.02 inches thick !  I don't think I need any, since the floor is ceramic tile over backerboard.....but I understand that the Inspector has the final say.


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## blazeitup (Sep 29, 2011)

nope he is supposed to go by the manual period. what its been tested for is what its been tested for!


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## Pelleting In NJ (Oct 6, 2011)

firestarter : So the "Scarce Draft" recipe setting would be used for a restrictive horizontal vent config, and "High Draft" would be used for a free-flowing vertical flue, with lots of natural drafting? (or do I have the recipe names backwards?)  Thanks


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## blazeitup (Oct 6, 2011)

you are correct i was a little confused on that the first time also, dont forget the pics and good luck with that inspector!


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 14, 2011)

Ecoteck Elena install done! First burn yesterday...runs nice and quiet...lots of hot air. Decided to do a horizontal flue...wifey just did not want the big vertical stack...Got 2 tons "Great American Wood Pellets".  I will post pics (and pics of the inside stove guts) this evening.


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## CrowBean (Nov 14, 2011)

Sounds great can't wait to see pics. Will post mine when my hearth is completed


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 16, 2011)

So here she is (Ecoteck Elena Steel).  Seems well made and easy to work on, open access when the sides are off. The combustion blower is a Pabst-EBM variable speed motor, with RPM feedback to the control board. It is a 33W 97CFM unit, the same part number used in the Rika Austroflamm Integra stove. The ignitor looks like a standard immersion type of cartridge heater element (I measured it at 250W), and seems easy to replace. The convection fan looks also to be a high quality variable speed motor, Pabst-EBM too. The auger motor looks like a standard Merkle-Korff AC Gear-motor, 2.4 RPM. The welds are neat and clean, with use of high-temp pre-formed silicone gaskets. The control features a built-in room thermostat, with an adjustable "swing", and can operate the stove as a full ON/OFF (re-ignition) mode, or a throttle-back to low burn rate until the thermostat kicks it back to a selectable higher level. The stove has a built-in 7-day programmable thermostat too. The stove comes with an IR remote control, to adjust the thermostat temp, firing level, or turn it ON and OFF. You can also connect an external wired thermostat, a standard "close-a-low-voltage contact" for heat demand. The heat exchanger is stainless steel, with a scraper/cleaning rod. Interestingly, the 68 pound hopper is not sealed, I guess it relies on the volume of pellets to block fresh indoor air from being pulled into the combustion chamber. The fire-pot is stainless steel too. I have an OAK installed, and am venting about 5 feet horizontal with 4 inch Duravent Pellet-Pro pipe. The unit is very quiet. There are user menu controls for fuel-feed trim and combustion blower speed trims. There is also a timer, keeping track of actual stove operating hours. You can also monitor the actual exhaust temperature, and the measured RPM of the combustion blower. I am a happy camper....sorta the Ferrari of pellet stoves, I hope just not as trouble-prone as Italian cars tend to be!!


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## smoke show (Nov 16, 2011)

Here comes the code police!

Got any pics of outside venting?


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 16, 2011)

I followed all the manufacturers install instructions. The vent protrudes 4.5 feet from the side of the house, to meet the minimum 4 foot spacing to an operable window. The pipe is about 10 feet above a concrete patio. A horizontal vent config is allowed by the stove manufacturer, with no specified maximum allowed length. I am just waiting for the horizontal vent cap to finish the install. I'll post a pic of the outside flue when I get the cap on it.


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## blazeitup (Nov 16, 2011)

that stove looks great even without the shell, definatly a ferreri. FYI with outside air that stove is approved for 12" from window, not to mention how do u hav that 4' horizontal suspended anyway jus curious?


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 16, 2011)

I have a support strut to brace the pipe to the outside wall. I know that with OAK only 1 foot clearnace is needed, but I want to minimize any sooting of the light colored siding of my house.


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## myers7457 (Nov 16, 2011)

let me know how often you clean your burnpot.  I have been cleaning every other day.  There isnt much soot but the holes in the burnpot get covered.  The window stays clean as well as the exhaust cleanout.  I am burning lingetiics.  I was thinking about getting several bags of something else.  very happy with stove so far wating for some real cold.


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## blazeitup (Nov 16, 2011)

Pelleting In NJ said:
			
		

> I have a support strut to brace the pipe to the outside wall. I know that with OAK only 1 foot clearnace is needed, but I want to minimize any sooting of the light colored siding of my house.



ur choice but sooting should not b an issue as long as shes running correctly, with 12-18". sorry jus tryin to picture 4' stickin out of my house. mayb with an american flag hangin off it lol


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 16, 2011)

It does look a little funny, but I intend to remove it during the warmer months, so I don't have to look at it from my patio. That's way better than staring at a 12 foot vertical flue that can't be so easily removed.


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 16, 2011)

myers7457 said:
			
		

> let me know how often you clean your burnpot.  I have been cleaning every other day.  There isnt much soot but the holes in the burnpot get covered.  The window stays clean as well as the exhaust cleanout.  I am burning lingetiics.  I was thinking about getting several bags of something else.  very happy with stove so far wating for some real cold.



I don't really have a read on how often I have to clean it yet, as I only have burned maybe 8 lbs of pellets. My burn pot holes seem clear, after the "Final Cleaning" from the full speed operation the combustion blower during the shutdown sequence. What is clogging your holes? Hard deposits? or just soft ash? Are you cleaning yours so often because you want to? or have to?

I am burning "Great American Wood Pellets", which are made in PA. They were tested (I forget the pellet test website), and they have very low ash, almost ultra-premium, and were very well liked by the tester. Maybe you should try some of those. greatamericanpellets.com   They are only sold thru stove dealers, I got mine from "Wood Heat" in Flemington NJ, but there is one or two Wood Heat dealers in PA.


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## myers7457 (Nov 16, 2011)

I guess you would call it hard as it clumps in the firepot..It seems to be burning clean.  I called great american they are to email a local supplier.


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## CT_Burner (Nov 18, 2011)

I've had the same stove for a year. Powerful heat thrower! Beautiful to look at. Seems to need major vacuuming after about a ton or so. You'll know when flame burns too high and smokey. Definitely do the clean right away.

Good Luck!


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 22, 2011)

Since I ended-up with a horizontal flue config, I am considering to buy a UPS back-up unit to power the stove for a few minutes so that there is no smoke back-up if the power fails. I found a pure sinewave UPS, Cyberpower CP850PFCLCD, about $120, that will supply 255 Watts for 8 minutes. I measured the consumption of the combustion blower at 33 watts, and the convection blower is about 40 watts, so 73 watts is what the stove needs during a shut-down sequence. I should be able to get about 28 minutes of run-time from this UPS at 73W. To get the stove to go into shut-down mode automatically, I will put a set of N.O. relay contacts in series with the auger motor, so the contacts open if the 110VAC power drops-out. The stove will then run out of fuel, which will make the stove go into shut-down mode. Any thoughts? Any favorite UPS systems that people use for their stoves?


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## jtakeman (Nov 22, 2011)

Pelleting In NJ said:
			
		

> Since I ended-up with a horizontal flue config, I am considering to buy a UPS back-up unit to power the stove for a few minutes so that there is no smoke back-up if the power fails. I found a pure sinewave UPS, Cyberpower CP850PFCLCD, about $120, that will supply 255 Watts for 8 minutes. I would guess the combustion blower and convection blower use about 120 watts total, so I should be able to get about 16 minutes of run-time for the stove to shut down properly. To get the stove to go into shut-down mode automatically, I will put a set of N.O. relay contacts in series with the auger motor, so the contacts open if the 110VAC power drops-out. The stove will then run out of fuel, which will make the stove go into shut-down mode. Any thoughts? Any favorite UPS systems that people use for their stoves?



Some are using a relay to open the thermostat circuit which will also put the stove in shutdown mode. My stove goes to low fire for 30 minutes, So I would need a UPS that ran for that long or do what you plan. Just cliping the power to the auger motor sounds like a good Idea. ;-)


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 28, 2011)

Amazon delivered my pure sinewave UPS, Cyberpower CP850PFCLCD. Charged the battery and hooked it up to the stove : Did a power failure test run while the stove was running....works like a champ. Now to hook-up the automatic power failure shut-down to the stove, and hide the UPS unit in the basement.....


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## Pelleting In NJ (Jan 29, 2012)

First "deep" cleaning of my Ecoteck Elena. It seemed to be burning a little dirtier, especially during start-up. The hourmeter indicated I have run the stove for 500 hours, though the manual says to deep clean it every 1000 hours. I open her up, open the rear clean-out ports, and remove the combustion blower, but there really isn't any ash to clean-up. So, today I pulled off the vent-cap on my horizontal run (I have no vertical, just straight out the wall for 5 feet.) and peer inside.....here's the problem...the pipe has about a 2inch thick layer of ash on the bottom. Good thing I used 4 inch pipe, gives a little extra room for build-up. Quick clean up with the shop-vac, and now the stove burns normally again. Seems I have to clean my flue every 500 hours, even with the clean burning Great American Pellets I have been burning. I have burnt about 3/4 to a ton so far.


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## Pelleting In NJ (Oct 9, 2012)

Second Burn Season Update : Fired-up for the first time yesterday, still going strong. Bought 2 tons of CC Smith pellets. The only negative is that the "Firex" liner of the firebox is very fragile, trying to clean some "baked-on" ash resulted in a small piece of the Firex crumbling off. You have to be careful to only touch the Firex with a soft brush when cleaning.

Last year I burnt 2 tons of Great American pellets.


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## Ih8oil (Oct 9, 2012)

Pelleting In NJ said:


> Second Burn Season Update : Fired-up for the first time yesterday, still going strong. Bought 2 tons of CC Smith pellets. The only negative is that the "Firex" liner of the firebox is very fragile, trying to clean some "baked-on" ash resulted in a small piece of the Firex crumbling off. You have to be careful to only touch the Firex with a soft brush when cleaning.
> 
> Last year I burnt 2 tons of Great American pellets.


 

I am in my second season with an Ecoteck also.  I have mostly been burning the Maine Hardwood and am seeing the same thing as you with a lot of ash in the pipe.  What do you currently have the pellet rate and draught set to on the panel?  I have an oak installed and find I have to run at -3 and -4 respectively.


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## Pelleting In NJ (Oct 16, 2012)

I have the Draft "recipe" set to "Scarce" for my all horizontal flue pipe, , and the pellet-air mixture trim is set to "0" pellet and "+3" draught


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## jjbash (Nov 24, 2012)

Can anyone tell me where to find a 3 1/4" pipe adapter for my ecoteck? I just bought an Elena from a friend who got it on clearance, but it didn't come with any pipe and the 3" pipe I have doesn't fit onto the stove.


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## Pelleting In NJ (Jan 19, 2013)

So far, I have burned Great American Pellets, CC Smith , Presto log (Lignetics), TSC Premium Hardwood (AgriRecycle), Lowes Cheat River, and they all burn about the same for me.....the Ecoteck seems to not be pellet-pickey.

I also hooked-up my home-brew automatic auger disable, which cuts off if the power fails, so that the flame extinguishes and my UPS can run the combustion blower long enough to clear out the smoke. The auger disable has a push button to manually reset it when the power is back.


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## gfreek (Jan 20, 2013)

Pelleting In NJ said:


> I also hooked-up my home-brew automatic auger disable, which cuts off if the power fails, so that the flame extinguishes and my UPS can run the combustion blower long enough to clear out the smoke. The auger disable has a push button to manually reset it when the power is back.


 
Like what you did.. can you post what you used to do this and short instructions ??  Maybe a pic


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## smwilliamson (Jan 20, 2013)

Pelleting In NJ said:


> My Ecoteck was delivered yesterday, ordered my flue pipes today (Dynamitebuys).......now just need to decide what to do for the floor protection......I think my township inspector wants to see at least an inch thick pad....even though Ecoteck just specifies a non-combustible floor protector that is at least 0.02 inches thick ! I don't think I need any, since the floor is ceramic tile over backerboard.....but I understand that the Inspector has the final say.


You can use just about an non combustible pad because the Ecotecks have an inch air space under the stove, You can use glass if you want. Looks very modern.


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## smwilliamson (Jan 20, 2013)

Good looking install. That is the same color as mine. Some yips for ya...

Dont scrape the Firex 600 with anything, it crumbles over time. Use a brush. Don't be a moron like me and try and hot rod the thing to burn as hot as you can...while I was standing in front of it playing with the controls I accidentally caught my pants on fire from the radiant heat out of the glass.

Watch the terminal disconnects for the wires on the right side going to the door switch, they are not heat rated and will crumble over time and may short out together.

The heat exchange tube create a very narrow air path, keep those clean...rake the bar EVERY TIME you add pellets and wear a glove do you don't loose your finger prints.

Enjoy the stove!


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## PassionForFire&Water (Jan 20, 2013)

What brand of controllers are used in this Ecotek ?
I assume this is all 110V/60Hz?


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## Pelleting In NJ (Jan 20, 2013)

The controller is Ecoteck proprietary, an in-house design. It is all 110v 60hz for the stoves shipped to US. The fan motors are PABST, I think made in Germany. The auger motor is a Merkle Korpf (might be off on the spelling)


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 15, 2013)

Just adding some replacement parts info :
I ordered a spare ignitor and burn-pot for my Elena from North Forge Heating, Annville PA, (talk to Barry (717) 867 1744).
The Ignitor dimensions are 6 inches long by 10 mm diameter.  A brass threaded (metric threads) ferrule is pressed on one end.
It is a 250W 110V heater, marked "HT51698 W250 V110 0080902401 CE"
I think the OEM manufacturer is European.
The room temp resistance is 46 ohms.

The burn-pot part number is 55009


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## Bioburner (Nov 15, 2013)

How bad did you get hooked for the spare igniter?


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## Pelleting In NJ (Nov 15, 2013)

Bioburner said:


> How bad did you get hooked for the spare igniter?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


 
$60 for the ignitor, $90 for the burn-pot.

Thanks for posting the ignitor picture.


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## zrtmatos (Nov 26, 2013)

Thanks Pelleting in NJ! Just the info and pics I was hoping to see.


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