Big E #1 or #2 setting

[Tony K]

I have found on the Big E that the #1 or #2 setting is just about useless! I have sat for hours trying every adjustment possible and just can't seem to get it to burn decent! as soon as I go to the #3 setting it burns great and wishing I could use the #4 or #5 setting more often but Breckwell doesn't want you to use the #4 or #5 setting for more than an hour. Thoughts or suggestions?

 

[buildingmaint]

I have to adjust the damper to almost closed when using the stove on #1 , blowers blow out fire . Never use the # 2 setting much , but when I have it never put fire out. I think you can use the # 4 setting , as I have only read that Breckwell reccomends not using the # 5 setting for longer then an hour . I run mine on the High / Low setting with a programable t -stat , run it on 1 low/ 3 high setting .

 

[jtakeman]

Tony,

Like buildingmaint says. You have to close the damper all the way on 1. You can run on 4 all day long. It is only suggested not to run on 5 for more than 2 hrs. max(stove might over heat).

This was my complain also with the bigE. I wanted to run on high/low My stove would run very rich with the damper in all the way on 3 setting and OK on 1 setting. So I would only run on the 3 setting with Auto/Off on T=stat.

Breckwell could fix this issue with an adjustable combustion blower that most of the other stoves have. Then you could set the stove to run on 3 setting and the control would reduce the blower speed lower for the 1 heat setting.

There is a guy selling a replacement board for the Breckwell with this feature. Check this thread:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/37111/

I don't know anything about it and I am not related to this at all. But if he says it does this, It would fix the low heat setting issues.

My Omega has an adjustable blower and I can burn from the lowest setting to the highest setting without adjusting my damper possition! I love the feature. I can run on high/low, High being any where from 2 thru 5 and low on 1. Works great.

This is just my 2 cents.
jay

 

[Tony K]

Jay, that is some good information. I've been wondering if there was a way to have the stove go on and off on specific times, as with using a timer and if I read it right it seems as the new board does that. With a feature such as that I can see savings in pellet use. My plan for next year was to spot burn seeing as the price of pellets are crazy, but that would mean manually turing on and off when I got home from work and waiting for the basement to heat up. This way with a timer it could be warm when I got home. Seeing as the pellet stove was not planned as being my main source of heat this just might be something very helpful to me.

Thanks for the info

 

[MCPO]

It doesn`t seem to me to be a good design if you have to adjust an exhaust damper for each heat setting mainly because the combustion fan runs at a single speed. It looks like a down and dirty fix to a problem vs a solution to the cause.

 

[treehackers]

I run my Big E on 4 24/7 in the winter

 

[jtakeman]

It doesn`t seem to me to be a good design if you have to adjust an exhaust damper for each heat setting mainly because the combustion fan runs at a single speed. It looks like a down and dirty fix to a problem vs a solution to the cause.

Its what I thought. See most of the other stove manufacturers vary there blower speed at the lower heat settings. I asked Breckwell if there was a planned fix for there issue. There reply was just don't run the stove on the lower settings.

I bought a new stove!

jay

 

[Tony K]

My original thought was the reason Breckwell didn't want you to use the high setting was to protect the life of the blower motor. When using the 4 or 5 setting I noticed no difference between the two in fan speed. Heat as Jay posted might be the reason but not what the book says. Going from 3 to 4 motor increases, going from 4 to 5 if it increases I can't hear the difference. I like the idea of no damper adjustment......still looking into the control board Jay mentioned....

Going to Preston Trading Post tomorrow checking into the installation of a wood stove.........

 

[travlnusa]

I also run a Big E, but you need to keep in mind that this unit was built to deliver lots of heat from a very low cost unit. When we choose to buy a lower cost unit, you have to give up some of the finer features.

 

[MCPO]

I also run a Big E, but you need to keep in mind that this unit was built to deliver lots of heat from a very low cost unit. When we choose to buy a lower cost unit, you have to give up some of the finer features.

Yes , the lower price is understood but efficient and safe control of the fire and heat output at designated settings shouldn`t be considered a finer feature.

 

[kinsmanstoves]

My original thought was the reason Breckwell didn't want you to use the high setting was to protect the life of the blower motor. When using the 4 or 5 setting I noticed no difference between the two in fan speed. Heat as Jay posted might be the reason but not what the book says. Going from 3 to 4 motor increases, going from 4 to 5 if it increases I can't hear the difference. I like the idea of no damper adjustment......still looking into the control board Jay mentioned....

Going to Preston Trading Post tomorrow checking into the installation of a wood stove.........

There is no change in the circulation blower from #4 to #5.

Eric

 

[Breckwell Tech]

You can run your Breckwell stove on #4 all day long. The reason that Breckwell recommends you only run the stove on #5 no more than an hour or two is to make sure that there is no chance of warping anywhere.

You either have to adjust the damper for each heat level or you have to have a variable speed combustion blower. The reason Breckwell does not use a variable speed combustion blower and allows the user to adjust there combustion air intake is because of the stove is sold all over the country at different altitudes. A Big E stove at sea level will run differently and have the damper adjusted differently than a Big E at 5,000 foot above sea level. A variable speed combustion blower has no way to sense altitude. This is why adjusting your combustion air intake damper is better than having a variable speed combustion blower.

 

[MCPO]

You can run your Breckwell stove on #4 all day long. The reason that Breckwell recommends you only run the stove on #5 no more than an hour or two is to make sure that there is no chance of warping anywhere.

You either have to adjust the damper for each heat level or you have to have a variable speed combustion blower. The reason Breckwell does not use a variable speed combustion blower and allows the user to adjust there combustion air intake is because of the stove is sold all over the country at different altitudes. A Big E stove at sea level will run differently and have the damper adjusted differently than a Big E at 5,000 foot above sea level. A variable speed combustion blower has no way to sense altitude. This is why adjusting your combustion air intake damper is better than having a variable speed combustion blower.

I`m not buying that . If that was the case why don`t the rest of them utilize a damper? Most or at least some makers employ a trim pot adjustment for the combustion blower.
Regardless, we`re talking exhaust forced up the flue here and not as with wood stoves where differences in altitude can have a significant influence on natural draft..

 

[johnnywarm]

I have found on the Big E that the #1 or #2 setting is just about useless! I have sat for hours trying every adjustment possible and just can't seem to get it to burn decent! as soon as I go to the #3 setting it burns great and wishing I could use the #4 or #5 setting more often but Breckwell doesn't want you to use the #4 or #5 setting for more than an hour. Thoughts or suggestions?

Big E's love being on #3&4;. its 5 they dont want on over an hour.my big e runs on 4 for three to four days at a time.

 

[travlnusa]

I run my Big E on #2 when it is 10 degrees or better, and #3 when below that.

Never had it up to 4 or 5. Coldest night this past winter was -27.

I will agree that setting #1 is simply a good way to smolder away pellets.

 

[johnnywarm]

I
I will agree that setting #1 is simply a good way to smolder away pellets.

Or the best way to keep the stove ready when it calls for heat.if its on high/low.

 

[travlnusa]

I
I will agree that setting #1 is simply a good way to smolder away pellets.

Or the best way to keep the stove ready when it calls for heat.if its on high/low.

This is true, as I ran mine over the winter manually.

 

[johnnywarm]

the big e has the settings that the more expensive stoves has,use them!

 

[Breckwell Tech]

You can run your Breckwell stove on #4 all day long. The reason that Breckwell recommends you only run the stove on #5 no more than an hour or two is to make sure that there is no chance of warping anywhere.

You either have to adjust the damper for each heat level or you have to have a variable speed combustion blower. The reason Breckwell does not use a variable speed combustion blower and allows the user to adjust there combustion air intake is because of the stove is sold all over the country at different altitudes. A Big E stove at sea level will run differently and have the damper adjusted differently than a Big E at 5,000 foot above sea level. A variable speed combustion blower has no way to sense altitude. This is why adjusting your combustion air intake damper is better than having a variable speed combustion blower.

I`m not buying that . If that was the case why don`t the rest of them utilize a damper? Most or at least some makers employ a trim pot adjustment for the combustion blower.
Regardless, we`re talking exhaust forced up the flue here and not as with wood stoves where differences in altitude can have a significant influence on natural draft..

Allot of other manufactures do utilize a damper. The exhaust is not forced up the flue like you think, it is simply just a 1.6amp 3000RPM blower motor. Natural draft is a big part of a Breckwell pellet stove working properly. Altitude does affect a Breckwell stove, it is even in the manual.