englander 25pvd troubles

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I got new gasket. the old one was only maybe 1/16" thick. The new one I got is 5/8" thick.. it fits nice and snug. So far so good. I'll let you know in a few hours how the ash looks. So far the glass seems to be staying cleaR, so that's a bonus.
 
There must be a gap where the ends meet on the gasket. It's suckling air right there and I'm getting huge amount of clinkers still. Today I'm going to redo the gasket again, and see if maybe the flue is clogged a little somewhere.
 
For a while now Ive been plugging the holes under the burn plate to get more air through the pellets. And where it burns great with awesome heat; it makes a mess of the exhaust path. I bought a gasket from HD that worked just fine btw if youre in a pinch. Anyone ever block off the holes for the "airwash"? Nearest I can tell, it sucks air from the front of the stove making less air to pull through the pot. Correct me if Im wrong tho, Im just guessing. Seems like that would be a good vac loss for something that doesn't work anyways haha.
 
Once this thing cools down I'm going to take some pics for you. I defiantly have some kind of issue going on. Burning lignetics shouldn't be leaving this much ash.
 
Mine is a similar set up to yours (basement but 1800 sqft). It does heat the whole house but on those days where you need to run it on 7-9 constantly is where it just cant keep up with the pellet load. Englander gave up on me and like a few people Ive read about, once they cant figure it out they just ignore you. Only way I can keep up with it is either scrape the pot 2-3 times a day or plug the holes under the plate. Getting a better stove for next season, so it is what it is right now. The ash mine makes is ridiculous regardless of pellet brand. I had ok luck with a soft wood but it really lacked heat output. Obviously if the door gasket is leaking, that needs to be fixed. But try experimenting with plugging up the holes under the burn plate and see if anything changes. There is a handful of people who have modified the burn pot on these things. The adjustable block off plate someone made for under the burn plate for the real cold season seems spot on.
 
That's a great idea.. right now the air seems to come mostly from the large holes in the back of the burn plate right next to the auger. Perhaps if I plugged those 2 holes I would get a lot more air through the smaller holes. That's what seems to be happening. The small holes seem to not be able to keep up with the work load because once they get covered up a little the air just comes in the big holes next to the throat.
 
This is 1 bag. 4 hours after shutdown. not nearly as many clinkers but still not what I'm hoping for. [Hearth.com] englander 25pvd troubles [Hearth.com] englander 25pvd troubles [Hearth.com] englander 25pvd troubles [Hearth.com] englander 25pvd troubles [Hearth.com] englander 25pvd troubles
 
That last photo I stirred the pot to blaze the embers. What do you use to scrape the pot.. a shovel? I don't have a tool to do it and need to know the best thing to use.
 
That's a great idea.. right now the air seems to come mostly from the large holes in the back of the burn plate right next to the auger. Perhaps if I plugged those 2 holes I would get a lot more air through the smaller holes. That's what seems to be happening. The small holes seem to not be able to keep up with the work load because once they get covered up a little the air just comes in the big holes next to the throat.

Mine is a new PDV (2014 model) so Im not sure what burn pot you have (thought I read you had an older stove). The very back holes in the plate seem to be pretty important, at least to me anyways. With my burn pot, there are small holes in the side above the the plate (on both sides) and two big holes on either side above those. The big holes look like the problem to me. I was going to weld up the bigger holes but since I wont be using it next year, Im not gonna bother. send some picks of your pot if you can. I have been running mine with the two upper airwash holes plugged and back on 9/9 on a T-stat and the burn pot put back to normal. As of 6 this morning, its actually burning great minus the sooty glass. But given a few hours and it would have been sooty anyways.
 
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Is it just me or does that lower auger look like its sticking out too far?

Also, the impingement plate looks like its too far to the left.

Also, you can try to slow the feed on high with the hopper plate. As for scrapping the pot, I use a 4in putty knife.
 
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Wow.. I'm am idiot.. the plate must have moved while in transit to the basement and I never fixed it. I'll try that along with the Flue and the Gasket. That plate I bet is acting as A damper and covering some of the exhaust vent. I'll check it out here soon.
 
Wow.. I'm am idiot.. the plate must have moved while in transit to the basement and I never fixed it. I'll try that along with the Flue and the Gasket. That plate I bet is acting as A damper and covering some of the exhaust vent. I'll check it out here soon.

Yea, make sure that plate is centered and it wouldnt hurt to make sure to really clean the heck out behind the plate, and burn pot. As well as the blower if you haven't.
 
How do I clean the blower? Do I have to take the blower apart from the back?

There should be a cover on the left side (if your looking at the front of it) and I think 6 nuts that hold it on. If you don't have a gasket, just use a little high temp RTV. Look in there after you get the blower off for soot clogging. Stove maybe plugged up. Who knows what kind of maintenance it had prior. but ya, pull the blower and get all the soot off it. There should be a gap between the fan and the blower motor backing plate. Soot likes to build up on it.
 
I was pulling the glass out to reset the gasket to see if I could maybe stop the leak and I dropped it. Put 1 crack right down the middle of the damn thing. 80 dollars.. already ordered a new one. It's on the way. At least iw will be ready for next winter. Lol.. oh.. and I pulled the blower. It was dirty, but didn't appear clogged. I pulled the impegment plate and felt around up there and there is a big hole on the left side that seemed open and a long slot across the middle that was completely clogged. When the new glass arrives I'll be ready to go hopefully. I'll get a pic of that plate and pot here soon.
 
I was pulling the glass out to reset the gasket to see if I could maybe stop the leak and I dropped it. Put 1 crack right down the middle of the damn thing. 80 dollars.. already ordered a new one. It's on the way. At least iw will be ready for next winter. Lol.. oh.. and I pulled the blower. It was dirty, but didn't appear clogged. I pulled the impegment plate and felt around up there and there is a big hole on the left side that seemed open and a long slot across the middle that was completely clogged. When the new glass arrives I'll be ready to go hopefully. I'll get a pic of that plate and pot here soon.

That stinks! Definitely look around the site for great tips on cleaning these stoves. You will prob want to get some small brushes and maybe get a leaf blower on the exhaust to really get it all. Give that stove a good douching. I use one of these portable dust collectors as I clean the stove in the basement and cant always get on the roof. Once cleaned and a few bugs worked out (and a new glass) you should be ok.
 

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Is it just me or does that lower auger look like its sticking out too far?

Also, the impingement plate looks like its too far to the left.

Also, you can try to slow the feed on high with the hopper plate. As for scrapping the pot, I use a 4in putty knife.


Hopper plate?
 
Hopper plate?

Inside the hopper, where the pellets go into the upper auger, there is a plate you csn move to restrict the amount of pellets that get dropped. At least there should be. Mines as closed as it will go, and thats where it burns best for me. The FSU pellets are small, so wide open would dump too many pellets.
 
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