hi everyone.
have appreciated this board for a long time, but im a first time poster. first wanna say thanks so much for everyones knowledge, expertise and kind advice.
ive had a breckwell Big-E for supplemental heat for 15 years or so. The maintenance on it has been pretty straight forward, easy and minor (in part because its never been run really really hard.) I thought id get a second wood pellet stove in another part of the house seeing how fuel prices are going, so I bought a used Englander 25 PAH. I was mostly focused on loading logistics when we picked up, so wasnt realizing how hard it had been run til i got it home. Burn pot was burnt thru (which is fine, got a new one), the vent was burnt out (nbd also just replaced it,) but the inside seems pretty deeply dirty.
ive been able to get it to run (not always on first shot - sometimes has to go thru SU mode twice to reach temp to stay on) but want to make sure its running well. im learning quickly its maintenance is more intense than my breckwell. open to any advice / other useful posts but here are a few specific questions / issues im having:
— the exhaust chamber screws were really caked in baked on ash. i cleaned them off and tried to loosen them with both flat head and socket (tried with manual wrench and drill.) couldnt get it to move / socket seemed to potentially spin off when on drill (i know! i know. agh.) they seem way overtightened (the ash pan was also INSANELY over tightened too so matches up.) any tips or tricks to get these off?
— i know installation manual says the air intake must come from outside. my breckwell stove is fine with (as far as i know, but could have been installed wrong) pulling air from the room its in. right now, just to test run and trouble shoot it, i have it running with air intake just propped up inside. the only spot i have to run intake to exterior would be RIGHT by vent. whats my best option - external intake 10" from vent (which has directional cap blowing opposite direction) or can it run ok pulling from inside like its doing right now?
— the exhaust piece of the stove had rotting / corrosion, so that its a 1/4" shorter on the bottom than the top. i chipped off creosote build up, etc. and got duravent clean out T over it, applied high heat silicone / putty, but im not feeling 100 on it. should i replace the factory exhaust piece? or is there something that will make that connection better / make up for the corrosion and prevent it from easily rotting out / becoming open over the winter?
have appreciated this board for a long time, but im a first time poster. first wanna say thanks so much for everyones knowledge, expertise and kind advice.
ive had a breckwell Big-E for supplemental heat for 15 years or so. The maintenance on it has been pretty straight forward, easy and minor (in part because its never been run really really hard.) I thought id get a second wood pellet stove in another part of the house seeing how fuel prices are going, so I bought a used Englander 25 PAH. I was mostly focused on loading logistics when we picked up, so wasnt realizing how hard it had been run til i got it home. Burn pot was burnt thru (which is fine, got a new one), the vent was burnt out (nbd also just replaced it,) but the inside seems pretty deeply dirty.
ive been able to get it to run (not always on first shot - sometimes has to go thru SU mode twice to reach temp to stay on) but want to make sure its running well. im learning quickly its maintenance is more intense than my breckwell. open to any advice / other useful posts but here are a few specific questions / issues im having:
— the exhaust chamber screws were really caked in baked on ash. i cleaned them off and tried to loosen them with both flat head and socket (tried with manual wrench and drill.) couldnt get it to move / socket seemed to potentially spin off when on drill (i know! i know. agh.) they seem way overtightened (the ash pan was also INSANELY over tightened too so matches up.) any tips or tricks to get these off?
— i know installation manual says the air intake must come from outside. my breckwell stove is fine with (as far as i know, but could have been installed wrong) pulling air from the room its in. right now, just to test run and trouble shoot it, i have it running with air intake just propped up inside. the only spot i have to run intake to exterior would be RIGHT by vent. whats my best option - external intake 10" from vent (which has directional cap blowing opposite direction) or can it run ok pulling from inside like its doing right now?
— the exhaust piece of the stove had rotting / corrosion, so that its a 1/4" shorter on the bottom than the top. i chipped off creosote build up, etc. and got duravent clean out T over it, applied high heat silicone / putty, but im not feeling 100 on it. should i replace the factory exhaust piece? or is there something that will make that connection better / make up for the corrosion and prevent it from easily rotting out / becoming open over the winter?
— Local pellet source? i can tell the quality of pellets probably matter a lot more with this englander than they have with my breckwell (which hasnt had issues with the lowes / home depot brands.) any recommends of where to get good pellets in DE / PA/ NJ near philly?
![[Hearth.com] Getting a used Englander 25 PAH cleaned up and running right near Philly](https://www.hearth.com/talk/attachments/img_6159-webp.301053/ "[Hearth.com] Getting a used Englander 25 PAH cleaned up and running right near Philly")
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