Hudson River WestPoint Control Panel

[Don2222]

Hello

So I just picked up a HR WestPoint

The body is in very good condition. It is a nice charcoal gray color. The room blower and the exhaust blower work fine. The ash pan is on the small side for a stove with a 3 bag hopper. The ignitor works fine. The control panel and the burn pot seem to be the major issues.

Well the control panel seems to work well on heat level 1-3 but on 4 & 5 it fills the pot up too much and overflows from what I hear.

Since the 6.5 lbs/hr burn rate is too much for the stove to handle;
Would a good option be to upgrade the control panel to the Enviro HR Kinderhook panel and be done with it?

New model HR Kinderhook Stove 60,000 BTU with max lbs/hr = 5 on the control panel
http://www.woodlanddirect.com/Wood-Stove-and-Accessories/Hudson-River-Kinderhook-Pellet-Stove

Hudson River West Point 70,000 BTU with max lbs/hr = 6.5 on the control panel
(broken link removed)

Enviro Circuit board
(broken link removed to http://woodheatstoves.com/circuit-board-c11652-501929-p-17731.html?cPath=499_500)

Pic 1 = HR WestPoint Control Panel Diagram in Manual
Pic 2 = HR WestPoint Control Panel on Stove
Pic 3 = Enviro Control Panel similar to the one on the HR Kinderhook - Max 5.0 lbs/hr

However since the WestPoint goes up to 6.5 lbs/hr the control panel for the VF-170 that goes up to 7.6 - 8.3 lbs/Hr may be the best upgrade/replacement

 

[smoke show]

Well the control panel seems to work well on heat level 1-3 but on 4 & 5 it fills the pot up too much and overflows from what I hear.

So theres def a problem with the control panel?

 

[Don2222]

So theres def a problem with the control panel?

I think there is, just wondering if anyone else experienced this issue. I am sure there are many of these stoves out there so hoping to hear from someone's experienced. Otherwise I could wait for the cold weather! ! !

Also, the stove puts out excellent heat on low but I hear there is a problem on hi level 5.

level 5 is 6.5 lbs/hr and the new Kinderhook that replaces this stove only scales up to a max of 5.0 lbs / hr on level 5 which is probably plenty of heat!

 

[smoke show]

I think there is, just wondering if anyone else experienced this issue. I am sure there are many of these stoves out there so hoping to hear from someone's experienced. Otherwise I could wait for the cold weather! ! !

Ahh, gotcha.

 

[DexterDay]

I would wait till someone chimes in.... I know there is at least one person with this stove...

Seems they haven't had a problem.

Some stoves have a problem on High. Lots of fuel and limited air....

Hook the stove up and see for yourself.

Thats the best way

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

One check the manual to see if there is more than one set of timings if there is see which of the sets is actually set on the control board, two make sure there is a gasket under the rim of the burn pot, three at the top of the auger flight where the flight cover meets the u shaped metal end piece you likely need to use a bit of flat gasket, and four check the area where the auger flight meets the drop tube you'll likely have to use some RTV and seal that joint.

 

[Don2222]

One check the manual to see if there is more than one set of timings if there is see which of the sets is actually set on the control board, two make sure there is a gasket under the rim of the burn pot, three at the top of the auger flight where the flight cover meets the u shaped metal end piece you likely need to use a bit of flat gasket, and four check the area where the auger flight meets the drop tube you'll likely have to use some RTV and seal that joint.

Hi Smoke
Does this look OK or should I add sealant? Click on image to see whole pic.

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

I have the same stove.....for a bit of history I had build up issues originally. A new burnpot and gasket material around that solved the issue. Now the stove runs great. I have noticed that the burn rates in the manual are for pellets that are not very dense....most pellets will give you a burn rate higher. That being said running on high will give you 7 or more pounds per hour. I have run mine on high for an hour or two without issue.....realistically you would bever have to run that high....I run mine on high low 24hrs a day 90.. percent if the time on 2......good pellets I can go a week without emptying the ashcan...about 14ten bags.

 

[Don2222]

I have the same stove.....for a bit of history I had build up issues originally. A new burnpot and gasket material around that solved the issue. Now the stove runs great. I have noticed that the burn rates in the manual are for pellets that are not very dense....most pellets will give you a burn rate higher. That being said running on high will give you 7 or more pounds per hour. I have run mine on high for an hour or two without issue.....realistically you would bever have to run that high....I run mine on high low 24hrs a day 90.. percent if the time on 2......good pellets I can go a week without emptying the ashcan...about 14ten bags.

Thanks for the good report. Much appreciated!

Is your cleaning rod sticky? See
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...-wood-pellet-stove-cleaning-rod-sticky.87962/

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

I also added the sealant as Smokey had suggested. My only complaint is it does not run great on low.....I think there is too much air going through.....I have a couple of ideas on how to bypass some air or block some air....I had put a small maybe 1.5 inch square brick in the middle of the pot and it did the trick....ran on the lowest setting fine.....

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

I have not had an issue with the cleaning rod

 

[Don2222]

I also added the sealant as Smokey had suggested. My only complaint is it does not run great on low.....I think there is too much air going through.....I have a couple of ideas on how to bypass some air or block some air....I had put a small maybe 1.5 inch square brick in the middle of the pot and it did the trick....ran on the lowest setting fine.....

Thanks
There is no damper on the intake of these stoves. That is a problem!
Probably needs something like the one I got for the US Stove 5660 which btw has the exact same convection blower with the top mount motor! ! !
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/us-stove-5660-oak-butterfly-valve.87631/#post-1133643

So an upgrade convection blower would be the Magnum MF-3541

See 3 fixes

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[IHATEPROPANE]

Where did you get the upgraded convection blower

 

[smwilliamson]

I believe the westpoint and the saranac used the same control board with the same timings but different auger flightings. If so, the new St. Croix control board on factory setting #3 has the same timing sequence and flighting as the Saranac. I have a customer with a Saranac with the St. Croix board running on their 3rd season no problems...and the molex is plug and play too.

 

[Don2222]

I believe the westpoint and the saranac used the same control board with the same timings but different auger flightings. If so, the new St. Croix control board on factory setting #3 has the same timing sequence and flighting as the Saranac. I have a customer with a Saranac with the St. Croix board running on their 3rd season no problems...and the molex is plug and play too.

Yes, but what new control board can be used for the HR Westpoint?
The auger flight cover on the Sarnac is 7" long and 8" long on the Westpoint

 

[Don2222]

Where did you get the upgraded convection blower

The convection blower with the top mounted motor can be upgraded to a less vibrating Magnum MF-3541 blower with side mounted motor, and can be obtained from American Energy System on-line store for $126.

See http://www.americanenergysystems.com/motors.cfm or (broken link removed)

 

[Don2222]

I have the same stove.....for a bit of history I had build up issues originally. A new burnpot and gasket material around that solved the issue. Now the stove runs great. I have noticed that the burn rates in the manual are for pellets that are not very dense....most pellets will give you a burn rate higher. That being said running on high will give you 7 or more pounds per hour. I have run mine on high for an hour or two without issue.....realistically you would bever have to run that high....I run mine on high low 24hrs a day 90.. percent if the time on 2......good pellets I can go a week without emptying the ashcan...about 14ten bags.

Hello Ihatepropane

I saw in the link below, if you run the stove on Hi (Heat Level 5) for a long time it will trip the Hi Limit switch?
Did you ever have that happen?
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/help-with-hudson-river-westpoint-new-stove.26518/

 

[SmokeyTheBear]

Don,

Adding a butterfly valve in the air intake can give a measure of fine air control that isn't on the stove (including all variants, remember your USSC unit) but the proper program has to be selected as those programs control both the combustion air flow and the convection blower.

I haven't seen the insides of a west point but it is likely the heat exchanger/convection airflow isn't closely matched to the combustion side. Making changes on the convection side should be done paying particular attention to the exhaust temperatures, you don't want to pump air through the convection side so fast that the heat can not be removed by the heat exchanger to the room air. If that happens your exhaust temperatures will rise and your efficiency can go to hell in a hand basket.

 

[Don2222]

Don,

Adding a butterfly valve in the air intake can give a measure of fine air control that isn't on the stove (including all variants, remember your USSC unit) but the proper program has to be selected as those programs control both the combustion air flow and the convection blower.

I haven't seen the insides of a west point but it is likely the heat exchanger/convection airflow isn't closely matched to the combustion side. Making changes on the convection side should be done paying particular attention to the exhaust temperatures, you don't want to pump air through the convection side so fast that the heat can not be removed by the heat exchanger to the room air. If that happens your exhaust temperatures will rise and your effeminacy can go to hell in a hand basket.

X2, I agree. However on this HR WestPoint stove, the Convection blower and Combustion blower are identical to my US 5660 stove! I actually did fire it up before I purchased it! That is a good idea! LOL
It ran fine and it puts out really great heat after warming up and the convection blower came on!
The intake air pipe looks like it is 3 inches with 2 large holes going into the burn box below the burn pot. So that maybe why there is too much air at times and a butterfly valve may be a good help here! This is a challenging stove, but I like a challenge and with your help, I sure we can figure this thing out! ! !

See intake air path pics here
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/hudson-river-westpoint-burn-pot-issues.87953/#post-1139767

I think we can learn alot from the design of stoves that may NOT be quite right.
In this case I believe the 3" intake was put in because of the 6.5 lbs/hr burn rate at heat level 5.

Also 3" air intake tubes are very common on wood stoves, but they usually have 6" flue venting!
So 3" intake for a pellet stove still may not be right!

However when Enviro redesigned this stove, they made a max of 5.0 lbs/hr at heat level 5 and changed the intake pipe to 2 inches! Envir claims the BTUs are 60k.
WestPoint says 70k BTU in Sales literature but 60k BTU in manual. Not very consistant!
I know Enviro control panels and they work very well on all heat settings. The heat exchangers pump out some real hot heat even on the lower heat level settings!

So this may prove we need a damper on the intake. As far as heat level 5 goes, I will have fun testing that out! ! ! !

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

Hello Ihatepropane

I saw in the link below, if you rund the stove on Hi (Heat Level 5) for a long time it will trip the Hi Limit switch?
Did you ever have that happen?
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/help-with-hudson-river-westpoint-new-stove.26518/

I did not trip the high limit and I do nit think it would have if I ran it longer. I am not sure what the temp was at the highlinit switch but remember thinking it was still quite low. Like I said before ...there is no reason this stove would have to be on high for very long.....you cannot stand less than five feet away without starting to melt........I do like the idea of putting a camper in...wish you luck in your quest....mine runs quite well and I like it a lot.

 

[Don2222]

I did not trip the high limit and I do nit think it would have if I ran it longer. I am not sure what the temp was at the highlinit switch but remember thinking it was still quite low. Like I said before ...there is no reason this stove would have to be on high for very long.....you cannot stand less than five feet away without starting to melt........I do like the idea of putting a camper in...wish you luck in your quest....mine runs quite well and I like it a lot.

Thank-You IHatpropane

I was concerned from some bum reviews I read on the Internet. Those people probably were not very technical. I am so happy for your comments because, If I clean it and tweak it as you say, It will be a great stove! The manual states it should have a 250 Deg F Hi Limit switch, so I will check the stove. If not I have one I can throw in!

Also the guy I got it from told me 2 things:

1. The head of the ignitor was sticking out of the ignitor tube into the burn pot. So he pushed it back even with the end of the Ignitor tube.
Is that why the ignitor was prematurely failing? Should it be even with the end of the tube? My other stove is even.

2. He said at times it was overfeeding pellets and not burning them up.
Is that because there was no gasket around the burn pot. I got a gasket yesterday and I will put it on today.
I cleaned the burn pot real nice with a wire brush. Also wire brushed and cleaned the burn chamber. Then gave it some flat black Flame Proof header paint.
It will look good for some pics I will take of it burning. Is there a Brick Backing option available?

Pic - Fire Box Painted with Flat Black FlameProof Header Paint

 

[Don2222]

Hello

Well, the Hi Limit switch is 250 Deg F and I now know from experience that they do not usually go any higher than that in wood pellet stoves.

Pic shows L250F on the metal side that goes against the stove. Thanks

Here is the HR WestPoint that I did not buy! It may be a diamond in the ruff for a handy guy! ! ! !
(broken link removed to http://burlington.craigslist.org/for/3104428204.html)

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

My igniter went after the first season. But I was starting my stove twice a day because of my initial problem with air bypass creating a bad burn and buildup. I probably got about 150 to 200 lights out of it...didn't replace ut because it is just as easy for me to hit with the propane torch.......if I remember I think I was getting a reading of about 150and or 180me with the infrared at that sensor. The metal on the front where thewe air exitsor was like high 4 hundreds. I never run over 3.....and even then it is a short time......my place is plus 2000sq ft with questionable insulation

 

[Don2222]

My igniter went after the first season. But I was starting my stove twice a day because of my initial problem with air bypass creating a bad burn and buildup. I probably got about 150 to 200 lights out of it...didn't replace ut because it is just as easy for me to hit with the propane torch.......if I remember I think I was getting a reading of about 150and or 180me with the infrared at that sensor. The metal on the front where thewe air exitsor was like high 4 hundreds. I never run over 3.....and even then it is a short time......my place is plus 2000sq ft with questionable insulation

Is the head of your ignitor even with the end of the igniter tube?

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

Is the head of your ignitor even with the end of the igniter tube?

Just a hair past