Issues with pellet stove, appreciate assistance....

[ktsanf]

I have a St. Croix pellet stove, the model is Pepin. Twice in the last month the ash pan has filled up with smoldering pellets and has become red hot. The burn pot is overflowing with pellets and they just spill over and fill the pan. I'm not sure what could be causing this.

Does anyone have any ideas on what could be causing this? I have shut the stove off because I'm afraid to leave it going in case this happens again while we're not home.

Thanks in advance...

 

[Shane]

Aside from the possibility of control board failure I would venture to guess your having a flow problem caused by faulty gaskets or a dirty stove. Check your gaskets. How much fuel have you burned? If in the 2 ton plus range you may need to get the stove cleaned.

 

[webbie]

Did this happen on low or medium setting?

If it happened on high, then it may simply be a mismatch between your pellets and auger feed setting. The quality of the pellet fuel, exact stove venting, the placement of the pot and other factors can contribute toward this problem. Make certain the firepot is seated correctly and that all air holes in it are scraped clean often.

 

[ktsanf]

We've burned about 1.5 tons since we've had the stove (my parents bought it new and had it for a few years). I clean the stove every 5 days, by cleaning I mean vacuuming, scraping the burn pot and associated parts and making sure nothing is plugged. The stove will burn fine after a cleaning. I have found that the two episodes of the reported issue have occurred about 3 days after the cleaning. This also happened to my parents once when the stove was new and never happened again to them.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[begreen]

It may be the pellets. What brand? Are they at all damp? Are you mixing corn with them?

 

[Xena]

Obtained from the pepin manual:

The stove is very trouble free in operation when properly
maintained and quality pellets are used.
When the stove fails to operate properly, troubleshooting
by the operator of the stove is limited to proper cleaning of the
stove and the exhaust system, proper control setting and pellet
quality.
Caution: The electrical components of the stove are
not owner serviceable. Call your dealer for proper diagnosis of
electrical problems and service to those components.

 

[yooperlou]

Hello,

If this happens on my stove (hartman), it usually occurs because either the feed rate is to high or there are clinkers built up on the burn pot. On my stove and probably most others the holes on the burn pot need to be relatively clear of build up or you will not get the proper air flow needed for a good burn. Also I noticed the same problem if I burn hardwood pellets versus softwood such as pine or fir. If you need to clean your stove every five days I suspect high moisture or high ash pellets.

 

[ktsanf]

Thanks everyone for the replies and comments. To answer some questions - I've been burning Hammer Hot Ones since I've had the stove (10/2006). The issue just started within the last month or so. The heat adjust setting is at 4 (out of 6) and the fan is on high. A few things that I just recently noticed, and I'm wondering if these are at all related, when I start the stove after it's been cleaned the door glass turns black within a few hours, never did this before. I also notice that the rope gasket around the door is frayed in one spot so I'm wondering if the door is not getting a total seal when closed.

As far as cleaning it every five days, I don't have to do every five days. I can definitely let it go longer but I figure just might as well get it done.

Thanks again for all of the input.

 

[begreen]

Are there tension adjustments on the door latch(es)? If yes, try tightening them slightly. It does sound like air may be leaking in if the pellets are still nice and dry. Often one can trace the leak by looking at the area where the glass soots up first. If this correlates with the frayed gasket, you likely have the smoking gun. Try the dollar bill test with the door latched to see if it pulls through easily at that spot.

 

[yooperlou]

I have the same issue here, I misunderstood your post originally thinking that you had to clean it or it wouldn't work properly, sorry. I don't know where you are from but up here in the frozen north my harman is not acting like it normally does either. I get some black smudge on the glass within a few hours and it just doesn't want to heat the place the way I am used to. Plus I have a lot more klinkers than I ever saw before. I have come to the conclusion that it is the weather, pure and simple. It has been below zero here for a long time at least at night and not getting much above during the day. Someone on another topic suggested turning down the feed rate and I tried that with some success. On my fireplace insert I have controls for both the feed rate and the fan speed but it seems the fan speed automatically controls the feed rate and in this weather I don't dare turn down the fan speed. On the bright side winter is only going to last another month....hopefully.