OMG Scary Hopper Fire!!!

[2400]

Whats a good way to lube it?

 

[kofkorn]

as the department will douse it with water and likely destroy the chimney.

I'm a former volunteer firefighter. We've always been trained to NEVER put water down a chimney. Two reasons: 1) If the chimney is really hot (as it usually is during a chimney fire) you will likely blow the thing to smithereens due to the expanding steam. 2) If you are REALLY lucky, you won't end up with steam burns over good portions of your body due to the same expanding steam.

They save the "old" stuff for us and we package it in zip-lock sandwich bags. Throw a couple of them down the top of a chimney and you'll be surprised how much fire goes out! Follow that up with a couple window weights on a chain dragged up and down each side of the chimney usually loosens the remaining burning crap and it is removed from the clean-out. Works 99% of the time!

This is exactly the way we were trained. Two sandwich bags put out every fire we ever had to deal with. Then run the porcupine through it and tell the homeowner to get a good cleaning.

FYI, my ABC is less than three feet away from the stove at all times.

I'm glad no one was hurt. I hope that your stove isn't ruined, even if you don't want to use it yourself you should at least be able to sell it.

 

[Don2222]

Woke up in the middle of the night with the smoke detectors going off... My house was soooo filled with smoke.. We have an alarm service and so fire department was dispatched... YIKES It was horrible and scary... The stove is only 2 years old... Is this normal?? I have never had an issue and its been cleaned anually... The fire department had to put it out with water and I sucked it all out as best as possible.. Its a st croix... I guess I will be calling them and the dealership tomorrow.... UGGG!! I am afraid to use a stove now!! I wont lite it... Got the oil furnace going but gosh $4k and now I will be afraid to use it...

PS when the fire department came out he said, wow, weird.. the pellets aren't backed up the chute or anything.. Its was just the normal amount of pellets in the pit and then tons of smoke in the hopper... He did say it's probably from the wind (experienceing blizzard like conditions here in Rhode island) I just don't know... I have no confidence with a pellet stove anymore...

Hello Debinri

If you have no vertical rise to your flue exhaust then that is the problem! Case closed. Improper installation!

Do you have any pics?

 

[Czech]

as the department will douse it with water and likely destroy the chimney.

FYI, my ABC is less than three feet away from the stove at all times.

I thought it was best to NOT have the extinquisher right by the stove, but at the entrance to the room the stove is in?

 

[heat seeker]

I'll add my 2¢ - I was advised by a firefighter that an ABC extinguisher is not all that good for a wood/paper fire. A liquid type extinguisher was advised, such as a pressurized water unit. Of course, with water, you need to be careful of electricity.
My Afton bay does not have any sensors in or near the pellet chute. There are sensors on the combustion blower housing, the plenum (for overtemp), and the vacuum sensor. That's it.
The auger motor sits below the auger, and any dripping from it would end up on the floor of the compartment, doubtful it could catch fire.
I think that there was a backdraft that affected the vacuum switch, causing the stove to shut down. The stove will shut down if it loses vacuum for 60 seconds or more.
While anything is possible, it seems very unlikely that there was a hopper fire.
I, too, would be very nervous in the future, and have the stove checked out by a pro, but my money is on the loss of vacuum. I installed an OAK for this very reason - my exhaust is on the windward side, and we get lots of strong winds here. So far, no problem. I figure the air pressure will be more balanced in windy conditions with the OAK. I also don't worry about the drier or bathroom vents competing with the stove for air.