smoke in pellet hopper

[ronlat]

Longer pipe runs equal more resistance to flow, same goes for elbows. My guess is your run after figuring the elbows into the equation is too long resulting in resistance to flow and ash build up in pipe which compounds the problem by making the pipe diameter smaller. As a result the combustion blower has nowhere to push the exhaust out to. The negative pressure the blower creates will try to equal out and most likely is finding the path of least resistance, your hopper box. You could try a shorter run or add diameter to the pipe.

 

[freebird77]

Smoke in the hopper is not normal. Ive had the same problem intermittenly with my p61. They came out and did the tube mod to it, but Im still having problems, like you said from time time time, when the hopper is low. They came out again almost a month ago, took pics and inspected the slide plate, and sent them to Harman. Last I heared they are to (rebuild) part of the stove, which I assume means the slide plate, and auger assembly. Toastyinri has had problems with two stoves, although they were Accentra, I believe, and were replaced with new ones. Do a search here for hopper smoke, and let us know how you make out.

 

[freebird77]

Also, The dealer srviceman told me that your description of the flame when opening and closing the lid is normal. Id make sure you keep the lid gasket clean until they figure out whats wrong, just to make sure there is no air in there. Hope Toasty will chime in, was a big help to me.

 

[E350]

well its my turn, I have a p61a also. Just cleaned it after burning about 1/2 ton.
We had some power spikes or quick outages last week and the stove cycled twice causing it to act like it was restarted which overfeed pellets in the burn pot. This caused a very high flame, the entire box was engulfed. I shut down stove after fuel burned off. Next day it would not light so I cleaned out as described in link. Stove re-lit fine but i did notice a little more smoke smell.
Also I did notice when I lifted hopper the flame increased.I really never noticed this before, Is this normal?
My stove is vented out the back with only 2ft pipe and a end cap so pipe length is not the problem. Also this stove is only been used this season. Any guess if we have the same problem with this smoke smell, smoke in hopper, and the flame size with hopper door open?
Thanks Guy's and Happy Holiday's

 

[freebird77]

Im not sure about the start up trouble, there are many here with far more knowlade, but like I mentioned, the repair guy from the dealer said the difference in flame when opening and closing the lid is supposed to be normal.

 

[rerick]

I am going to disconnect all the vertical pipe and run it straight out adding a 1 foot section and a termination vent to it and see how it goes. I'll report back how I make out.

 

[rerick]

Well it appears to be running much better.Time will tell if this was really the issue. No smoke at a low flame yet The picture looks kinda orange but in reality it is a nice light orange blue. If this keeps running well the only thing left to decide is wether to add outside air as this is the minimum configuration recomended by Harmon.

 

[rerick]

Shortening up the pipe seems to have cured the problems I was having all around in terms of the lazy sooty flame and the smoke in the box. I really want to thank all who helped me sort this out. I'd still be chasing my tail if it weren't for your help.

 

[toastyinri]

Smoke in the hopper is not normal. Ive had the same problem intermittenly with my p61. They came out and did the tube mod to it, but Im still having problems, like you said from time time time, when the hopper is low. They came out again almost a month ago, took pics and inspected the slide plate, and sent them to Harman. Last I heared they are to (rebuild) part of the stove, which I assume means the slide plate, and auger assembly. Toastyinri has had problems with two stoves, although they were Accentra, I believe, and were replaced with new ones. Do a search here for hopper smoke, and let us know how you make out.

It was the Harman Advance that I had "smoke in the hopper" isssues with. Both stoves were replaced by Harman..my "third" stove is operating fine so far with the modification. After having two previous stoves, I can attest that this third one burns much better probably due to the 5 additional holes drilled into the burn pot at its base. I've yet to locate "the tube", but will look for it when I do the total cleaning.

 

[Tom Pajak]

Hi all..new to this forum...hoping to get alot of info on my pellet stove from you folks..you seem to be the best site for it..
a little info about my stove just for starters
its a Harman P68..have had it for 2 yrs..has ISSUES
my question is regarding these post about opening the hopper door....
i too notice it runs stronger..to the point it blows up the smoldering pellets sometimes out of the burn pot...
would keeping the hopper open cause my pellet consumption to increase?
i'm going through what i consider way too many bags a day but it keeps the entire house(1700sq) decent..
on a warm day around 30 degrees my bag might last 18 hrs...on a col day 0-15 maybe only 12-15hrs..
these are on settings of feed-6 stove temp-2 and does blower speed affect burn rate at all?
techs have been out and the kids reprogrammed my control panel this past march..is there something I can do to make the bags last longer?
thanks for any help

 

[richg]

Very informative post Syndey, thanks. I'm going to check my own venting setup even though the stove is running fine.

 

[Lenny]

Hi does any one have a picture or a drawing of where to drill the 1/8 holes in the Accentra burnpot to stop the smoke in the hopper?
Thanks,
Len

 

[Tony K]

Question - in the pic showing the vent pipe setup, was it required to extend it that far up vertically? or could it have stopped once it came out of the house using what looks like a dryer vent type setup?

Thanks

 

[Lenny]

I could have gone strait out with the piping (like a dryer vent). I chose to go out and 90 degrees up approx 4 feet to obtain a better draft. Thoughts?

 

[Lenny]

Well it appears to be running much better.Time will tell if this was really the issue. No smoke at a low flame yet The picture looks kinda orange but in reality it is a nice light orange blue. If this keeps running well the only thing left to decide is wether to add outside air as this is the minimum configuration recomended by Harmon.

 

[Lenny]

I disconnected the outside air intake and conditions so far have improved. Thanks

 

[Lenny]

I'm sorry, what is an OAK?

 

[Tony K]

Thoughts? I was just curious and at the same time wondering if they installed my vent pipe wrong (seeing as free installation was part of the sell) or was it a matter of choice. My stove is in the basemant, pipe goes up approx 4 feet insdie then straight out. Draft seems to be fine. Thanks. Seems to be a few knowledgeable people who have posted here who could help one way or the other.

 

[jtakeman]

Thoughts? I was just curious and at the same time wondering if they installed my vent pipe wrong (seeing as free installation was part of the sell) or was it a matter of choice. My stove is in the basemant, pipe goes up approx 4 feet insdie then straight out. Draft seems to be fine. Thanks. Seems to be a few knowledgeable people who have posted here who could help one way or the other.

That was the same install I had with my BigE. Had no issues. Do you have an OAK??? Without the OAK, I would get smoke in the house if I lost power with the stove on. I added it myself(aluminum dryer vent and adapters). No more smoke! I used the same setup for my Omega.

jay