lrm1995 said:
Hello all. I sure hope one of you smart lads or lasses can help me with my 1990ish Whitfield stove. It uses a Dayton 1LNG2A auger motor which was new last Feb (2008). Here's the problem.
1. When I press START, the blower motor comes on as usual.
2. When I press the auger button, the red indicator light comes on intermittently (as it would if the auger was spinning and feeding pellets. Please note, there is NO SOUND from the auger motor at all.
3. When checking the auger motor position, I noticed some play (about 1/2" or so) when I pushed the auger motor toward the hopper. I hadnt noticed that before.
4. Ive had the auger motor removed. I was able to turn the shaft with the wrench and heard/felt the gear(s) turning smoothly inside.
5. I do not trust myself with operating a multimeter correctly and Im not even sure mine would still work. However, when I hooked it up to the auger motor leads and plugged in stove, there was no needle dance at 210v.
Any ideas? Its frigid here in Upsate NY and I would truly appreciate any assistance offered. I think Im handy enough to be able to follow your instructions and work out a solution. I cant believe the motor would be shot on this stove, not yet.
PS: To my knowledge, there is no thermostat controls on this earlier model, and no reset switch or sensor switches of any kind but I could be wrong,
Question: Since my blower is getting power, can I assume Ive blown a fuse (if any) or have a shorted wire? Im not even sure how to talk about this stuff correctly, but thanks for any help - Lew
Irm1995:
From your posting, I cannot tell which model Whitfield you have but it sounds as if you have an Advantage II (WP-2) stove, which I have owned as a fireplace insert (living room) and a self-standing (basement) for over 20 years. I've always done all the maintenance myself and have tackled the full gamut of problems from replacing control boards, hi and lo temperature limit switches, combustion and convection blowers, pressure switch, and auger motor.
Also, I cannot tell what exactly is the problem but suspect that the stove is not working because pellets are not being fed into the burn pot/combustion chamber. From your postings I gather that there's no power to the auger motor and the auger motor works because you have powered it and it rotates the shaft that connects to the auger. Also, there is no indication of a fault condition because the indicator light comes on and off indicating that the auger motor is being powered according to the feed rate that you set with the control panel button (it actually controls a potentiometer that adjusts the duty-cycle (on-off) of the auger motor). If the red light comes on and dims, it indicates that the combustion blower is not working or not developing enough vacuum to pull the pressure switch that allows the auger motor to run. The pressure switch will not complete the auger circuit if the combustion motor is dead, running slowly because of resistance on the impeller due to excessive ash inside the housing, or does not develop sufficient air flow because the exhaust pipe is clogged. A way to determine if there's a problem with the combustion air blower is to attach a small diameter hose to the pressure switch (looks like a large dial and has a small hose that connects to the combustion blower or side, the small hose is typically too short for you to be able to use it for this test) and create a vacuum by sucking on the hose. If the auger motor starts moving, you may have a problem with the combustion blower or something is blocking the exhaust flow. Check for ash in the exhaust pipe. Typically, there's T-shape fitting that allows the exhaust pipe to be cleaned. Look into where the T connects to the stove and clean that, too. Also, check the small hose that connects the pressure switch to the combustion air blower or side to make sure is not cracked or burned. If the hose is not in good condition, it may leak and prevent the pressure switch from operating properly. Check the fitting that connects the hose to the blower or side as it may be clogged and prevents the pressure switch from completing the circuit.
If the above doesn't solve your problem, then the problem may be in the Hi or Low temperature snap switches. A useful site to troubleshoot problems with pellet stoves is
http://www.hearthtools.com/parts/lowlimit.htm. Please note that the site talks about the pressure switch but it describes a normally closed pressure switch. However, if you have an early model Whitfield Advantage II WP-2, the pressure switch is normally open and closes the circuit to the auger when the diaphragm is pulled by the vacuum that the combustion blower generates when the system is working properly...
One last point... the fact that there's no apparent power to the auger and the control board does not report a fault condition via the red light (i.e., steady on or on/dim) is troublesome. It leads me to believe that the problem may be in the control board. But...you need to rule out problems with the pressure switch, or temperature limit switches before confirming that you need to replace the control board.
Good luck troubleshooting the issue. Let us know how you make out.
Very Respectfully,
deuce
PS.: As additional insights... to rule out that the auger is not jammed. Grab the motor and rotate it in a circular motion, the resistance of the reduction gears should allow you rotate the auger. Observe the collar that attaches the reduction gear shaft to the auger, it should move indicating rotation of the auger. Also, check that the collar screw is tight against the flat part of the shaft as a loose screw may give you the impression that the motor is working properly but in reality the auger doesn't move when the screw is loose. Also, in older Whitfields, there is a significant gap between the auger shaft and the hopper. This causes the fines to fall through the gap and end up forming a nice mound of pellet dust under the auger motor. Unfortunately, the convection blower picks up the fines and blows them through the heat exchanger tubes. The result is that the room where the stove sits is covered with a fine layer of pellet dust. This is a telltale that you have an older Whitfield. Do you have that problem?
