Harman P68 Slow Startup

My auger motor was and will restart to stick. Looking at as it was turning good and then very slow. The bearing was lubricated on the motor for prolong usage until I find a acceptably priced new one. JT might be on to something.....

 

There might be a little silicone on the auger when you pull it out. I did mine awhile back and put back together without any. It's a tight fit on mine.

 

I agree...needs to be checked unplugged from controller.....straight 120v ac. Doesn't even need to be removed from the stove. Just clear hopper of pellets, unplug auger motor from control board or leads, hook to AC power.

As Jay mentions, unplug stove before starting any of this.

 

OP igniter is a single rod and fin type. We have replaced quite literally hundreds of them....it will be either in spec or bad (infinite continuity between the leads). Reasonably sure it's not the igniter.

 

The feed motor is directly connected to the auger via one bolt......it goes thru a hole in the auger and ends hard against a flat spot on the auger shaft. Bolt loose, or slipped off the flat spot? Also, like J said, you simply may have a slipping gearbox. A tooth missing on a gear, sometimes it catches, sometimes not. You would end up replacing the gearbox. Or could be an obstruction in the feeder itself. Not really all that bad pulling the auger. Twenty minutes, if you can easily get behind it.

 

Unless you are back there listening well got the vac switch click, you won't ever hear it in normal operation....too much noise from combi fan, feeder, and some noise dampening with the covers....it does click, but not loudly.

 

Well, that's actually fast for rpms. And you're still not getting enough pellets. Take all pellets out of the bin, ensure the slide plate moves when the pusher arm goes to the forward stroke every time.
If you do remove the gearbox, how does it feel? Uncouple it from the auger, count the rpms. 6 or 4? Have you replaced the gear motor before and got an off spec motor? Also, pigtail the motor once it's off.....is there a lot of play in the output shaft? If so, it's shot. Grab the output shaft see if you can stop it....you shouldn't be able to.
Failing that, pull the auger, see if something weird is inside the feeder stopping pellets from dropping onto the auger.

 

J- from a size standpoint, yes.....the 4 rpm unit is 3-20-60906, while the 6 rpm is 3-20-09302. Like I said, early model P68's were 4 rpm, while later ones were 6 rpm. And yea, most dealers should carry BOTH. The feed motors on Accentras, XXV's, and Advances are different though. The 4 rpm unit should be around $125-$130, the 6 rpm should be $180-$200.

 

Gleason Avery ball bearing - $78 for either.

 

The auger motor in the P68 is a 6RPM unit; it says so right on the label. Looks like it's actually turning at 7.5RPM though. The motor in the P43 turns much more slowly. I have not gotten under there to look at the label, but I suspect it must be 4RPM. The motor on both is original. In fact the only parts that were ever replaced were on the P68 - the distribution fan was replaced when the stove was new and the combustion fan motor died and was replaced Feb 2013. That's it. I just shut the P68 down a little while ago and will start digging into it soon. I am focusing on the slide plate movement, and the arm specifically. I still think there is something restricting full movement in one direction. The arm rotates on a pin that resides near the bottom of the fines box. The pin has what appears to be a "cork" looking washer on either end. One end is inside the fines box, the other end is outside. Those washers and the area surrounding them have some built up fines residue which I'm going to do my best to clean out. It's not clear to me if I should contemplate putting some oil in there to make the pin move more easily. I have never heard of this being done before. I will get a picture and post later.

Last night I got behind the stove and for about 5 minutes time, following each auger revolution, I would push the slide plate arm the full range since the auger isn't doing it on it's own. I could feel the stove getting hotter. After 5 mins, I went back in front of the stove and I saw a gigantic flame. That's a good thing. I honestly can't remember the last time I saw the stove make a flame that tall. It used to do it regularly (normal) in the first couple years of ownership, but it has been a long time since I've seen it do that. This is really telling me there's something going on with the slide plate just not moving enough!

 

All p43's are 4 rpm, since their inception.

As for the slide plate not moving enough, sure, check it out, but unless the "C" is worn out, I cant imagine that's the issue. My P61 is 16 years old....original pusher arm, and its all my heat, running fulltime from November thru April.

Honestly, I dunno.....it may be something obvious that we aren't seeing (that's pretty common).

The Pusher arm goes thru a bronze pillow block bearing...you can oil it, but likely it wont make a difference. You should be able to disconnect the feeder, and operate the arm reasonably easy if no pellets are in the hopper.

With the unit off, feel inside the hopper where the slide plate is and make sure there isn't a foreign object sitting at the end of the slide plate obstructing the flow as well....a stone, a pellet chunk, piece of plastic, bolt, etc....just yet another idea.

 

my numbers are from dealers...cant really comment on the short market. Just make sure its the right gearbox and motor combo!

 

Pellet and Corn Stove Auger Drive Motors

 

yea....kinda curious myself what he found out..........pins & needles here

 

Yeah, I have missed this for 2 days and now catching up. My Feb 2009 P68 is all original-something is bound to need replacement.

 

If it's in the fines box would oil attract more crud?

Graphite spray maybe? (EZ-SLIDE Graphite-based coating, Dry Film Lubricant - available @ TSC) Yo Baby..