what's wrong with the picture(sort of)?

I didn't pull the slide plate but it moves freely. What is happening, the hopper was getting a build up of gummy residue from the pellets and was preventing the hopper to completely empty. It's the side towards the burn pot where it's hot to the touch which gets to be the worse and the two sides left & right. The pellets doesn't go all the way down when going empty meaning I run out of pellets sooner than it should. I had to use B Gone residue remover and a razor scraper on the run. A little hesitant of doing that in case of catching on fire but it work. Could be a tell tale sign the slide gate could be gummed up but I have no smoke in hopper issues yet.

 

welp, if you are getting gummy residue in the bottom of your hopper, I would highly suggest you call your dealer and have it fixed- and this fix usually is a rebuild of the stove- the feeder assembly needs cleaned out and a crossover tube installed. Usually covered under warranty.

The hopper residue is indicative of the dreaded "Gummy Stove Syndrome", and if you're seeing the residue in the hopper, you're unit is slowly gumming up....pellets will be sticking to this residue inside the feeder where you cant see it, eventually stopping all the flow of pellets altogether. Adding the crossover might solve the problem, as it wont get worse, but really, the right way to do this is a total feeder cleanout.....we've found its just easier to replace the feeder than clean it out...its THAT bad to do.

 

I've already did the cross over hose thing along with auger removal cleaning. I find the hopper is just too hot for my liking. I find different pellets brands gum up differently.

 

problem is, even adding the crossover tube doesn't get the gum out of the inside of the feeder assembly. Its not usually the auger than gums up, rather the slide plate and the INSIDE of the body, which is tough to get at....trust me....... also, some crossover fixes are better than others.......there's a few iterations out there......while certain pellets produce maybe more, its NOT a pellet issue.

 

No gummy back-side 'cause of cooler temps. I believe the front-side could use more insulation or heat shield to prevent excessive heat which to me is the culprit behind the gummy hopper syndrome. I hope the Fahrenheit doesn't have the problem, it has the convection air moved by the distribution fan.

 

I'm bringing this tread back to life. I just did my cleaning on the Accentra/vent and the door has creosote again. Even on the front side of the ashpan. I'm gonna buy some incense to see where the door or glass is taking air. I might pull the glass off to swing it around in case there's a bow in it. The rope gaskets we're replaced last year. I'll get back with the results. It will be a good time to try the Lacrete's. Waiting for the oil furnace/tank inspection to relight the Fahrenheit, suppose to be done today(still waiting).

 

Oil furnace inspection done and on went the Fahrenheit so will be troubleshooting the Accentra soon.

 

This may be a really obvious thing but have you cleaned the chimney flue completely? My stove vents into a 6" Security chimney via a 4" pipe. I find I have to disassemble and cleanout the 4" after about 100 bags. The flame gets really lazy just like in your pictures. As well, there are passages on either side of the heat plate that get clogged, so I generally disassemble the everything at once to get the cleaning over with all at once.

The 6 inch gets cleaned once per year and I usually have half a 5 gallon pail's worth of ash built up over the 25 foot run.

 

Good thoughts...but I'm sure Ivanhoe is on top of ash build up...He's a pro!

 

Got the incense early so tomorrow if weather/time permits, the ball starts to roll.

You might be on to something here, will check/clean the 7" chimney.

Pro! Will have to double check on the ash build up and make sure I'm on top of it.

Or I could pack it in and say it the Cubex's fault.

Stay tune for the results......

 

Loving this thread! I suppose it could be one thing or could it be a cumulative effect?

Funny I was just reading the manual after firing up the stove this last week. I had adjusted the settings to my current fuel based on the experience I had with them last year. I was very disappointed with the amount of ash this year so I'm trying to problem solve this. When reading this thread I noticed the pellets were dismissed as being the culprit.

The reason for my interruption of this thread was my manual pointed to the pellet quality as having an affect on performance also: Smaller, shorter and DRYER pellets travel easier and form a denser pile, cleaner burn and therefore more BTU's.

BTW, Is there a thread about this subject I've been doing a search for one with no luck yet. If not I may start a thread so not to hijack this one. So carry on!

Wow, I'm thinking I might want those LG's anyways.

 

^^
Remind me, what stove?
Smaller/Shorter pellets will be offset by the feed rate and the number of feed cycles that are required to attain the desired heat, so that is really a moot point to an extent.

The density of the pellet itself can be a larger factor in heat output of a given amount of fuel.

Higher ash is usually a result of the wood type plus "other" material that may be in the pellet (bark is a big one)

Moisture content will effect performance and you will generally see a posted rating on the pellet bag along with BTU and Ash levels.

jtakeman will have a lot of information and if I am off base here.....

 

The vent was recleaned with noticeable creosote on the very top of the 7" chimney, condensed smoke should be the culprit. My following vent goes as follows; stove 3" to 4" coupler then to the clean out T, up 60", 90 degree elbow, 4" to 7" adapter, 7" through the cement wall, outside 7" T/clean out and up 21 ft with 3 ft over the roof peak. My incense test with no fire revealed air leakage at bottom left side of door. Any way to adjust the door on the Accentra? I might be able to adjust the right side hinge to tighten up the whole bottom part of the door, will look into that one later. Gasket is new from last year. I will chime in with more tests later.

 

Is your 7" factory chimney inside a warm space or just attached to the outside of the house? The issue with factory chimneys is that they cool off flue gases far more quickly causing condensation and creosote issues to the chimney leading to blockage, when they are not enclosed.

You might be better off venting directly to the outside without the 21' stack.

 

It's outside, using the existing hole where the chimney is. I could always detach it and swing my T the other way, then it would look quite sillyOr dismantle the chimney all together and install a pellet vent meaning more $$
But on the other hand, I will be using the stove very seldom.

 

Osburn 7000 now adjusted down to -5 on the combustion fan. Seems not to be sending ash flying everywhere now. O guess it pays to run this "test" when starting a new year or batch.

 

I meant to say "in the chimney" not "to the chimney". Since you are in "Northern Ontario", though not sure exactly where you are, you probably have pretty cold conditions. Factory built chimney work best while enclosed, preferably inside the building envelope. This maintains the warmth of the flue and reduces condensation, creosote build up, and reduces back pressure caused by the cold air plug that will build up as the flue cools off.

If you have an option to test the stove without the whole chimney in place, give that a try and see if the combustion flame improves in your stove. Might be an idea to try that before burning any corn in your stove because the flue gasses are a lot more corrosive along with more moisture concerns

 

I know the length is not really on my side unless the stove is cranked up but I do have a good draft. The Fahrenheit is on another vent, up & out! Replacing the chimney to a pellet vent can be a option but not for now. Once the door seal is rectified, the flame should shoot up!