Anyone Upgrading their Harman Double Paddle Fan blades to new non separating ones?

Hello

I took the double paddle blades off for cleaning. They came off fine but two blades seperated. Bending them back makes the blades work but still maybe slightly off balance. The slightly newer blades are only attached in 4 places but the newest blades are all attached.

See yellow arrows in pics of each blade below.

Cleaning behind the blades should be part of the yearly cleaning. If the blades are removed once a year, then they will not be impossible to remove.

Pic 1 - New upgraded blade and original 12 y/o blade
Pic 2 - Original double paddle blade with no blades attached to each other
Pic 3 - Newer blade has 4 petals attached - see yellow arrows
Pic 4 - Upgraded double paddle 5" fan blades with each top blade fastened to the bottom blade

 

they don't make the old ones anymore anyhow.......don't mess with it UNLESS its falling apart, or you ruin it getting the motor off.....

 

I was very lucky that I could get my blades off the old Jakel 1.7 amp motor, probably original to the 12 y/o stove. The motor is still in great shape so I just put the new double paddle fan blade on it.

 

I take the blade off at each ton cleaning and give it a good stiff bristle brushing. Makes the fan more efficient.... Each spring I also spray it down with dry graphite. A dab of anti seize on the set screw threads when putting the blade back on the shaft ensure easy removal the next time.

 

all good, Mepellet, but the GREAT majority of folks don't even know its there, let alone take it off for their normal cleaning......that set screw is very often seized.....

 

Not to sound arrogant but, that's the great thing about forums like this! To inform the uninformed!

But, if someone hadn't come across information like this and they took two minutes to look at how the fan is mounted on the stove, they should understand that there needs to be a way to take the fan blades off. Another two minutes thinking about how this would be achieved and they would find the set screw.

 

I'm with Lousyweather on this...... you're talking about the same people that think cleaning the stove just involves vacuuming out the firebox and they're done.

 

Lol

 

heck, I WISH they would vac out the firebox! Most of em think cleaning is emptying the ash bucket that has been overflowing! Most of the regulars here are pretty good about their units, but trust me, the VAST majority are not....you wouldn't believe me if I told you that about 90% of Harman users have no idea where their fines container is, no less have they ever cleaned it out.......folks here are great, even the folks in the other forums out there, but as you look at the posts, SO MANY pertain to simply cleaning....and in this age, there really isn't an excuse to not do it right.......

 

Hello
You guys are correct. The p-series Harman is the easiest stove out there to clean too! I cleaned a big Breakwell p24i last year. After a full cleaning and brushing it all out including the ash traps, it still had a blinking # 2 light. That is the no vacuum error. Finally after checking all the safety switches, I brought in the 150 psi compressor and blasted out atleast about 3/4 of a coffee can of ash behind the firewall towards the top of the unit and then the stove ran fine!
Harman owners are lucky, if these stoves only had a single paddle combustion blower fan blade the ash would build up quicker and higher behind it!

 

What's the price on the double paddle fan?

 

somewhere around 25 bucks

 

I cant say as I agree that a good buying decision could be deemed as "luck", but the P-series is likely the easiest of the modern pellet stoves to clean....would agree with that

 

Just started to clean my stove now, and just removed the fan blade no issues. Toughest part is where I left the never seize

 

Ok, so my stove, to be 3 years old, has blade picture #3. with the 4 attachment points. So the Upgraded fan is something really new. Any reason why they keep changing it ?

 

yea......the 4 point blades were less durable than the new version, so, it got changed......no point in panicking, just going forward when/if you do replace the fan, it will be the new version