Hi all and thanks for adding me to your group. I have an older P61-2 that I picked up in the spring for a decent price . I didn't really use it until this fall and it seemed to run ok. I'm pretty new to the Harman world but not to pellet stoves, my other stove is a Lopi Pioneer Bay that I've had for 6-7 years now and that thing just keeps going and going . On to this harman, when I go to light it with the ignitor it's hit or miss, more miss now than anything . It also seems to burn dirty as in black soot, not real bad though. As far as the installation goes I installed the stove myself It's in the basement and I'm running 4" duravent and according to the math it is within draft requirements I don't have the figures on hand but it's right I'm also running a 3" outside air kit. Now here's the funny thing, I tested the draft and on high blower it's 82 and on low blower its 55 and that's with the adjustment on the board turned all the way down So I know it's getting plenty of air movement and the ignitor gets hot but now the pot fills up to overflowing and sometimes it starts and sometimes it doesn't. Seems this is a really old board also and it has the black esp. If it needs a board which one should I be getting as the one in there now doesn't have a service port or a dip switch I don't mind replacing the esp as the one in there now was put in in 2003 and is there anything else that needs consideration Overall when the stove is running it runs well right now I'm running it in stove mode between 2 and 3 as it hasn't been really cold yet
Oh yeah, everything is very clean, have had the ignitor out several times to make sure there's no build up. The stove doesn't even have a ton through it yet
If the wood pellets are good and dry, Then it Sounds like the triacs on the circuit board are weak and the igniter is not getting enough juice. Can you put a current clamp on amp meter on the yellow wire in the back of the stove that goes to the igniter and see what it reads? The pic below shows 2.1 amps for a good working 300 watt igniter in a Napoleon Insert. Model NPI-45
Also what should the volts be going to the ignitor? I know what the watts/power is of the ignitor so when I check the amps I can very easily figure out what it's getting for voltage.
We just fired up ours for the evening. I get 2.39 amps, I do not have any test connections to read the voltage but it should be approximately 120 VAC and 306 watts and 50 ohms running super dry Vermont wood pellets Ours fired right up. What do you read for amps?
Well the stove is running right now so I won't be able to check this out until tomorrow. Too late to shut it down now and restart.
Ok, let us know what you read, it will be good to compare measurements. E=IR So in my case 2.39 x 50 = 119.5 volts My guess is: If your igniter triac on your Circuit Board is not putting out close to 120 volts then your current reading would be less. I have a friend with the exact same problem so it will be interesting to see what you get.
tazz what pellets are you burning and have you tried a variety to see if it is the pellets? May sound silly but it’s not unheard of to have a batch of pellets that’s just slow to start. I have seen my fair share. Trying another brand or two, if you are able to, will quickly reveal if this is the issue.
If your igniter cradle is old style, you may have installed it wrong. If installed wrong, it creates an air gap, as the cradle is not tight against the bottom of the burn pot,and creates a huge air leak, describing your start problems. Just some food for thought, as i have sen this before. It is very easy to make this mistake, probably why the updated cradle is designed so it could not happen.
Right now I'm burning Vermonts, I've also tried Woods and Sons with the same results. At the beginning of the season the ignitor was working just fine with the same pellets, now not so much. I've taken the ignitor out but not out of the cradle and when I've put it back it's pretty tight up to the pot. It probably is the old style, heck I didn't even know there was a upgraded one, I hear there's a upgraded burn pot also but I don't know if this stove has it.
OK. In my opinion,there are very few ,if any, low quality pellets.And, even Harman aftermarket igniters will light them. Replace your igniter. Do not get the cheep one. I just ordered and igniter for my neighbors Whitfield, I did not order the 20 dollar thing off the bay, I ordered the 150 dollar unit from a reputable place,a factory unit.Generally, price is quality.
Yea I generally don't buy the cheap stuff. I thought that igniters worked or they didn't. Never had a problem with my other stove knock on wood, so I haven't had the pleasure of doing a igniter
The dip switch block is between the CB and the mounting / face plate. In my stove, you actually have to remove the CB from the face plate to see and access the dip switches. I'd be curious to see how the startup sequence switches are set (first three switches) - default of modified setting. This is my understanding as well, at least in a Harman. Suspect this is a long shot, but have you confirmed the burn pot surface is extremely clean with no cookie or carbon buildup in there? Also the two air holes just beneath the flame guide, and all rows of the burn pot holes are completely clear (make sure you can push a little drill bit into each of them)? When the stove initially tries to start up, what is in the burn pot? What I mean by that is, when you clean it - do you clean so there is absolutely nothing in the base of the pot, or is there generally a bit of ash and charred pellets left from the last burn? Having some leftover ash and charred pellets from the last burn definitely helps the stove to light more quickly on the next startup attempt. Your draft readings are pretty high. The normal high draft is -.5 to -.6 and low draft is -.35 to -.45 - I know you have adjusted the low voltage screw as far down as it will go, so there is little else you can do. I don't know if "too much" draft would cause the issue you are having, or at what point it would cause an issue. I can tell you that replacing the CB with a modern one will give you the adjustment you need to get the draft into the normal range, or at least much closer than you are at now. The newer boards allow for a much broader range of adjustment than the old. I'm not advocating buying a new board, just thinking out loud right now. When you say you are getting black soot now, is that on the glass, in the burnpot, or the fine layer of ash on the inside of the stove walls when you shut down for cleaning or what? None of the above?
Well the board does not have a DIP switch as the pic shows. I also checked the yellow wire (as was suggested) for amps and what I got was 0.09 according to my fluke meter, there was 118 volts there also. I'm betting this board has seen better days. Does the service port on the new boards protrude through the face plate if so I'll have to cut a hole in this one to accommodate it. I know my draft is really high, I didn't think it would be this high. Especially seeing as I have 3 90's and a tee at the stove, that's why I went with 4" just as the manual stated. It's sealed up really good too, I love the Duravent PVP, those silicone seals it comes with work awesome. As for the ash being black, it's more dark gray, I think it's just the way the pellets are this year, my other stove looks the same so I'm not going to worry about it. The glass is staying pretty clean too, what you see in the pic for the glass is 4 bags worth. What you see in the stove is one bags worth seeing as I shut it down this morning to test that ignitor circuit and yes everything is way clean when I cleaned it yesterday, getting all that carbon ridge out of the burn pot is a pia. I know that it starts better with some build up also but I think my test results are pointing me to a new board.
Hey Tazz....really stupid question from my observation, but aren't the DIP switches on the back side of the board? (next to the transformer)
