Smoke in Basement

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1985jarhead
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Post by 1985jarhead » Thu. Jan. 08, 2009 11:11 pm

I have a VF3000, and am experiancing smoke coming from the bottom of the hopper and up through the coal in the hopper. Any suggestions?

 
bksaun
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Post by bksaun » Thu. Jan. 08, 2009 11:24 pm

Shut it down and check the flue pipe and chimney, may be time for a clean out.

Bk

 
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hugg
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Post by hugg » Thu. Jan. 08, 2009 11:30 pm

Yes SHUT IT DOWN. Dont take any chances. Until you figure out what the problem is. :!:

 
1985jarhead
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Post by 1985jarhead » Thu. Jan. 08, 2009 11:47 pm

I just shut it down an took the flue apart and vacuumed it out. there was alot of ash, but I don't know why that would cause that problem. I have it fired back up, and don't notice any smoke now. I hope this cured it. I do have a CO detector near the stove and it hasn't gone off, so I believe we're okay. THANKS Pat
hugg wrote:Yes SHUT IT DOWN. Dont take any chances. Until you figure out what the problem is. :!:


 
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Freddy
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Post by Freddy » Fri. Jan. 09, 2009 6:27 am

1985jarhead wrote:there was alot of ash, but I don't know why that would cause that problem.
The ash restricts the air from moving up the chimney. Now that it's clean the expanding gasses have someplace to go as it's now easier for them to go up the chimney as into the room. When was the last time you checked & cleaned? Next time do it sooner.

 
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coalkirk
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Post by coalkirk » Fri. Jan. 09, 2009 8:11 am

Do you have a barometric damper and have you set it with a manometer? Have you changed the positon of the combustion fan restrictor plate?

 
1985jarhead
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Post by 1985jarhead » Fri. Jan. 09, 2009 11:21 am

coalkirk wrote:Do you have a barometric damper and have you set it with a manometer? Have you changed the positon of the combustion fan restrictor plate?
I do have a damper on it, but I've never checked it with a manometer. I bought a Field Control baro damper type RC, but I haven't installed it yet. Where and what is the combustion fan restrictor plate?

 
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coaledsweat
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Post by coaledsweat » Fri. Jan. 09, 2009 12:41 pm

It is the little door/flap that you use to adjust the amount of combustion air the appliance gets. The throttle.


 
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coalkirk
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Post by coalkirk » Fri. Jan. 09, 2009 1:51 pm

1985jarhead wrote:I do have a damper on it, but I've never checked it with a manometer. I bought a Field Control baro damper type RC, but I haven't installed it yet. Where and what is the combustion fan restrictor plate?
You have a manual hand damper? If you do, open it fully. When you install your barometric damper, remove the manual damper. The restrictor plate, which is not shown or mentioned in the Harman vf3000 manual goes on the intake to the combustion air fan. It must be installed and set properly. Your smoke coming out of the hopper is either from restriction in the vent (ash and or a damper) or from blowing to much air in the boiler due to lack of this restrictor plate. If your CO detector isn't going off, I suspect it is defective.
Here's a pic of the restrictor.
VF3K restricter.jpg
.JPG | 85.6KB | VF3K restricter.jpg
In the picture that restrictor is open wider than it should be. Don't go by my pic when setting yours.

 
1985jarhead
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Post by 1985jarhead » Sun. Jan. 11, 2009 11:16 am

Thanks Mr. Coalkirk!!! When I got my stove, of course there was no help from Harman or the dealer. Everything fit just right, but I had this little extra plate of steel. I burnt all last year and this year 'til I had a problem with that. I held on to it, but now I can't find it, so I just rigged one up until I can make a new one. Thanks again! Pat

 
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Horace
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Post by Horace » Sun. Jan. 11, 2009 7:35 pm

1985jarhead wrote:... so I just rigged one up until I can make a new one. Thanks again! Pat
I used a piece of cardboard in roughly the same shape for years - worked great. This year, I replaced it with a ceiling fan speed control which runs the blower much slower to get the same amount of air into the stove. Very happy with this as it the blower runs cooler and quieter.

Something to think about if you're looking for a project.

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