Maintenance of Wood Pellet Stoves
Posted by Tousala | Posted in General Interest | Posted on 21-09-2009
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Wood pellet stoves are often not simple to maintain. For obtaining a higher energy efficiency, there are many parts that need regular cleaning. wood stoves require regular maintenance, often by a professional. Wrongly done maintenance could not only cause technical problems, but it could provoke a dangerous situation for the users of the stove. If you are planning to do the maintenance yourself, consult with an experienced professional about the better way of doing it.
First: the heat exchanger
The heat exchanger is the connection between the combustion chamber and the distributer. Its function, as the name suggest, is to transfer heat from the stove to the whole building it is supposed to heat. Some stoves need daily maintenance and others can work for weeks without any cleaning. The cleaning is as simple as moving a rod some times along the heat exchanger. Some stoves need to be cleaner by professionals.
Second: the burn pot
The burn pot mixes the air with the combustible. To reach peak performance, the burn pot must be properly regulated to not let in whether too much air nor too much combustible. Specially the air inlets should be cleaned regularly to avoid any obstruction of the air way. The maintenance of the burn pot depends mostly on the quality of fuel you use. Dirtier fuel means dirtier burn pots.
Third: ash bin
It should be cleaned after each fire. Wait until the ashes are cold to go on. If the pellets are of low quality, they will leave more ashes. Therefore, watch out for pellets of quality, which burn almost completely. They will give you more heat pro dollar, even if they are more expensive at the beginning.
Fourth: venting system
This is perhaps the most important maintenance point. If you are not sure about what you are doing, better leave this point to a professional. Smoke could leak into your home, if something is wrong with the venting system. Since you also need appropriate tools for it, probably you won’t be able to reach certain points of the venting system anyway. Leaving it in the hands of a professional will also give you peace of mind, since it is easy to damage a wood pellet stove. For example, you could be using the wrong kind of lubricant or leaving some pipe halfway obstructed.
Wood stove models such as Ashley wood stoves can be great additions to the home, but ensure you maintain the appliance properly.
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