Central Boiler Eclassic 1450 question

[Ebwheat]

Hi all. I am new to the forum and have questions about my eclassic 1450. This is my second season after an incredibly frustrating first year.

I now am getting reliable results but am concerned about the amount of ash and charcoal like material that is accumulating in the bottom chamber and reaction chamber. Basically, I have to clean it every three days and get about 8 gallons of fine ash and charcoal material out of the reaction chamber and surrounding area. The reaction chamber is about 70% to 80% full each time.

Here is some additional info:

I use oak and hickory that has a measured water content of around 11%

The stove normally goes into stage 3 and achieves temperatures of 1,000 degrees plus or minus 100 degrees.

I clean exchange tubes biweekly and the buildup is not too bad

Time between pulses is set to 10 minutes per dealer instruction

I just cleaned and oiled the primary and secondary elbows and solenoid a

I load wood twice daily and use tool to keep ashes fluffed up and to keep charge tube path open

I try to let the fire burn down to coals just covering charge tube before reloading. Sometimes that is just not doable and I clear tube area and add wood with several logs already in the firebox.

I live in the Cumberland plateau area of Tennessee so we have moderate winters

Are my reaction chamber temperatures in the normal range for a 1450?

Should I have to clean reaction chamber and surrounding area every three days?

Should so much of the removed material be charcoal like and not fine ash?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[overclocking]

I cant speak for the 1450, but for its predecessor the 1400.
I accumulate more charcoal than ash when demand for fire is low and they fall into the bottom, or I am knocking it down the middle while loading wood.
Another cause could be a stuck solenoid. This will cause the fire to hollow out the center of the coal bed and open the coals in the middle so that they fall into the reaction chamber.

If your demand is low then it that simply could be your issue.

When you open it to load wood is there a layer of coals covering the middle? Or can you see right into the reaction chamber?

I clean my reaction chamber every week and remove ash or coals from the firebox about every 3-4 days.

[Roger2561]

"I use oak and hickory that has a measured water content of around 11%"

Like overclocking, I too have the E-Classic 1400 so I'm not too familiar with E-Classic 1450.

I wonder if there is such a thing if the wood is too dry?  Perhaps it's burning to fast?  Just a guess.  My wood moisture measures around 20 to 25% of mixed hardwoods; i.e. oak, beech, maple, birch, ash, etc... 

What size of pieces are putting in your firebox?  Mine range anywhere from 4 inch diameter to 8 to 10 inch in diameter.  I try to put a mix of sizes in the firebox.   

I too clear the reaction chamber once a week and get approx. 4 to 5 shovels of ash and very little coal.  The only time I've had to remove anything from the firebox is if I have overloaded it for a couple of days straight and it doesn't completely burn everything, leaving chunks of coal and unburned pieces of fire wood.  I try to put enough in the firebox to last 12 hours.  Hopefully, if I've estimated it correctly, when I get around to service it at the end of the 12 hour period, they'll only be a nice bed of coals left and approx. 3 to 4 inches ash covering the bottom of the firebox.  As I mentioned above, I know nothing of the 1450, these are experiences I have with my 1400.  Roger   

[Ebwheat]

Overclocking: thanks for the response. Recently we have had warm days with highs in the high 40s and lows around freezing. For a few days before that, it was about 20 degrees cooler - never exceeding freezing. The amount of ash and charcoal was virtually identical (about 8 gallons in 3 days). 

I don't believe I have a stuck solenoid as I have coals covering the secondary air charge tube and can hear the solenoid a activate and deactivate.

I don't generally have to clean ash from the firebox as it seems to find its way into the bottom chamber.

Thanks again for your response

[Ebwheat]

Roger2561:  thanks for responding.

My meter may be inaccurate as the wood has only been seasoned 12 To 18 months. It may be the wood but oak and hickory are the primary hardwoods in the area - so I am stuck with them!

Any firewood over 4 inches is split with larger logs being split multiple times. My dealer suggests using smaller pieces of wood given our climate here in the south.

I am just baffled by the tremendous amount of ash that no one else seems to be experiencing.

Btw, does the 1400 indicate reaction chamber temperatures? And, if so, what are your typical high end ranges.

Thanks again!

[boilerman101]

My E2400 has an air charge tube like your 1450 and has the temp sensor in the reaction chamber. 1,000 degree temps and stage 3 during burn cycles sound pretty normal for oak less than 2 years seasoned. I've heard the 1450 runs a little lower temps in reaction chamber do to location of the sensor farther back in the chamber. Check to be certain the probe is fully extended into the chamber. Mine got pushed in a little one time and I got lower temps. Pulled it out and it returned to its normal higher temps. Having to empty that much ash out of reaction chamber every 3 days seems like a lot. I would check condition and placement of the air charge tube making sure it is in its down and locked position. If sitting high it could be a problem. Also check for excessive wear in the refractory nozzle under the charge tube. Widening could result in more ash falling through.

[r.man]

I would get a screen to sift the ash/charcoal mixture to measure the volumes and I would throw the charcoal back in, it is not a waste product. I do not have the same make of stove but I am getting high levels of charcoal in my secondary chamber due to broken firebricks. I need a screen to stop charcoal from dropping but until I get something made up I am throwing the charcoal back in so it is not wasted.

[Roger2561]

Roger2561:  thanks for responding.

My meter may be inaccurate as the wood has only been seasoned 12 To 18 months. It may be the wood but oak and hickory are the primary hardwoods in the area - so I am stuck with them!

Any firewood over 4 inches is split with larger logs being split multiple times. My dealer suggests using smaller pieces of wood given our climate here in the south.

I am just baffled by the tremendous amount of ash that no one else seems to be experiencing.

Btw, does the 1400 indicate reaction chamber temperatures? And, if so, what are your typical high end ranges.

Thanks again!

The E1400 does indicate the reaction chamber temp.  This is my 5th season heating with it and the highest reading I've ever seen was 1650 but most of the time it reads 1300 to 1400 with an occasional 1500 read.  It hasn't recorded a reading of 1500 and 1650 in quite some time.   

Is it getting proper air flow?  Check the primary air elbow where the solenoids are located, perhaps it needs cleaning?  Are the primary air holes in the fire box clear of creosote build up?  These are just thoughts.  Roger     

[Ebwheat]

roger2561: thanks for the reply.

I just did a complete cleaning of the primary air vents a couple of weeks ago. In addition, I removed both the primary and secondary elbows and cleaned them. So I feel like I am getting adequate airflow.

I did contact my dealer again today and he said he was thinking that, being in the south, my burn times may not be long enough. He is very knowledgeable but doesn't personally have an eclassic. I suggested that maybe I change the temperature differential from 10 to 15 to give a longer burn. Given my 185 set point, that would change the burn from 175/185 to 170/185. He was unaware that the option to do this existed on the firestar. So I made the change and we will see if it helps. I did notice that during the last five degrees of burn (180-185) the temperature increased another 100 degrees. So maybe that will help burn up some of that charcoal.

[Ebwheat]

R.man: thanks for your thoughts.

[Ebwheat]

Boilerman101: thanks for the thoughts and suggestions.

I will definitely check all of those items when I next clean the stove. I definitely had not considered that the charge tube might be setting too high. That would explain excessive ash.

[AsaG]

3200 owner here.  A 10 minute pulse interval is incredibly short when using wood with less than a 20% moisture content. Mine is set for a 50 second pulse every 45 minutes. My wood is <18% and I have no problem with loosing a fire during the shoulder seasons and summer use for DHW. Too much pulse and your fire never 'goes to sleep' and too little it goes out.  In your case I'd try a 50 second pulse every 25 minutes. 

Hi all. I am new to the forum and have questions about my eclassic 1450. This is my second season after an incredibly frustrating first year.

I now am getting reliable results but am concerned about the amount of ash and charcoal like material that is accumulating in the bottom chamber and reaction chamber. Basically, I have to clean it every three days and get about 8 gallons of fine ash and charcoal material out of the reaction chamber and surrounding area. The reaction chamber is about 70% to 80% full each time.

Here is some additional info:

I use oak and hickory that has a measured water content of around 11%

The stove normally goes into stage 3 and achieves temperatures of 1,000 degrees plus or minus 100 degrees.

I clean exchange tubes biweekly and the buildup is not too bad

Time between pulses is set to 10 minutes per dealer instruction

I just cleaned and oiled the primary and secondary elbows and solenoid a

I load wood twice daily and use tool to keep ashes fluffed up and to keep charge tube path open

I try to let the fire burn down to coals just covering charge tube before reloading. Sometimes that is just not doable and I clear tube area and add wood with several logs already in the firebox.

I live in the Cumberland plateau area of Tennessee so we have moderate winters

Are my reaction chamber temperatures in the normal range for a 1450?

Should I have to clean reaction chamber and surrounding area every three days?

Should so much of the removed material be charcoal like and not fine ash?

Thanks in advance for any help.

[Ebwheat]

AsaG:  thanks for the suggestion. I will definitely try it after the next cleaning. The factory originally suggested that we set the pulse interval at 10 minutes due to our southern location. But, at this point, everything is suspect!

[jfaulring]

I fought with this same issue all winter long as well. I've had my 1450 for 5 seasons and thought I pretty much had it figured out, but I was reaching the point where I was cleaning out the reaction chamber about every 3rd or 4th day as it would get stuffed full with charcoal. Given I haven't changed much over the past few years I went in search of air leaks that might prevent the fire from "idling" but after changing out the front door seal, bypass door seal (I did that one last year as it failed halfway through the season) and patching up the main air solenoid elbow pinholes (I'll build a stainless steel version at the end of the season to replace that) - I still couldn't keep the reaction chamber from filling. I finally ended up building a little "grate" to surround the charge tube out of some rebar - it consists of 3 bars stacked up and separated by about 0.25" on each side of the tube welded to a frame that can be removed for servicing. That has made all the difference - it's enough to hold the coals back from falling into the chamber but still lets enough air through so things gasify correctly. What was the root cause of all of this? I'm not exactly sure, but I'm thinking it might have something to do with the refractory showing some wear making the opening to the lower chamber a little larger. I also recently replaced my firebricks in the lower chamber which seemed to be a hair shorter than the ones that were originally in there which may have lowered the charge-tube refractory slightly. I'll post some pictures of my setup when I'm finally shut down for the season and do my annual cleaning

[garret]

Sounds to me like you are stoking and raking the firebox too aggressively, forcing unburned wood (charcoal) along with the ash down the slot adjacent the charge tube.  OR, the charge tube has been lifted out of its seated position creating a wider slot for the coals to fall below.  I clean out my RX chamber (E2400) only about once every two weeks on average and it contains a light and fluffy flyash.