Eclassic 2400 - having trouble getting water up to temp

[Bob Lentz]

My 2400 was running flawlessly since i fired it up in September.
About 2 weeks ago, i noticed that it was struggling to keep the water at 180.
I did a complete clean out - firebox, water jacket & reaction chamber & air-intake elbow and vent.
I am burning nice dry pinion pine - burns very, very hot.

The fire stays lit, so i don't think it's a air circulation problem, but who knows, maybe it is.

Thoughts - suggestions?

[NWP]

I have a Heatmor but the problem I had could be something that would affect other stoves. My fan seemed to be running a lot and taking a long time to get the water temp up when I started it this fall. I thought my fan motor was going bad. I took it out to swap it with the spare I keep on hand and realized all the fins were full of dirt. It's a squirrel cage type fan. Where the fins are bent to create airflow was packed with dirt and wasn't able to move much air. I know this is now something I'll check regularly.

[thecfarm]

NWP,mine get the same way. I clean my 3-4-5 times a year. The fans are in Eclassic might be the same as what we have in the Heatmor.

[Bob Lentz]

great tip - i will try cleaning the fan.

[Bob Lentz]

fan is clean. I suspect my air vents in the firebox are plugged up - what is best way to clean them out?

[Roger2561]

fan is clean. I suspect my air vents in the firebox are plugged up - what is best way to clean them out?

Bob Lentz,  I have an e-classic 1400.  What I do to clear mine is use a screwdriver bent to nearly 90 degrees to pry out the creosote buildup.  Plus, I use a really stiff piece of wire to poke through the stuff between the each hole.  Be mindful of the air holes in the corners at the far end of the firebox, they are important to get air to flow around the corners.  Make sure the corners where the sides and far end meet are clear too.  The stiff piece of wire works for me.  I have to clear creosote out of the air holes in mine every other week.  I tried going 3 weeks between cleanings but there was too much creosote buildup by the end of the 3rd week so I clear them every other week now.  I can clear mine in about 20 minutes now.  Once a month I check for creosote buildup in the primary air solenoid elbow.  If there's crud in there I scrape it out too.  Good luck!  Merry Christmas!  Roger

[doctorb]

 I might suggest that a long rod of a fairly small diameter works fairly well for this job, with an angle on one end.  I used the bent screwdriver, and it works well, but you have to have the firebox cool enough to get in there with your torso and head to clear the holes at the rear of the firebox.  I'd like to avoid that if I can.

My tip is to use a rod with an angle on the end whose diameter easily fits throughout the air holes but is long enough for you to manipulate outside of the firebox..  With the coals still warm, but low enough to easily see and access the air holes (scrape the sides of the wall where they exit prior to cleaning so you can see them), poke the rod through the air hole and rotate it to maximally clear the space in the air vent adjacent to the hole.  you will have to play with the degree of bend and the diameter of the rod for maximum effect.

Then pile some of the hot coals from the center near the air hole and depress the switch on he door to signal the fans to kick back on (I do this with a piece of 2X4 leaning onto it).  If the air hole is clear, you will soon see a hot glow of those coals near the air hole due to the air being forced  through it into the coals.  You often witness what I call a "creosote burn".  this is when the creosote in and near the hole ignites and forms a very bright loud flame as it combusts.  This helps clear the air passages in the air channel because it liquifies and ignites the creosote which has built up in the channel.