E Classic 2400 air flow issue?

[VTwoodburning]

Hi all,
I've been reading these threads for a few years, since we first got our owb in 2011. We had an issue last winter that warranted CB replacing the entire firebox because of corrosion. Has been running fine since Feb. of this year until yesterday...of course the first below freezing day of the year.
So the issue is that I can't get the fire to stay lit once I shut the door. I know it sound simple but it has me baffled. Cleaned all the air holes, checked the fuse, can't figure it out. Water temp stays up at 185-180 but reaction chamber won't go up unless I have the door open and I'm giving it air. What do y'all think?

Thanks!

[Roger2561]

Hi all,
I've been reading these threads for a few years, since we first got our owb in 2011. We had an issue last winter that warranted CB replacing the entire firebox because of corrosion. Has been running fine since Feb. of this year until yesterday...of course the first below freezing day of the year.
So the issue is that I can't get the fire to stay lit once I shut the door. I know it sound simple but it has me baffled. Cleaned all the air holes, checked the fuse, can't figure it out. Water temp stays up at 185-180 but reaction chamber won't go up unless I have the door open and I'm giving it air. What do y'all think

Thanks!

VTwoodburning - I don't have the E-Classic 2400, I have the E-Classic 1400.  But, it sounds like something is plugged somewhere.  Have you checked for creosote build up in the elbow of primary air solenoid?  You may have to consult your owners manual.  On the 1400 it is found in the rear of the OWB in the vicinity of the blower.  Simply loosen the clamp that holds the rubber coupler to the elbow and remove the elbow.  It may a bit of friendly persuasion to get it loose.  On mine it was nearly plugged with creosote after a full season of operating it.  Are you sure the primary air holes in the firebox are clear of creosote buildup?  Every couple of weeks I poke a piece of stiff wire through mine just to be sure they are open.  Roger

[VTwoodburning]

Thanks Roger. Air holes seem to be fine but I have never checked the solenoid. Figured I'd have to get around to that one of these days! I'm going to check the manual for that, hopefully there will be a thorough explanation. I also saw a post on another similar thread about holding the door safety button (underneath the bottom hinge) closed while the door is open and watching to see if you could tell where the air was blocked. Will try that also. Thanks for your help!

[thecfarm]

VTwoodburning,welcome to the forum. Good luck with your OWB.

[doctorb]

VTWood-

I have used the door open technique for years, but, if you've checked all the obvious blockage places like ducts and air holes, that technique is probably not going to help you.  From your description it could be one of several things.

1.  As mentioned, the solenoid intake gets "creosoted" on my 2300 and requires a yearly clean out.  So that needs to get on your maintenance list every year.

2.  Before pulling the solenoid and checking to see if the air tube is blocked, I would remove the back panel from my stove and watch as the solenoids go through their progression of opening.  (In the 2300, there is a sequence of solenoid openings.  You can visually see when they open and detect the difference in air flow in the firebox and reaction chamber.  This is the place that I utilize the open door technique.  It permits you to see and hear what airflow changes are occurring as the stoves cycles.) There have been reports of the solenoid wires becoming disconnected or the solenoid going bad, which would also account for your problem.  I've had that happen myself.

3.  It could be your controller.  If the computer is not sending the correct signals to the fans and solenoids, this thing is not going to stay lit.

So I would recheck my air holes.  Watch the solenoids open and check that the appropriate airflow changes occur in the firebox/ RC.  If all that is OK then pull the solenoid and remove the blockage.  I think that CB sent out a video on how to do that.  Check the website and then check with them.  I had my dealer do it the first time.  It's easy.  Just need a long standard screwdriver.

Welcome to the FF.

[VTwoodburning]

Thanks everybody, for all your suggestions and thanks for welcoming me. :)

So to update, we cleaned out the primary solenoid. It was very, very clogged up. I noticed that when the primary solenoid opened, smoke was flowing out of it and I thought that was odd...but even after we cleaned that out completely it was still releasing some smoke. Is that supposed to happen? The other two solenoids were not doing that when they opened.

Stove was fine after that, good airflow and keeping the fire going for about 24 hours but then the issue started again. Checked the primary solenoid again (wasn't terribly clogged) and this time sucked it out with the shop vac. Got a big plume of smoke after 5-10 seconds of suction and thought maybe some big chunk had broken off and cleared out the pipe for good. Another day has passed since that and it still seems as though something is plugged up. Bought a long, flexible wire brush today and will try cleaning out the back of the box more thoroughly! Will update from there.

Thanks again, wish me luck!

::update::

Fire still won't stay lit. Fire is burning strong with door cracked and then literally the second I shut the door, box temp starts to go down and barely any smoke coming out of the chimney.

How would I know if the controller or solenoid is bad?!

[boilerman101]

VTwoodburning I've burned my E2400 since 2010 with great success. In your previous post you said you had good airflow but the next day you don't? What do you mean by issues started again? What kind of reaction chamber temps are you getting? I only clean my primary elbow at the end of each heating season. I can't imagine daily or weekly cleaning of that elbow being necessary, but if it was totally plugged up perhaps you still had some backup residual in the back channel that is now turning to liquid and running down into the elbow. Be sure to keep your coal bed shallow and below firebox air holes. I use the rod that came with the furnace daily to push through the coals in the firebox to keep them loose so fire can burn downward through them into reaction chamber below. When right you should be getting reaction chamber temp readings over 1,000 degrees during most burn cycles.

[doctorb]

Your fire sounds air starved. 

I have a 2300, so the design may be different.  My belief is that you still have a blockage of air flow.  Does the 2400 have air holes around the perimeter of the firebox?  If so, it may be that, with the years of creosote buildup, you have the air chambers blocked behind those holes.  It's not enough to just poke through the holes.  Feed a wire through them and back toward the back of the stove.  It is this primary air chamber that should be filled with the air let in through that solenoid you cleaned out.  Pay closest attention to those air holes and the spaces behind the back wall plate, because that's the closest area to the inflow from the solenoid.

Try this.  Get a good fire going and leave the door open with the switched depressed to keep the fans blowing.  Make sure all fans are working and that the solenoid sequence is a high burn.  Do you see red hot coals near every air hole? If not, then the air that's supposed to be forced into the firebox through those holes is not getting through, and it's your job to figure out where the blockage is...  In the 2300, it can occur behind the plate through which the air holes have been drilled.  You have to poke and scrape and clean, but once that blockage is cleared, all will work well again.  This is why I do that open door check of the air flow often.  It tells me when the blockage is coming, and the heat generated with this method often melts/burns the creosote behind the plate, solving the problem.  That clean out at the back of the firebox requires that the stove be cool, because you're going to be leaning in with long screwdrivers and anything else you can find to move that junk out of that air passage.  If the blockage is at the rear of the firebox, then airflow through all or most of the holes will be restricted.  Good Luck.

[garret]

What I gather is that most folks are not carefully reading their operations manuals.  Almost every issue that has been brought up on this forum regarding operation of the the newer E-classics is IN THE MANUAL. That includes inspection and cleaning of the primary air solenoid elbow and other troubleshooting. The possible exceptions are the door switch overrides and other improvised fixes that may present a safety concern (as deemed by CB). I will agree that there is a learning curve primarily because a gasifier operates contrary to what we are accustomed.  So far, I have had zero problems. Hope I don't end up eating my words.  I do complain however, about it burning too much wood, but that is my fault for having such a long run of 1" thermopex (120').

[VTwoodburning]

Ended up shutting the old gal down and getting into the back of the box like I should have done to begin with. It's definitely been somewhat of a learning curve for me, coming from a regular old indoor wood stove and learning from my neighbor's ancient owb. Thanks for walking me through it.   
Stay warm everybody!