Newbie wood burning stove question

floyd242 · #1 12/19/12, 08:40 AM

I just bought a house with a fireplace insert wood stove and I've never used one before. It has a blower with a Manual/Automatic switch and when I plug it in and put the switch on Manual it hums but I don't feel any air blowing. Is the fan heat actuated? How much air is it supposed to blow? I'm trying to figure out if I need to take it apart and replace the motor.

Thanks!

Dale Alan · #2 12/19/12, 08:46 AM

Humming and not spinning is bad . Can you spin the fan blade by hand ?

floyd242 · #3 12/19/12, 08:56 AM

I'm not sure, I haven't taken the screen off to look in there yet. I'll try it when I get home.

Dale Alan · #4 12/19/12, 09:53 AM

If the fan will not spin by hand please don't power it up.It might just need to be freed up . The humming is the motor trying to spin it .

ronbre · #5 12/19/12, 01:22 PM

of course fix it but there are also heat activated non electric fans you can get now that only run on the heat not electric..might want to check them out

Helena · #6 12/19/12, 03:30 PM

Clean the chimney and start up the fire and see if the fan kicks on...I never liked a fan on a wood stove..always felt drafty to me.

oregon woodsmok · #7 12/20/12, 02:01 PM

If this is a brand new stove, call the dealer and have him fix it. It should be under warranty.

humming and no air movement is bad. If the fan is heat activated, it should not be humming while it is not running.

oregon woodsmok · #8 12/20/12, 02:03 PM

because metal expands and contracts with temperature, it is possible that the fan will only work after the stove heats up and should not be turned on until after the stove gets warm.

Centralilrookie · #9 12/20/12, 06:32 PM

What kind of stove is it?

flewism · #10 12/20/12, 07:12 PM

In automatic mode the fan is turned on when it reaches a predetermined temperature. You will find a switch mounted outside of the firebox somewhere that senses temperature. In manual mode the fan will run regardless of stove temperature. These fans do not last running in a severe environment. Our insert is like 10 years old, I run it at about 650° and both fans have been replaced once. Pull it out and put 110 to it and see what happens. Again what brand and model is it?

wannabechef · #11 12/20/12, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ronbre

of course fix it but there are also heat activated non electric fans you can get now that only run on the heat not electric..might want to check them out

Those heat activated fans are such a gimmick! If you place a fan in the wind outside it will spin...doesn't mean it's blowing any air!

wannabechef · #12 12/20/12, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by floyd242

I just bought a house with a fireplace insert wood stove and I've never used one before. It has a blower with a Manual/Automatic switch and when I plug it in and put the switch on Manual it hums but I don't feel any air blowing. Is the fan heat actuated? How much air is it supposed to blow? I'm trying to figure out if I need to take it apart and replace the motor.

Thanks!

Sounds like the fan motor is bad...some ac motors have brushes, if this is the case a gentle tap on the motor may get it spinning again, if its brushless its done.

Waterwheel Farm · #13 12/20/12, 10:16 PM

When I had an insert it had the automatic feature as well as manual mode you speak of. It also had a control knob that adjusted the fan speed. Does yours maybe have one of those and it's just turned all the way down?

floyd242 · #14 12/21/12, 09:37 AM

It's a Forester and the fan/blower part is a Sears 143.8406 fireplace insert. I took the cover off and the fan moves freely. I think the motor is just shot. Thanks for the help.