Pellet & Remote Questions
Have questions about fireside?
PELLET QUESTION
They are very easy to use. Quadra-Fire pellet stoves offer automatic ignition (no matches or buttons to push), and a thermostat which can regulate the room (or house) temperature perfectly, turning the stove on and off whether you’re at home or away. Plus, they cleanly burn pellet fuel which is an environmentally friendly choice!
Pellets are made by compressing fine sawdust through a high-speed molding process. There are no additives; the natural binders and resins in the wood hold the pellet together.
In newer pellet stoves from Quadra-Fire you can. We recommend burning a maximum mix of 80% corn/20% pellets. A 50/50 mix of corn and pellets is ideal for optimal burn.
The model number will be located either in the hopper or on one of the side panels. On that rating plate is your model number and serial number.
In some cases, it may be necessary to clean the firepot on a daily basis. The build-up of clinker material will depend on the quality of fuel being used. Firepot cleaning involves simply pulling the cleanout rod on the front of the stove. If the rod is hard to pull, it may be necessary to use a scraper or screw driver to chip away the carbon material that has built up on the bottom plate of the firepot. Once debris is chipped away, the rod will be easy to pull.
The firebox ash should be removed at the same time that the firepot is cleaned. Frequent cleaning of the ash in the firebox will help slow down the build-up of ash in the exhaust blower and vent system. Deposit ashes in a non-combustible container.
The heat exchangers can be cleaned by pulling the 2 rods located under the top lid of the stove. The rods should be pulled each time the firepot is cleaned. A more thorough cleaning will be needed at least once a month. This will include removing the baffle plates in the firebox and accessing the clean-out plate on the right hand side of the stove. This is necessary to remove the excess ash that is left behind from the use of the pull rods for the heat exchanger tubes.
This needs to be cleaned and inspected at least once per year. It may be necessary to perform more frequent cleaning if there is a lot of horizontal pipe sections. Ash will build up more quickly in the horizontal sections.
The blowers may only need to be cleaned once per year. If the use of the stove is heavy, then it may need to be done more frequently. If the blower is getting noisy, then the fan blades will need to be cleaned.
No, ceramic firepots were discontinued in 1996. Conversion kits are available to convert your older unit to the new style EZ Clean cast firepot.
All of our pellet stoves will operate in the event of a power outage if you have generator backup. There is no battery back-up system built in to the pellet stove itself.
Carbon is building up on the plate, making the rod harder to pull. Loosen the slide plate bolt to the point where the distance between the firepot bottom and the slide plate is about a dime’s width. That should help with opening and closing the firepot.
REMOTE CONTROLS
- A hand-held transmitter. This is like a TV remote with which a person operates various features of the fireplace.
- A receiver. This is located inside or near the fireplace and receives the radio frequency from the hand-held transmitter.
- A Solenoid This provides the option of a remote controlled variable flame. The solenoid is installed onto the regulator (located on the gas valve) of the fireplace to vary the gas pressure to the burner.
Remote Controls are a consumer convenience. They are great for the busy lifestyles of today and will enhance the relaxing mood created by our gas fireplace by allowing the user to relax in their favorite chair and operate their fireplace while reclining in comfort. They are especially convenient in large rooms where a switch on the fireplace or on the wall is not always easily accessed. It is also an extremely popular option for bed/bath sitting rooms.
Yes! However, there is an operational priority (Pecking order) of the various ways to turn your fireplace ON or OFF. The highest priority goes to the ON/OFF switch located near the valve assembly. For example, if you have the fireplace is turned “ON” via this switch, it will negate the wall switch and ON/OFF feature of your remote control.
Next, the wall switch takes priority over the remote control. In other words, if the wall switch is in the “ON” position and the units switch is in the “OFF” position, the remote control will not be able to turn the fireplace on or off.
The FCC in the United States and IC in Canada regulate the distance in which a radio frequency from the hand-held transmitter can operate. In optimum conditions, this distance is 90 feet. Since there are many things than interfere with radio frequency the maximum realistic distance from which a hand-held transmitter will communicate with the receiver is 25 feet. Radio frequency will go through normal residential constructed walls (wood, plaster, drywall), but distance will be reduced traveling through walls.
Under normal operating conditions the batteries should last 6 – 12 months. Each of the two batteries used in the hand-held transmitters should be producing 1.5V to 1.6V to operate. If the batteries are generating 1.3V to 1.35V or less the batteries should be replaced and can cause intermittent operation.
The following are the top reasons why remotes do not function:
- Batteries do not have enough power or are installed incorrectly.
- Misunderstanding on how the remote features operate the fireplace.
- The slide switch on the receiver is not in the correct position.
- The remote hand-held transmitter has not had the “learn” function activated to the receiver.
- For standing pilot units, the thermopile must generate a minimum of 200 Millivolts. The fireplace requires more millivolts to operate via the remote control because it adds resistance to the system.
- Defective component, for which replacement parts can be purchased or replaced under warranty within 1 year of the purchase of the remote.
- The on/off switch on the fireplace and/or wall may be in the on position. This will over ride the remote control feature.
- The remote is in the thermostat mode and the temperature of the room has not exceeded the desired temperature setting by 2 degrees Farenheit or 1 degree Celcius.
- Batteries in the hand-held transmitter are old and underpowered. May work up close and will not work a few feet away.
- Hand-held transmitter is outside of the 25’ of operation.
- Hand-held transmitter has been dropped and the frequency has been moved off the frequency of the receiver.
Each system is calibrated by the manufacturer and may not match exactly. If the temperature readings are within 3 degrees this is within the specification.
The temperature from one device to another is difficult to determine. The location of the thermostat is very important to the temperature that you are reading at any point in time. The important thing to remember is that you should develop a comfort area and the appliance will keep you at your comfort level rather than the exact temperature read out.
