Outdoor Wood Furnace Info
Outdoor Furnaces - Manufacturers with NON EPA-Certified Models Only => Empyre => Topic started by: mbj on February 11, 2014, 07:33:27 PM
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Wife called today while I was at work to tell me blower wasn't on. I can't get it to come back on and am looking for suggestions. tried the reset button to no avail. It was working fine when I left this morning
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Do you have power going to the blower?
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yes
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Could be timed out? When water temp cools to under 130 see if it comes on
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oh, the water temp is way below that now ... it hasn't been working all day and its cold here.
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If you have power going to the blower and it is not working then there is something wrong with the blower itself.
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Did you try turning the fan by hand to make sure nothing jammed it? If the capacitor is bad (if it uses one), spinning it by hand could get it running till next time it tried starting.
The motor could also have a bad spot and turning it a little could get it started and it could keep working till it stops in the same place again.
If that does nothing and you are 100% sure there is proper power at the motor itself then it probably will need to be replaced.
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thanks for all the help ... turns out i need a new blower.
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How long did it last?
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You aren't the only one to lose a blower this year. I have a Pro Series 100 and my 3000 rpm blower went out after 2.5 years. I like my Empyre boiler in that it is a gassification and heats my 2000 sq ft house well. I've had no problems except the blower this year. I live in West Michigan north of Kalamazoo. What I noticed was that the blower started making terrible noises. Then it seized up completely. My expectation is that the bearings went out. Beware when buying an Empyre and ask the right questions. I am not a mechanic and was caught off guard over the last few years by the amount of repairs required on the boiler. I was under the impression that the blower would run 10 years and was shocked when it died this year. I was also surprised to learn last year that the bottom burn chamber and other parts within the boiler are made with board material that is easy to damage.
Also, I decided to buy some repair parts this Summer. I bought the brick that forms the hole that allows air from the primary chamber flow down into the bottom burn chamber and one of the bricks that fits on the left side of he boiler. I bought these last June and got the first brick in October or November last year and the second brick showed up last week.
So, I think the Empyre boilers are good engineering. However, I wouldn't recommend Empyre unless you live next to a seasoned dealer who is willing to work with you on servicing your boiler throughout its life. Make sure you get referrals on their service before you buy. Maybe even get a look at their inventory to see if they have spare parts on hand. I would still buy and keep repair parts so that you can repair your boiler if it breaks. I plan on taking the old blower to a motor repair shop so that I have a spare blower on-hand. I was lucky that Outdoor Specialities were able to overnight me a replacement blower. If you live near Lake City I will recommend Empyre because of the service I received from Outdoor Specialties. Propane prices are $5-$6 a gallon and with the shortages I could have had a financial disaster this year. With the boiler I don't contract my propane as I don't meet the minimum number of gallons for contracting. But if I couldn't get the boiler repaired I expect I would have needed to pay at least $1250 for the 250 gallon minimum fill this year.
mgw44