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This article lays out what a pellet stove igniter is and lays out all the details for replacing and maintaining your igniter so that it lasts as long as possible.
What is a Pellet Stove Igniter?
Igniters are standard in pellet stoves, including those by Harman, Lopi, Quadra-Fire, Enviro, and Englander. The igniter is a small, electrically-powered device that sits inside the fire chamber of your pellet stove. Its job is to create a spark that ignites the pellets inside the chamber to start the fire.
The igniter is a cylindrical rod made of synthetic aluminum oxide wrapped in a film heater and covered in a black coating to promote a radiative effect and heat resistance. Then pads of heat resistance of electrodes and lead wires are added.
The device uses a process called Joule heating to create heat, which basically creates an electrical current to create resistance, resulting in heat. It is the same process as what makes an incandescent bulb work. And it works well, creating enough heat in the air to spontaneously combust pellets.
How to Know if Your Pellet Stove Igniter is Working Properly
The easiest way to tell if your pellet stove igniter is working properly is to simply look at it. Most pellet stoves have a window in the fire chamber that allows you to see the igniter spark.
If you can see a spark when the pellet stove is turned on, then the igniter is working properly. If you cannot see a spark, or if the spark is very weak, the igniter may need to be replaced.
Another way to tell if the pellet stove igniter is working properly is to listen to it. When the pellet stove is turned on, you should be able to hear a faint clicking sound coming from the fire chamber. This sound is the igniter sparking.
If you cannot hear this sound, or if the sound is very weak, the igniter may need to be replaced.
How to Replace Your Pellet Stove Igniter
After 3-5 years, the igniter will wear out and need to be replaced. Your stove should come with instructions to replace it, but if not, here are some general steps to follow.
1) Unplug your stove and locate the pellet stove igniter. This is typically located inside the fire chamber of the pellet stove and underneath the feed system. For the easiest access to the electrical wires, you may need to remove the back of the furnace, as is the case with Harman models.
2) Disconnect the igniter from the power source. Note that you should have as much slack of wire as possible for later steps, so you may need to cut a zip tie holding it together to pull them out. Make sure the wires hang loosely and then push each wire as much as possible inside the hole they feed through so that you have slack on the other side of the stove.
3) Now you will remove the igniter. To make the process easy, you may need to remove the ash pan. Once removed, go ahead and vacuum the area while you are there. Then unscrew the cradle that holds the igniter inside, and pull out the entire cradle and igniter while also pulling the cradle's wires carefully until you access the two wires you saw earlier that connect to the cradle wires. Now disconnect the wires.
4) Remove the igniter from the cradle by loosening two connections (they appear turned and locked on the far sides of one side of the cradle). Note that the price connections of the cradle are important (there is a left and right side, etc.), so be sure to look at the connections carefully as you remove them because you will need to reassemble them in the exact same way.
5) Install the new igniter in the fire chamber following the above steps in reverse. Make sure it is properly connected to the power source when done.
6) Test the new igniter by turning on the pellet stove.
How to Maintain Your Pellet Stove Igniter
There are a few things you can do to maintain your pellet stove igniter so that your stove works as efficiently as possible.
1) Keep the igniter clean. Over time, dust and debris can build up on the igniter, causing it to work less efficiently. Use a brush to do a proper clean.
2) Replace the igniter regularly.
3) Follow the manufacturer's recommendations. If you don't know your manufacturer, we recommend replacing the igniter every one to two years, depending on how often you use your pellet stove.