Gas Fireplace question - problem
 

I just bought a house that already has a Travis Industries 33 DVI insert. The first month or so everything seemed fine with it, except that someone stole the remote control so I dont have that

What its now doing is - the flames will go out and then I hear a beeping sound until i turn it off and then on again to relight the flame.

It started doing this last weekend when we had some severe wind and i thought somehow the flames were getting blown out. however, its still doing this without any wind.

i think im gonna have to have a service tech come look but i thought i would ask if anyone has experienced this

the manual does not discuss this condition and there are no controls, including the air shutter valves, that should effect the flames like this as far as I can tell

any ideas?

Thanks

Are you sure you have gas in the tank, has it been filled since you moved in?

doesnt it just run off the same gas line as my furnace?

Sorry about that, didn't know that info. It most likely does. I have a gas fireplace insert and it has it's own tank because my furnace is oil.

My insert has been very reliable and I've never experienced it going out on it's own. We do have a gas stove on the same tank and if I recall correctly, it would sputter when the tank was low.

I think the tanks can get condensation and that could effect it's reliability depending on the age of the tank. Not sure about that though.

yea i dont have a separate tank, none that i see in the basement anyway and im certain it would be obvious if i had one if it was propane but its not propane

maybe there is a sensor like on a furnace that needs to be cleaned.....the flame acts like its starved of something....it diminishes and then puffs out.

Is there a themocoupler invoved? maybe it's not detecting heat so it's cutting off the gas supply?

Is there a manual gas turn off inside and or outside the unit? We used to have a manual valve in the floor a few feet away. It was round and brass. If those aren't open all the way, it could be a problem.

I have no idea what it is...ill look into it

yea i have a brass valve coming up from floor and it is fully open

Blow the orifices out with compressed air

I bet the beeping sound is the igniitor trying to light a flame. I don't know what kind of igniitor it has, could be a piece of flint and a striker and maybe the flint is worn out and needs replacing (like the flint in a cigarette lighter or gas grill. Try using a aim and flame and see if it light up, if so then its isolated to the ignitor and you can trouble shoot from there.

Look at page 33 of this for the beeping.

http://www.fireplacex.com/TravisDocs/100-01237_000.pdf

Here is the manual: http://www.fireplacex.com/TravisDocs/100-01237_000.pdf

I have no experience with that model, but per the manual it beeps when the battery is low.

Rick and I think alike.... RTFM

In the manual they call it a "pilot sensor". It shuts off gas flow if not kept at a certain temp (in case flame blows out it automatically shuts off gas). Sometimes just cleaning it with steel wool will remove carbon build up that affects its operation.

I went to the fireplace store. A tech gave me a few things to look at...one of them is something called the Vent Restrictor. Its supposed to be on the first notch. Sure enough, i got home and I can see inside that its come off the latch. So now I have to figure out how to remove the face so I can access it and set it at the correct fully open position.

Thanks for the ideas

OK let me tell you from first hand experence....Do not play around with it just call someone in and have them service it....
Mine would not ignite the flame right away, good pilot light, and then one day I was down on the floor infront of it trying to see why it would not ignite the gas and then BOOOM!!!!! blew the front glass out and a big fire ball , burnt the hair on my face and arms off..
If you do not know when the last time it was serviced get it looked at ...PLEASE

It sounds like you have found the problem, but also do this. I just used a vacume cleaner and gave them a clean. The gas flow/pressure is so low that dust settles on the little jets and restricts the flow. The heater will go so much better after a minor clean.

Good luck w/the issue.
Unrelated...looked last nite online for a heater exchanger insert for my gas firelplace.
Hate to waste that heat going up the pipe.
Anyone consider one of these?
.
Heat Exchanger - Heating Solutions | Stoll Fireplace Inc.

Natural gas is not something to fool with. It goes boom. Do you really want to wonder if you fixed it correctly? There is a reason God invented gas technicians...call one.

As per a similar experiance I would call a pro to come in .
messing with it could effect how it clean it runs .disturbing the logs ,sand or the little pieces in there can cause this . they look simple but if not set up correctly you can get a monoxide problem or worse..
The beeping could be the warning that the flame went out but the gas is still on.
Not worth taking a chance.get a pro in .