Why Ecofan and DIY Don't Mix

We love you, DIYers, we really do. We know that Do-It-Yourself is a trait a lot of our customers have. A lot of wood stove owners are inherently industrious. All that chopping and stacking wood deserves a sense of pride and we know that laborious tasks are in your nature. If something in your home is broken and needs fixing, you enjoy having the task on your to-do-yourself list. But when it comes to Ecofan, we’re here to ask you to PLEASE, call us first.

Reality Check

Ecofans last a long time. We routinely hear from customers that have had theirs running for over 10 years with heavy seasonal use. Unfortunately, we sometimes hear from customers whose Ecofan stopped performing in a fragment of the time it should have. The reality is there are factors that will affect an Ecofan’s performance, some will negatively impact its lifespan and on occasion, drastically so. These factors are laid out in the manual that arrives in the box with every Ecofan and is available on our website.

Factors Affecting an Ecofan’s Performance and Things DIYers Should Know:

The Ecofan Module

The module that makes the Ecofan work is not only best in class, it’s installed at Caframo in Wiarton, Ontario using air pressurized equipment and tools that are set to certain torque specifications. It has been our experience that without using the proper assembly jigs and tools, the thermoelectric module can be improperly installed, resulting in damage to the module or pre-mature failure.

Thermal Paste

Please do not attempt to apply thermal paste to your Ecofan module. We never recommend taking the Ecofan apart. CALL US and we will walk you through every option available – but applying thermal paste is not one of them, despite your level of DIY and what you find on YouTube.

Drops

This is an easy one because, of course dropping a product that contains and electronic component is never good. We build our Ecofans with premium parts and high-grade aluminum – which is heavier than most other fans on the market and as such, it’s harder to knock over an Ecofan than it is other stove fans. Still, accidents happen, especially if you have kids that find the Ecofan interesting or dogs with big, wagging tails (as much as we love them). A fall can damage the mechanics of the Ecofan or bend the blades. Fortunately, we offer replacement motors and blades! Give us a call right away if your Ecofan suffers a fall and you notice a change in performance.

Improper Placement

This might be the most important piece of info in the Ecofan manual. Where you place your Ecofan on your stove matters a lot. Placement will impact performance and the life of the motor and module. The temperature of the heat sink or top cooling fins will increase when the Ecofan is placed in front of the stove or pipe, minimizing the temperature differential on the module and energy output.  It also limits the efficiency of the Ecofan and can drive up the temperature of the motor, wearing the motor out faster.

Where to Place Your Ecofan

The best place for your Ecofan is the back corner of your free-standing stove- not at the front of the stove and especially not directly in front of the stove pipe. While the base of the Ecofan is designed to transfer heat up to the thermoelectric module, the top cooling fins are designed to remain cool to create electricity through a temperature differential. If the back corner of your stove is unavailable, you can bring the Ecofan up to either the left or right-hand side edge, or one of the front corners of the stove – but it’s best to angle the Ecofan so that the back is pointing out towards the open area of the room and not towards the back of the stove.

​If your stove is an insert, we recommend placing your fan as close to the front of the insert as possible, on either the left or right-hand side while angling it outwards as mentioned above.

Stove Temperature

Of course, every stove is different so placement may or may not be as vital for your stove as it is for others. Stove model, material grade and type of stove pipe being single or double walled are the biggest factors. Each Ecofan model has an optimal temperature performance range listed in its manual and keeping your stove within this range isn’t only better for your Ecofan’s performance, but likely your stove’s as well!

Rest assured, Caframo is constantly looking at ways to produce Ecofan models that outperform what’s on the market. Because of this, our Ecofan models don’t suffer from any performance factors that other brands do as well. Through vigorous testing, we know that our models outperform the rest.

And lastly, a friendly reminder that our customer service line is a one-call system. We pride ourselves in your ability to speak to a real person when you call us. So please do! We’re here to help.