Spare Parts
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- New Member
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- Location: Lewisburg, Pa.
I was wondering what spare parts I should keep for my 520 stoker? Does anyone keep any? Just thinking of keeping a couple close by when the temperature gets like +5 degrees and something decides to break. The local dealers in my area don't stock many spare parts and this is my main source of heat.
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- Hot Air Coal Stoker Furnace: keystoker 160
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I never thought of it being that I can just go back over to propane if I have no other choice. I`m sure someone will be able to help maybe a spare combustion blower motor. It seems like a lot of motors & such can be had at Graingers if theres one close to you. Some school for thought, hope someone can steer you in the right direction.
- Scottscoaled
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- Stoker Coal Boiler: EFM 520, 700, Van Wert 800 GJ 61,53
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Seems like the guys that own the 520's somehow end up owning more than one I would try to get a rebuilt stoker unit with auger on the shelf. It will always be worth what you pay for it and that way all the parts are there. If something breaks it gives you plenty of time to fix it. Like 10-20 years. Hahahaha
- Richard S.
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- Stoker Coal Boiler: Van Wert VA1200
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If you're referring to the pins in the worm you shouldn't be breaking that often. Use a shear pin that breaks easily like brass or copper. I believe brass is standard factory equipment, a brazing rod could be cut into pieces as a substitute (might even be what is used from factory). It should fit the hole exactly. It's strong enough that minor stress won't cause it to snap but weak enough it will break before anything else.
I can only recall two pins ever getting broken on our Van Wert in 25 years.
I can only recall two pins ever getting broken on our Van Wert in 25 years.
- stoker-man
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The shear pins that efm uses are rated to break at 25 foot pounds of torque. They only cost pennies apiece and should always be on hand. Using anything with more or less strength will cause needless breaks of the substitute pin or the worm.
An extra short worm is a good investment, but may be a hard sell because most worms last for 20 years or more.
An extra short worm is a good investment, but may be a hard sell because most worms last for 20 years or more.
- Richard S.
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- Stoker Coal Boiler: Van Wert VA1200
- Coal Size/Type: Buckwheat/Anthracite
We just had ours apart on the Van Wert, looked like new. The only part where it was worn was at the end where it goes into the pot. That had a sharp edge but the rest was nice and flat.stoker-man wrote: An extra short worm is a good investment, but may be a hard sell because most worms last for 20 years or more.
- stoker-man
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The sharp edge is what causes the coal grinding and in the efm, the odd pot burning.
- Richard S.
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It's just on the very end, like about 3 inches, about the length of what goes into the pot. The rest of the worm is perfectly flat on the edges. Doesn't seem to cause any issues.
- stoker-man
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Exactly the same wear pattern as the efm.
I keep a spare motor, cotter pins, shear pins, ratchet and drive pawls, and a rubber knuckle that connects the motor to the fan. The EFM dealer is about an hour from me. With my luck something will break on Sunday evening in the middle of a blizzard.
I have propane as backup so I don't worry too much about it, a spare electric motor with coupler is probably a good investment as that is really the only item that will shut you down unexpectedly and there's no way to cobble something up for a holiday weekend if it completely fails. Also keep some spare pipes and fittings and valves on hand in case you spring a leak and have to bypass a section in an emergency. On a side note, the amount of spare parts you have directly determines how long the originals will last. If you buy a spare motor you can count on Murphy making your original last 100 years
- coaledsweat
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What are they, aluminum/solid/tapered?billw wrote:shear pins
- stoker-man
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- Hand Fed Coal Boiler: 1981 efm wcb-24 in use 365 days a year
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- Other Heating: Hearthstone wood stove
Some sort of steel or composite
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- New Member
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- Joined: Wed. Jul. 16, 2008 8:29 pm
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I just wanted to say thanks for everyones input. I ordered a few spare parts after firing my boiler on friday to take the chill out of the house only to discover later that night the overload tripped on the motor. I removed the gear reducing unit to find a bad bearing in the unit. I'm glad it happened now than in Jan. or Feb when the temps are colder. Thanks again!