Just Say HI!! to Everyone and Sharing Some Pics of My AA260M

billw wrote:Really neat setup. Why all of the bx cable? Is that local code or just additional safety. My oil burner, circulating pumps, etc are wired with romex and passed inspection. Of course that was 12 years ago so maybe something has changed. Are you getting any vibration from the allthread rod you have attached from the manifold to the floor joist? I have a blower unit in my basement/garage that is suspended that way. When it kicks on it rattles everything in the dining room directly above it.

Usually when a power feed cannot be anchored (i.e. suspended in the air) code requires it be something other than Romex, usually BX or run inside a conduit, that way it's protected from damage. I also think the BX looks neater then Romex.

U235, you have set the standard for all of us to aspire to!

The whole concept of control you have selected, not to mention the execution is about the best I have seen on any coal heating appliance. Now all you need is automatic ash handling.

I've never seen one before. What is the BTUH net rating on that?

oh oh, hold your ears folks it's show time! :box:

Hello Stoker man, go to this thread: Axeman-Anderson Anthratube 260M Disection It is all about my rebuilding of my AxemanAnderson 260M.

The 'net' BTU output depends on the fan speed, according to the Bureau of Mines report from 1949, the 130m put out something like 122K btu, but the report stated that it would be easy to increase the output by increasing the fan speed. The AA literature says that the 260M is around 226K BTU output for water.

Go to the Axeman Anderson Library and read the 'Bureau of Mines Report' . It is rather interesting.. Too bad there wasn't a similar 'report' done on the EFM's

They are not hard to work on at all, in fact I would from my experience with EFM's stoker say that the AA is easier to work on. They are just different 'animals'.

But because of the sliding/shaving grate design, the AA boiler is very fussy about the type of coal it burns. The underfeed stokers once adjusted for feed and air will burn just about any crappy or very good coal you want to feed it... The biggest problem would be the auger binding on rocks. The AA boiler prefers coal with a hard crusty ash rather than a fine powdery ash... I'm learning about this the hard way..

Hope you can find the time to read the available info.

Greg L

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billw wrote:Really neat setup. Why all of the bx cable? Is that local code or just additional safety. My oil burner, circulating pumps, etc are wired with romex and passed inspection. Of course that was 12 years ago so maybe something has changed. Are you getting any vibration from the allthread rod you have attached from the manifold to the floor joist? I have a blower unit in my basement/garage that is suspended that way. When it kicks on it rattles everything in the dining room directly above it.

thanks, and I had to rewire eveything so since alot of the old wiring was BX I just did new BX but one thing is I wish I used 14 not 12. and I have no vib's in the room above even with all 4 pumps running.

I prefer #12 over #14, I like the extra capacity of the wire. It can be a problem to route the wires in tight spaces.

I just realized that you are the member with the neat old house and the AA. I didn't make the connection until I read your PM. Sometimes I wonder about myself.

Matthaus wrote:U235, you have set the standard for all of us to aspire to!

The whole concept of control you have selected, not to mention the execution is about the best I have seen on any coal heating appliance. Now all you need is automatic ash handling.

Thanks, Matthaus altho I wouldn't say I set the standard because I've seen alot of nice setups on here. I spend a year of planning when I was haven't the scariest year or should I say nights last year with boiler temps hitting 270 and at least two times that were beyond that. So I spent alot of time reading to find out what I needed plus just trying things out to see what worked and what didn't. Now that my parents see that everything is working well their going to ordering a new 130m and we'll be picking it up at AA and I'll be doing the install pretty much like mine other then reusing their Taco 007 pumps.

Wood'nCoal wrote:I prefer #12 over #14, I like the extra capacity of the wire. It can be a problem to route the wires in tight spaces.

I just realized that you are the member with the neat old house and the AA. I didn't make the connection until I read your PM. Sometimes I wonder about myself.

Just take a seat and rest, It'll be ok

U235a4 wrote:

Wood'nCoal wrote:I prefer #12 over #14, I like the extra capacity of the wire. It can be a problem to route the wires in tight spaces.

I just realized that you are the member with the neat old house and the AA. I didn't make the connection until I read your PM. Sometimes I wonder about myself.

Just take a seat and rest, It'll be ok

I should go lie down in a dark room for awhile.

That's a great pictorial by LsFarm on another thread. I'm not done reading over it yet.

what the heck here is another picture with a different view.

**Broken Image Link(s) Removed**

And that, gentlemen, is how we do that!

Beautiful setup. Dang, I want a boiler now......and hot water heat. I HATE my forced air system. Works fine, cheap to run, but noisy and drafty, as they all are. Best system I recall was a 1920's one pipe steam setup in a house we lived in on Long Island. Originally a hand fed coal boiler, but long ago converted to oil . This was around the mid/late 80's when I lived there. Nevertheless, it worked beautifully, and kept my room in the converted attic toasty with just a single radiator. The place was also full of asbestos - boiler cement, pipe insulation, millboard above the boiler....oh well - no lung cancer yet!

europachris wrote:And that, gentlemen, is how we do that!

Beautiful setup. Dang, I want a boiler now......and hot water heat. I HATE my forced air system. Works fine, cheap to run, but noisy and drafty, as they all are. Best system I recall was a 1920's one pipe steam setup in a house we lived in on Long Island. Originally a hand fed coal boiler, but long ago converted to oil . This was around the mid/late 80's when I lived there. Nevertheless, it worked beautifully, and kept my room in the converted attic toasty with just a single radiator. The place was also full of asbestos - boiler cement, pipe insulation, millboard above the boiler....oh well - no lung cancer yet!

We only use the forced hot air to warm up the house if needed, if the Harman is low in the AM or out.
Steam heat with big radiators is my favorite.