Grumble...Firebrick...Grumble

EPugs45 · Post by **EPugs45** » Mon. Dec. 22, 2014 8:10 am

Last night I went to shake down and my grates got stuck hard! I let it go overnight hoping it was a piece of coal and would right itself, but no such luck. I just shut down and inspected and it seems like a firebrick over the shaker mechanism has come loose, so when you push and pull the lever, the brick is riding on it moving up and down. No good. I'm not sure if I just need to replace the brick or the bracket that holds the brick? Do those go bad as well over time? I noticed the one in the front is pretty much disintegrated. I'll have to have the hubs look at it when he gets home later. Just wondering if anyone has had this experience. I have a Harman Mark II.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Mon. Dec. 22, 2014 8:22 am

Brick retainers are a simple part/piece...nothing more than a "Z" bracket...or more like a double "L" even.

Not hard to come by, bricks size is a common size so any mfgr's "Z" can be made to fit.

EPugs45 · Post by **EPugs45** » Mon. Dec. 22, 2014 8:38 am

Thanks! Glad to know it's not a major operation.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Mon. Dec. 22, 2014 8:43 am

EPugs45 wrote:Thanks! Glad to know it's not a major operation.

May not be a simple job...if welded on...some did bolt on though.

But there are options on who to buy them from.

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Mon. Dec. 22, 2014 12:17 pm

EPugs45 wrote:I noticed the one in the front is pretty much disintegrated. I'll have to have the hubs look at it when he gets home later. Just wondering if anyone has had this experience. I have a Harman Mark II.

That brick bracket is easy to replace and pretty cheap through a Harman dealer. I buy two or three at a time to save on shipping. They just screw in. The Mark II has three or four bricks that are cut to fit and fill spots along the front edge and corners. Fortunately, these bricks don't get cracks or break up like those in the back. Be careful taking them out and you should be able to continue using them. If they have to be replaced they will need to be cut to fit from common fire bricks or a complete brick set purchased from Harman. The other bricks are just common fire bricks and can be picked up at HD or Lowes. They go in and out real easy. Lisa

EPugs45 · Post by **EPugs45** » Sun. Dec. 28, 2014 7:57 pm

So just to update, so much ash had built up behind the firebrick as well as the metal piece that they rest on this in turn caused my grates to be slightly off so they were riding up on each other and getting stuck. My husband took all the firebrick out as well as the grates and cleaned everything. Since we had them out and they were old we decided to replace them. We were able to reuse the small pieces so that's great. Everything replaced and the grates work beautifully now. We had no idea so much ash could build up there, but now we know. We are still relatively new to coal this is our second season, but the stove had been in place for about 10 years. It's gotten a lot of much needed maintenance in these last 2 seasons

davidmcbeth3 · Post by **davidmcbeth3** » Sun. Dec. 28, 2014 8:32 pm

I took mine off this year and welded on a new set ... angle grinder and a 70 dollar 90 Amp harbor freight mig welder .. about a 30 minute job.

They go bad over time, warping etc.

scalabro · Post by **scalabro** » Sun. Dec. 28, 2014 9:12 pm

The MK2 needs regular cleaning behind the baffle through the stovepipe outlet hole as well.

Post by **coaledsweat** » Mon. Dec. 29, 2014 9:41 am

That's the main reason I went to an Axeman stoker. My old Steel King boiler would eat the straps that held the fire brick at each end twice a year without fail.

SMITTY · Post by **SMITTY** » Mon. Dec. 29, 2014 4:43 pm

My Mark I & the Mark III had those all just resting there - nothing was bolted except that small tab right in front of the load door that always disintegrates after a few years ...
Once that comes out, then you can lift the firebrick out of the front, then work your way around in a circle until it's all out of there. Once you lift the grates out, those metal "rails" that the grates ride in, and the firebrick sits on top of, will lift right out.

Doubt those would be worn though. Both my stoves ran hard for several years, and neither showed the slightest bit of wear in those areas.

lowfog01 · Post by **lowfog01** » Mon. Dec. 29, 2014 4:58 pm

scalabro wrote:The MK2 needs regular cleaning behind the baffle through the stovepipe outlet hole as well.

And don't forget on top of the baffle, that's the false ceiling on the fire box. Reach your hand up just inside the loading door and you'll feel a ledge. That's the baffle. It's hard to get at but do your best. Also the area around the opening for the fan. Lisa

EPugs45 · Post by **EPugs45** » Mon. Dec. 29, 2014 5:22 pm

Thanks everyone! We did clean all those nooks and crannies (English muffin anyone?!) and will be sure to do them again. Thankfully all the brackets that hold the fire bricks were in good shape because they are all welded on, except for that one in the front that does bolt which was fairly crumbly, but will deal with it for the rest of this season anyway as it doesn't seem to really hold anything in anyway? The grates are in beautiful shape and now much happier that they can move freely again

Now to order a new blower and hoping that's the last thing I have to do this season (knocking on wood!)

Does anyone know if there is a difference between a regular Harman Mark II and a Magnafire Mark II or are these basically the same stove? I was getting slightly confused on this. It seemed like I was getting different results when just searching for a Harman Mark II.

Anyway we seem to have the Magnafire if that means anything.

Grumble...Firebrick...Grumble

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