Unburned Coal in My A&A 130

tiz · Post by **tiz** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 4:26 pm

I installed an A&A 130 boiler this year and I am having a couple issues that I am hoping someone can advise me about.

First. I seem to be getting quite a bit of unburned coal in the ash bucket. The asher is set at 2 clicks. Does the anthrastat setting have anything to do with this issue?

Second. I am getting a lot of fly ash collecting in, around, and on the barometric damper in the flue pipe. Is this normal?

Thanks all, in advance, for your help.

Carl in PA

Rick 386 · Post by **Rick 386** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 4:49 pm

Carl,
If you could post a couple of pics of your setup it would help. Also a pic of the ash bucket.

Are you sure it is unburned coal or could it be slate or something else in the coal ??
AA's usually do a pretty good job of burning it up.

Rick

tiz · Post by **tiz** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 5:03 pm

Ok Rick,

I will post a couple of pictures as soon as I get some more ashes. Just emptied them.

It does appear to be unburned coal when I pick some of it out of the ash bucket.

Post by **coaledsweat** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 5:16 pm

Post a pic of the firepot after running for a while. It isn't uncommon for an Axeman to have a few unburned pieces if it doesn't get loaded hard enough.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 5:35 pm

tiz wrote:I installed an A&A 130 boiler this year and I am having a couple issues that I am hoping someone can advise me about.

First. I seem to be getting quite a bit of unburned coal in the ash bucket. The asher is set at 2 clicks. Does the anthrastat setting have anything to do with this issue?

Second. I am getting a lot of fly ash collecting in, around, and on the barometric damper in the flue pipe. Is this normal?

Thanks all, in advance, for your help.

Carl in PA

What is the setting of the Anthrastat?
Any "puff-backs"?

2 clicks should be close...only change one thing at a time and wait 24 hours to see what results.

Most of the fly ash should never make it passed the cyclone dump cone above the ash tub. You have something out of whack.

Something to consider as a upgrade from the primitive controls of yesteryear:

Click-able Link:
How Should an AA130's Fire Look at Full Burn?

cabinover · Post by **cabinover** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 6:20 pm

If my AA hasn't worked in a day or two fairly hard I'll get some unburnt coal. It's the cost of doing business.

As for the ash and the barometric damper, mine does this as well. Nothing to worry about.

tiz · Post by **tiz** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 6:59 pm

The anthrastat was set @ 100 degrees. Too Low???
What exactly does the anthrastat do, what does it control?

Carl in PA

lsayre · Post by **lsayre** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 7:12 pm

With the temperature being as warm as it has been here for a couple days, I just noticed some unburned (or incompletely burned) in my ash tub today, and it was pretty abnormally heavy to boot, which is another indicator of the same thing. Going to cool down in a hurry now though.

mozz · Post by **mozz** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 7:40 pm

Set it at 140, as per the manual. Don't turn the knob, use a allen wrench.

tiz wrote:The anthrastat was set @ 100 degrees. Too Low???
What exactly does the anthrastat do, what does it control?

Carl in PA

Post by **coaledsweat** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 8:51 pm

tiz wrote:What exactly does the anthrastat do, what does it control?

It has a probe that is just under the stepped grate. As the temperature falls, it activates the solenoid to start the ashing sequence at the setpoint. At a temperatre rise of X number of degrees, it shuts off the ashing function. If I recall correctly, the temperature differential X is about 10*.

McGiever · Post by **McGiever** » Wed. Dec. 24, 2014 8:53 pm

Coalsweat beat me to it.

Anthrastat turns a electric solenoid coil on and off which when on it will engage the grate ashing linkage to be driven up and down (clicks) by the rotating auger tube.

The number of clicks adjusts the rate of speed that the grate travels.
It takes 42 clicks total, for one out and back cycle on a AA-130 grate...the AA-260 may be different, or not...cause the auger tube on a AA-260 turns at twice the speed of that of the AA-130.