Advice on Proper Procedure for Controling a Fire

Post by **franco b** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 5:16 pm

It seems it is not the stove, but forgetting to close down the primary air.

If the ash door has no gasket or place for one, then it must have been ground to fit.

D-frost · Post by **D-frost** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 5:27 pm

Franco,
I think you are correct in saying 'ground to fit'. I remember one member here using Permatex and wax paper on an ash pan leaky door. I don't know if that door will support a thin gasket. Hoping pics will tell.
Cheers

Liz570 · Post by **Liz570** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 6:29 pm

In regards to air flow with Darby, this is what I think (as in my opinion): The open draft was the original problem today ( Franco is correct) which was compounded by the location of the fire ( front of stove) . Once the coal began to burn ( like crazy) the secondary 'fixed' draft kept fueling the fire. The added leaks around load door added to the problem. The load doors had issues when we bought the stove which we were unaware of until later. Hubby worked on doors previously but not on gaskets as they were all "new".
It's been hard getting this stove back on line due to loss of coal bed ( trying to remove ash build up). Finally I think we have it. We will let it burn for another hour & then load for the night. Hopefully all will be well in the AM. As soon as weather permits we will go over the stove. Any thoughts on cleaning the glass on a burning stove? It's so dirty at the moment it's hard to see how well the fire is burning !
I have misplaced my camera but as soon as I locate it I will post pics of the doors/gaskets for you to see.
thanks to everyone for all your thoughts & advice!
liz

nortcan · Post by **nortcan** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 6:32 pm

Sometimes it's possible to weld a support to the inner part of the ash pit door, so a rope gasket can be placed there and it makes a good seal. The advantage is you can change the rope gasket after a few years if needed to. Metal on metal seal is harder to be done but is an other solution.

Liz570 · Post by **Liz570** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 6:56 pm

Thanks Nortcan, i'll show this to my husband and see if he can do this. Seems like a great solution if doable.

D-frost · Post by **D-frost** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 7:51 pm

Liz,
http://www.stovespares.co.uk
Left column-Click on Coalbrookdale
They have Darby parts, plus a parts breakdown diagram. Does that ash door have hinges on the bottom, and open down? If so, I think a thin gasket will fix the leak(reference Nortcan's photo). Door gasket for load doors is 9mm, but you can buy that in a hardware store. Hope this helps you.
Cheers

Post by **franco b** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 8:01 pm

No gasket shown for ash door. If the fire was controllable before it should not need one.

D-frost · Post by **D-frost** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 8:11 pm

Franco,
Weird, huh? Look at the top parts breakdown diagram that shows the frame for the door, and the 2 hinges. Maybe an adjustment to the hinges and latch will do it. I know the door is cast, but the frame looks like it could be steel. If so, that might have warped. Any way, beautiful stove.
Cheers

nortcan · Post by **nortcan** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 9:26 pm

Most new if not all stoves, even some antique ones were air tight (as much as possible) when new, but for some reasons, they get less air tight with the time, from abuse, ash door left opened...warping...or just from normal use. The rope gaskets need to be changed once in a while to get a good seal, so imagine if a stoves' seal is metal on metal? The ash pit door is one of the most important place to have a GOOD seal to be able to control an anthracite stove and stay safe.
Just my opinion but works very nice for a 1874 and a 1905 stoves.

windyhill4.2 · Post by **windyhill4.2** » Tue. Jan. 06, 2015 9:45 pm

Why do all the modification when real thin flat gaskets are available ,if needed.

Liz570 · Post by **Liz570** » Wed. Jan. 07, 2015 7:09 am

Good morning. thank you for the most recent posts regarding the link to stovespares .co.UK. I have looked at the top doors which appear to be the source of the problem. I am wondering if both doors need replaced? They did not fit correctly to start and they look to be a bit out of line. ( A soon as I locate my camera GRRRRR

.. I will post pics) The seal around the door is not the same as the one in photo which would explain the gap top & bottom. The inside of the door frame (that hold glass in place) is steel not cast. New glass was added but there were stripped screws and misalignment with frame ( hubby fixed this).
I am not having buyers remorse as I love this stove but I should have researched the appearance & workings of a properly maintained Darby. hindsight 20/20. Now I will have to work on finding the solution.

The lower ash door may benefit from a thin gasket. However the spin draft seem to have issues as well. the right side works hard & hubby says it was bent & worked on it. ( I admit when he brought the digging iron into the house to pry on the draft knob I had visions of him breaking it off & me breaking him!) Neither happened & the draft works much better but still not like new.( whatever that was like).

When warmer weather gets here we will overhaul the whole stove. Check it out top to bottom. For now it is running fine. Although I am still ab bit anxious after yesterday AM. The advice about leaving it ( draft) set when it is working well in this weather is good. I believe I was a bit impatient when it came to loading it & waiting for it to fire up. The 'boat' analogy in a previous post fits perfectly here.

I am making copies of the exploded parts charts to compare with my stove. You guys are amazing! Thank you so much and I'll post as I know more.
PS: pretty chilly outside this AM! Thanks again.
liz

nortcan · Post by **nortcan** » Wed. Jan. 07, 2015 8:11 am

[quote="windyhill4.2"]Why do all the modification when real thin flat gaskets are available ,if needed.[/quote

On some doors, the gap between the door and the stove is too small to put a flat gasket so the gasket must be placed inside a support and have just what is needed to seal. I tried some flat gaskets but they didn't work on my stoves. But they can make good seals in some places.]

Advice on Proper Procedure for Controling a Fire

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