1st Coal Fire Happening Now...

 
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Seagrave1963
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Posts: 205
Joined: Fri. Sep. 26, 2014 7:12 pm
Location: Eastern Shore of Maryland
Hand Fed Coal Stove: Harman TLC2000
Coal Size/Type: nut
Other Heating: electric heat pumps, propane fireplace

Post by Seagrave1963 » Sun. Jan. 25, 2015 12:21 pm

From a fellow coal noob - Congratulations!

 
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Lightning
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Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Sun. Jan. 25, 2015 12:33 pm

tim/oh wrote:When I shook it down got approx. 3/4 pan of ash. Is this about right? I had some coal fall through/lodge/get stuck in the front because of grates not shaking equally.
Here's some good reading for this -

Grates Upside Down

Fixing Play Between Inline Grates

 
tim/oh
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Posts: 17
Joined: Sat. Jan. 24, 2015 7:46 pm
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Hotblast

Post by tim/oh » Sun. Jan. 25, 2015 12:47 pm

Keepaeyeonit wrote:Good job Tim, once you get the coal thing down and get a system for your Hotblast you won't go back to wood trust me. Safety Is your #1 priority so Mr Lighting and Hotblast 1357 know those units and your goto guys and remember to fill up your firebox :lol: . Keepaeyeonit
Yep, I've read a lot of conflicting things on here so I'm taking it all in and paying close attention to the guys using the same unit or close to the same unit. Through messing with dampers I now know.03 is to low for my set up. Need to fix grate issues but hate to shut it down already. I think I'll wait til it creates an issue or 4-5 weeks til clean out. I'll get it....


 
tim/oh
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Joined: Sat. Jan. 24, 2015 7:46 pm
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Hotblast

Post by tim/oh » Sun. Jan. 25, 2015 10:35 pm

Ok, here's where I am, I used 40lbs of stove coal in 24 hrs. House got up to 74 degrees, wife loves it, to hot for me. Does this usage sound normal? I honestly have roughly 3/4 left after a 12 burn and shake. is it possible to go 15-18hrs before reload with this furnace?

I'm really having issues with the shaking. There is so much play at the center joint, to get the back grate to move at all the front one need to open so much coal is getting stuck between the grate and frame in the front. I didn't want to let it burn down but I think I need to address this. Any suggestions? I'm going to do a search and see what comes up. Thanks again all..

 
tim/oh
New Member
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat. Jan. 24, 2015 7:46 pm
Hand Fed Coal Furnace: Hotblast

Post by tim/oh » Sun. Jan. 25, 2015 11:13 pm

Lightning wrote:
tim/oh wrote:When I shook it down got approx. 3/4 pan of ash. Is this about right? I had some coal fall through/lodge/get stuck in the front because of grates not shaking equally.
Here's some good reading for this -

Grates Upside Down

Fixing Play Between Inline Grates
Thanks Lightning. I had just read your thread on fixing grates from 2013. Are the set screws still holding up? I have some stainless shim stock at work thinking of that to take up most play and the set screws drilled through the stainless into male part slightly? Mine is horrible, front half glowing bright in ash pan after shake, back half dark as can be. Really had to work at it to get ashes from the back half.

 
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Lightning
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Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Mon. Jan. 26, 2015 4:14 am

Yes. I haven't needed to do anything with it since I tapped in the set screws. They have held up great.

You can get at that back grate with a tool I call a "slicer". It's about 30 inches long. Access from the ash door. The end of it shown in the picture gets pushed up between the grate and the grate frame and then rip back and forth to clear ash. It will help till you can get after binding the two grates together.

I made this tool out of bracing I found at the hardware store.

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User avatar
Lightning
Site Moderator
Posts: 14659
Joined: Wed. Nov. 16, 2011 9:51 am
Location: Olean, NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: Modified AA 130
Coal Size/Type: Pea Size - Anthracite

Post by Lightning » Mon. Jan. 26, 2015 4:31 am

Also I posted a link about the grates being upside down. You'll wanna pay attention to that when reinstalling them.. :)

 
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hotblast1357
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Posts: 5657
Joined: Mon. Mar. 10, 2014 10:06 pm
Location: Peasleeville NY
Stoker Coal Boiler: 1984 Eshland S260 coal gun
Coal Size/Type: Lehigh anthracite pea
Other Heating: air source heat pump, oil furnace

Post by hotblast1357 » Mon. Jan. 26, 2015 8:18 am

tim/oh wrote:Ok, here's where I am, I used 40lbs of stove coal in 24 hrs. House got up to 74 degrees, wife loves it, to hot for me. Does this usage sound normal? I honestly have roughly 3/4 left after a 12 burn and shake. is it possible to go 15-18hrs before reload with this furnace?

I'm really having issues with the shaking. There is so much play at the center joint, to get the back grate to move at all the front one need to open so much coal is getting stuck between the grate and frame in the front. I didn't want to let it burn down but I think I need to address this. Any suggestions? I'm going to do a search and see what comes up. Thanks again all..
Your u sugar sounds great! That's roughly what I am using tending every 12-16 hours in the dead cold right now, when it gets milder out, 30-40 we can go 24 hours if we play our cards right. Do the mod lightning did and your problem will vanish. I do not have this issue because mine is the smaller version with only 1 grate.

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