Leisure Line AA 220 Boiler Using Excessive Coal and Not Much Heat

 
strykerlover
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Location: Van Buren, Maine
Stoker Coal Boiler: AA 220
Coal Size/Type: Anthracite Coal
Other Heating: Oil Fired Vega, Beckwell Pellet Stove

Post by strykerlover » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 10:03 am

Hello fellas,

This is Adam from Northern Maine, I spoken to you both Dave and Matt on several occasions about my AA - 220 boiler, however still have not really received any confident answers or solutions.

You need to call Keith Ouellette (who installed my boiler) because it is still not running correctly. It's been cold here for the last two months however since the end of October 2014 I already burnt 5 tons of coal. My house is approx. 1800 square feet and I find this to be excessive. The boiler continues to struggle to maintain temps, however it is better than last year.

I think it is a setting or something. It appears to feed lots of unburned coal into the ash pan, the boiler is very sensitive and if I make any adjustments to the air flow rate, I get nasty sulfur smells throughout my garage and condensation in the hopper. I am currently running the air flow flaps on both fans 1/4 open, if I open them all the way, the stove generates lots of heat, however I get sulfur smell and condensation. It appears that there is nothing that I can do to make this right.

I apologize for this but so far I am not satisfied with this boiler. I need to run electric oil filled radiators and an electric fireplace, and pellet stove just so I don't burn the whole 320 lbs hopper within the day.

Please get back to me ASAP, and call Keith O. so that I can get this resolved. We were recently voted the coldest place in the U.S. If there is something wrong with my boiler please help me figure this out. I have been more than patient now going on two years. FYI Last year I burned a total of 13 tons of coal for just the winter. That was a total of $3500. I make very, very small wages and cashed my retirement in from my last job so that I could afford to heat my home, this is not working as planned.

Thank you, I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Adam


 
Matthaus
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Post by Matthaus » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 11:49 am

Sorry to hear of the issue, I speak with over a 100 people a day on most days this time of year so sorry I do not remember speaking with you. I can tell you one thing for sure, my cell number is in the back of your manual because we care, I will not give up till we figure out a solution for your problem. Each dealer has varying levels of expertise in HVAC, Ouellette's has been trying to improve their knowledge on our units and solid fuel heating in general, but still have a ways to go.

Please call me and we can figure out what the issue, if you can't find your manual it is available here: http://www.leisurelinestoves.com/wp-content/uploa ... 285747.pdf or you can send me a PM.

 
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EarthWindandFire
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Post by EarthWindandFire » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 12:51 pm

Any members from Northern Maine willing to pay a visit and lend a hand?

Stryker, do you have access to a Skype account or Apple's Facetime app?

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 12:57 pm

Hopefully you are able to get this resolved.

Based on the info you have provided it sounds like inadequate draft. Your installer should be able to confirm this with a draft gauge.

 
strykerlover
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Posts: 25
Joined: Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 9:47 am
Location: Van Buren, Maine
Stoker Coal Boiler: AA 220
Coal Size/Type: Anthracite Coal
Other Heating: Oil Fired Vega, Beckwell Pellet Stove

Post by strykerlover » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 1:22 pm

I have your number programmed into my cell phone. Last time I called you asked to speak with Ouellette's. Since then, I have not heard anything. I understand completely that you deal with hundreds of people everyday. I do also, and find it near impossible to remember who is who. That's why I contacted you through this forum. I think that a telephone call to Ouellette's is in order. I've spent a lot of cash to get this to work right. I just don't have anymore to spend.

I also understand the draft maybe bad but I have added four more sections and have a combined chimney length of 26 feet 14 of it is outside of the building. If I go any taller I will have the risk of it toppling over. It's as high as the peak of the building. Chimney goes from 8 inch at the stove, and 10 inches from the ceiling through the roof to the top of the chimney.

If you're available, I would like to speak with you this Saturday in the AM. I have to work all week and am away from home until 5:00 PM eastern time. Does five tons of coal since October make sense? I'm not sure but seems like a lot to me.

 
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Uglysquirrel
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Post by Uglysquirrel » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 8:36 pm

Being at the extreme northern tip of Maine within a few miles of Canada , your area's heating degree days....roughly 10K a year.....

http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMONthdd.pl?me8965

I'm sure you can experience some -35F weather up there at night with days -10 F. Even with a 2 x 6 stick built house that has some fairly good insulation and fair grade thermopane windows I can easily see you doing as much coal as you do. Your cold is intense to put it mildly. You are one hearty soul.

You using Class A double wall insulated pipe all the way up including above the roof ? Thinking its so cold that the gas may chill in your pipe to a point where it may not rise (??) . This could especially be a potential especially if your exhaust is at a lower temp to save coal. Others here know more about than than me...

When was the last time it was cleaned with pipes near the stove checked for ash blockage ?

 
KLook
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Post by KLook » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 8:45 pm

Sir, it does not sound like your unit is dialed in. But having said that, I would burn 1/2 ton in Nov. ,1 ton in Dec. (depending on how cold) and 1 1/2 in Jan. and Feb, and so on declining till I shut down.
This means that on average I burned 3 tons by this time. I lived in the Machias area which is not as cold as your region. And of course, what you are heating makes a huge difference.
I would be more concerned with the(apparent) lack of draft and the condensation in the hopper.

My son started my boiler up in Oct. this year and he has burned about 3.5 tons to date.

Kevin


 
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freetown fred
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Post by freetown fred » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 9:29 pm

"It's as high as the peak" ----- for starters draft wise, you need to be 3 to 4 feet above tour roof peak!

 
strykerlover
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Location: Van Buren, Maine
Stoker Coal Boiler: AA 220
Coal Size/Type: Anthracite Coal
Other Heating: Oil Fired Vega, Beckwell Pellet Stove

Post by strykerlover » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 9:50 pm

I genuinely accept all of your valuable input. My last two sections of chimney above my roof are not class a double insulated. I ran out of $$$$ and need to use single wall pipe, so that May effect my draft as you stated. It has enough draft to pull a tissue as it is now. I hope that's not the issue, but you never know. Those sections are over $250 a piece.

It does get really cold here, and trust me, if I wasn't stuck here I would move to a warmer climate. My home is built with 2x6 construction super well insulated, including 1 inch R-board on the exterior. I have brand new gas filled windows, my home was built in 2011, and I built it with my own hands, so I know it's well insulated. My walls are actually about 9 inches thick included the vapor barriers needed for home built for cold weather. I also have 25 inches of cellulous in my attic to prevent heat loss through the roof.

Maybe my expectations are too high, I just assumed that 220,000 BTU's could heat my home and an extra home because of the size. It's not too bad, and still much cheaper than our oil budget was 2 years ago. The little box with the two little dials on top do nothing, when there is no demand the boiler simply shuts down and waits until temps drop again. It does not maintain temp therefore by the time it has demand again the water in the jacket has cooled to the point where it is difficult to build back up to 180 degrees. Feels like it's always trying to catch temp.

 
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warminmn
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Post by warminmn » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 11:08 pm

Its actually possible your home is too air tight and not enough air is getting in to create a draft going out your chimney. Opening a window a small ways near the stove would tell this as it would run better then. (a manometer would confirm this)

You should consider buying a manometer to measure your draft. Guessing on how much draft you have doesnt work very well. Cost would be somewhere from $20-40. If draft is weak then we could help you figure that out. Adding single wall pipe is better than not having it there, but not as good as double wall. I would think that using that much coal should create enough heat in the chimney to make a decent draft, but guessing isnt a sure way to know.

Irregardless, you are having issues that have to be addressed by someone that knows your model stove, and that person is not me. Good luck figuring it out.

 
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SMITTY
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Post by SMITTY » Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 11:37 pm

If your heating 2 homes in that climate with that many available BTU's (220k), it's entirely possible to burn through 5 ton in a couple months. I use 5 tons in 6 months, so 2 of these houses would use exactly that amount in 3 months.

How's the insulation in the second home? How many feet of pipe run to that second home? What type of pipe was buried? AND was it insulated? Could be lots of heat going into the ground there ...

 
strykerlover
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Joined: Thu. Jan. 29, 2015 9:47 am
Location: Van Buren, Maine
Stoker Coal Boiler: AA 220
Coal Size/Type: Anthracite Coal
Other Heating: Oil Fired Vega, Beckwell Pellet Stove

Post by strykerlover » Fri. Jan. 30, 2015 6:28 am

No, I'm not heating two houses, just thought that I could have with that many BTU's.

 
titleist1
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Post by titleist1 » Fri. Jan. 30, 2015 7:14 am

Given the description of the house being so well insulated and tight I second the idea to crack a window near the stoker. Check this thread below for a big difference in performance just by doing this. If this does work you will want an outside air supply to the stove. Some here (myself included) have run a pipe through the wall to the combustion fan(s).

Trouble With Alaska Stoker Stove II

Do you have CO monitors in place? Have you cleaned the unit of accumulated fly ash to allow a clear path for the exhaust gas through the flue pipe and also to allow for efficient heat transfer? Depending on the coal characteristics you should be checking this every 1 to 2 tons of coal.

Anybody nearby with a manometer to check the draft for him?

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Fri. Jan. 30, 2015 7:54 am

strykerlover wrote:My last two sections of chimney above my roof are not class a double insulated. I ran out of $$$$ and need to use single wall pipe, so that May effect my draft as you stated.
It will definitely impact the draft, especially in your cold climate.

 
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EarthWindandFire
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Post by EarthWindandFire » Fri. Jan. 30, 2015 9:17 am

In my opinion, every new coal stoker should be supplied from the factory with a manometer and an integrated carbon monoxide alarm safety shut-off device. The economics of this are clear, the stove would cost more. The manometer would answer so many questions about the stoves settings and performance.


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