Got a Few Questions About My Baseburner

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bambooboy
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Post by bambooboy » Thu. Jul. 30, 2015 7:32 pm

found out I'm missing a cover under bottom of stove,looks like maybe a cleanout for lower baseburner chamber.i'm guessing it was a cast iron cover that was pushed in on an angle &dropped down on 4 pegs.got some heavy sheet metal I plan on making one.anyone see any problems? also heard many years ago coal will not burn until ambient outside temp is 40 degrees,any truth here? what are downsides of burning small dry chunks of oak at start&end of season. thanks tom

 
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Sunny Boy
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Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Anthracite Industrial, domestic hot water heater
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Other Heating: Oil &electric plenum furnace

Post by Sunny Boy » Thu. Jul. 30, 2015 7:48 pm

Many of the base heaters have a "trap-door" flue clean-out door right under where the ash pan sits. I'd use at least 10 gauge, or 1/8 mild steel.

Statements that coal stoves will not work unless it's below 40 is a sure sign that person does not know how to operate a coal stove ! Or, a rumor started by wood stove salesmen ! :D

Burning dry oak? Only problems are you'll need to use less primary air under the fire and more secondary air over the fire than you would with coal. Coal needs air under the fire to burn up. Wood needs the air over the fire to burn down. That helps it burn slower and burn off as much as possible of the creosote in the smoke.

Oh, and with wood, the mica windows have to be cleaned more often.

Paul

 
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Pancho
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Post by Pancho » Fri. Jul. 31, 2015 7:15 am

bambooboy wrote:found out I'm missing a cover under bottom of stove,looks like maybe a cleanout for lower baseburner chamber.i'm guessing it was a cast iron cover that was pushed in on an angle &dropped down on 4 pegs.got some heavy sheet metal I plan on making one.anyone see any problems?
Pics would help but a sheet metal cover 'might' want to warp on you. Can't hurt to try it though.
also heard many years ago coal will not burn until ambient outside temp is 40 degrees,any truth here?
I ran mine a couple times last year where outside temps were North of 65 degrees with no issue.....a lot of this, though, depends on how your chimney drafts at different temps.
what are downsides of burning small dry chunks of oak at start&end of season. thanks tom
Other than you'll need to clean the windows on the stove.....and you'll need to feed the stove a lot....there are no issues. I ran mine on wood last spring for a couple two or three weeks and it operated fine. As mentioned, you'll need to adjust your primary air for wood.


 
ddahlgren
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Post by ddahlgren » Fri. Jul. 31, 2015 10:25 am

Right now fuel oil is 2.06 in my neck of the woods. If I need to just take the chill off for a few minutes why even bother for 50 cents for 15 minutes of heat?

 
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bambooboy
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Post by bambooboy » Fri. Jul. 31, 2015 7:38 pm

pics will be impossible under stove,don't think heat is going to be too intence at bottom.also thought of oversized heavy sheet metal held on with heavy magnets which I have. gonna forget wood&stick with charcoal&nut.got a call today from my propane dealer,summer special 99 cents.have 500 gallon tank just for generator tom

 
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wsherrick
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Post by wsherrick » Fri. Jul. 31, 2015 8:20 pm

Get a piece of stiff cardboard and make an exact template of the opening. Take that to a metal shop get them to fashion a lid with 1/4 inch hard steel. It will work just fine. It will not warp as the temperatures down there are much cooler than above. I did this with my Crawford 40 and it is perfect after two seasons with it.
You can not use the stove in base burner mode with out it.
And by the way don't abuse a base burner by burning wood in it. If the stove is operating properly and your chimney is drafting properly then it will burn coal with a much more controlled heat output than you can get with wood.
Base burners are strictly designed for one fuel only and that is Anthracite.


 
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bambooboy
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Post by bambooboy » Mon. Aug. 10, 2015 7:12 pm

starting looking for steel for door under stove,found in shed exactly what was needed. many years ago bought 2 power king tractors with mower decks,sold decks (no grass).somehow did not give buyer deck mulching plates,2 hacksaw blades, some grinding&i'm good to go. also found a very thin piece of copper sheet that I used as shims on a few door hinges. wife says I never throw anything away&this week it paid off. tom

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joeq
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Post by joeq » Tue. Aug. 11, 2015 10:12 pm

Nicely done. Now let's see the installed pictures, and the stove. :)

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