Need some help fixing up/operating stove

As Greg said, I'd leave it alone at this point unless one of the two following things is bad.....

One is to check if the baffle plate is flaking away. On a unit I owned, probably from moisture & ash residue over the summer, the plate was peeling away in layers and ended up extremely thin in sections.

The second is the integrity where the baffle plate welds to the side of the stove. On my unit, the baffle plate warped badly (thinner plate + too hot fire) and the welds were stronger than the sides which developed cracks as the plate pulled them in from warping.

Toward the end of the last year I burned it, exhaust escaped from these cracks. It took me a while to find it. I thought the exhaust smell was due to poor draft from ash build up or coming from the flue pipe seams and joints as it exited the stove and thimble and I kept "fixing" that. It wasn't so bad that the CO detector went off or changed its numerical reading, but I kept getting a slight smell of exhaust.

I am making sure that I vacuum off the baffle plate as well as I can at the end of the season and during the mid-season warm spell fly ash cleanings. On mine the fly ash collects there as well as the thimble and you will see a drop in draft when it builds up. You can get access to the top of the plate from the front opening and also through the exhaust port in the back. It does take a bit of twisting to get the vacuum hose in there.

one more question. i was at my local harmon dealer today and she said i dont need any draft contol on the chimney pipe and that i should use pea coal because of the height of my chimney. is this info corect?

How high is the chimney?
A barometric damper and a manometer should be standard on all installs in my mind.
I would start with Nut and then make that decision.
Opinions are like ***holes, everyone has one.

CapeCoaler wrote:I would start with Nut and then make that decision.

I would agree with nut in that stove. I have never burned pea coal & want to give it a try this winter, but I think for a beginner, nut is a better choice as it will give you more heat & be easier to start. (Pea will evidently give you a cooler & longer burn but I would wait until you get comfortable burning nut first.

There's my opinion to add to the others!

And then you will need another set of 'blocks' for your stove.
You will have to mark them so you do not set your Nut blocks while burning Pea and still dump the fire!

what are "blocks"? and the top plate is flaking away a bit but i didnt think it was to bad, its still pretty thick. my chimney is prob 35' or so, the stove is in the basement and exits at the peak only a 1 story house though but the attic is pretty tall.

Sorry bit of a joke.
Here is a link so now you will be 'in the know'.
"Stops" For Harman Shaker Mechanisms?
At 35 feet your chimney will have 'crazy strong' draft and a barometric damper will keep it from pulling too strong on the stove.
It may alleviate the need for Pea.

BeerMonley wrote:what are "blocks"?

CapeCoaler wrote:Sorry bit of a joke.

Sure....Go ahead & laugh at my invention!!

When you Harman guys are all wasting coal & dumping your fires, you'll all come begging me for my patented blocks!!

Which I'll be selling for $200.00 a set...due to transportation costs & inflation!.
(cost me about a penny to make .....Profit margin is a little trick I learned from Exxon-Mobil!)

Devil ...'inside joke' not your idea is a joke...especially if you get $200 for a set!
I hope you will give a discount to the forum members.
Be careful you may come under the windfall profit tax mandate with your excessive profits!

so im guessing the lead time for thses blocks is pretty long seeing how complicated they are with the foil and everything, would i be able to get a set for maybe winter of 2010? absolut worst case i guess i could just not move the shaker handle as much.

BeerMonley wrote:so im guessing the lead time for thses blocks is pretty long seeing how complicated they are with the foil and everything, would i be able to get a set for maybe winter of 2010? absolut worst case i guess i could just not move the shaker handle as much.

Exactly right!! (The blocks take no time at all. It's fabrication of the tin foil that is a B-TCH!!