SOON TO BE A PROUD OWNER OF AXEMAN ANDERSON!(Installadvice?)

I WILL SOON BE A PROUD OWNER OF AN AXEMAN ANDERSON 260! Thanks Steve

I'm excited, and can't wait . I have some questions for you all, but first. The boiler is an A/A 260 (1951) The system is single pipe steam. I know that I will have to raise the gas boiler so the NOWL on both boilers are equal. The flue is 6". Will need a safety valve, Gage glass, pressure trol, LWCO, and possibly a automatic water feeder (was thinking of McDonnell Miller LWCO and auto feed). For the hot water coil, I will need an aquastat as well as a mixing valve. Anyone know of a good mixing valve? Should I install two aquastats, one for a high limit? What other controls will I need to make sure are there...is there something there for removal of the ashes from the grate? Any advice on what controls I should get/work best would be of great help. As for the barometric damper, should I install it close to the stack?

I know one of you mentioned a tee for the flue pipe exiting the stoker so I can clean out the cyclone separator. I need some tips on that, also, how often do I have to poke around the seperator...once a week or so?

On to the boiler itself. The boiler is sound, and the bearings are not flat. Does anyone recommend POR-15 for the lower portion of the boiler (ash pit)? I will clean the area prior to, just want to make sure that I select the right paints. For the exterior, High temp aluminum should do right? I want to paint the base black...and after she is installed I will do some custom painting as well . Any other areas inside that should be painted or greased?

Now for the auger, If I can not use the auger (I will try my best to use it, or later down the line), does anyone have plans for a hopper, I will be able to weld it up, just need to make sure it will be the right fit and all. And what all will I need to add/remove if anything?



Thank you all. This forum is great.

Many thanks to Steve

Mine is a AA130 with single pipe steam with water coil and the aquastat is a Honeywell L8124c. I think the manual calls for a L8124a model but I don't know what the difference is. Safety valve should be 15psi. Pressuretrol on mine is a p404a? You can still find these cheap. LWCO I think is a model 169 Mcdonnel Miller but the book calls for a model 69 so I think the 169 is the replacement model?, good luck finding one of these for under $150. The automatic water feed will cost you a few hundred and its something I would never install personally myself. I keep an eye on the sight glass almost daily. There is a Anthrastat which senses the temperature near the grate and I don't know if the unit will work without it too well. Still reading about Hartford loops before mine gets installed. Hard time trying to sell the oil in my tank 170 gals and the best I got offered was $2/gal so far.

Hi Mozz,

I will draw you a hartford loop design, just give me some time. Thanks for the info. Any other tips are more than welcome.

Congrats on finding the beast!

I know little of steam, but if I had a bare boiler I think I'd call Axeman Anderson and simply ask "Can you sell me all the steam parts and all the electric parts?" Then you'll have all the proper aguastats, the timer, etc.

I'll be installing my AA130 in a month or two so have just been reading up on them. I read about the cyclone seperator getting glogged now & then. I have no idea, but my gut says it's a rare occurance. I will check it often though to be sure. If you open the auger side ash door it gives you a line of sight view of the bottom of the funnel. No need to look down from the top at all. It appears to be an easy clean with a soon to be made tool. A two foot 1/4" round steel dowel with a bend on one end should work fine.
The ash grate moves back forth 2". That action cuts the bottom layer of ash & dumps it in the ash bucket. It is driven by a cam on the auger. I do not know how you'll make it work if you do not use the auger.

Thanks Freddy for the reply. As far as the auger, I will leave the motor and stuff there, just not the screw feed. That is if I can not make it fit (room wise)

As for the controls, I don't think they are all gone. Will have to see what is all missing. I know the LWCO is. Gotta run for now.

Well.... the auger is a chain driven 5" steel tube with the auger inside. The entire tube turns, thus moving the coal. On the outside of the tube is the sprocket that drives it and next to the sprocket is a cam. This cam actuates a lever that moves the "shaker" by stroking a ratchet mechanism. The shaker is a table, the floor of the firebox. It moves back and forth 2 inches. Each stroke pushes some ash into the ash can. If you do not have the auger you'll have to do some fancy machine work to build a cam assembly to drive the ratchet. Also, the ratchet does not run the entire time the unit is stoking. It has a solonoid that pulls in when the ash temp sensor says it's time to 'shake". Might you post some photos of all the parts that you have?

Hi Freddy, as soon as I get the boiler to the house I will take pictures of everything and post them. Some have said that I can use a hopper instead of the auger, can anyone shed some light on this?

Be back later.

Yes you can use a hopper, the AHS desinged 130 and 260 are almost identical to the AA and use a hopper. I would install the controls for sensing a hopper fire just to be on the safe side. The AHS website lists the options available:
http://www.alternateheatingsystems.com/coalboilers.htm
There is one big consideration for using a hopper is to make sure you have enough head room above the boiler to be able to load the hopper.

The coal feed tube into the dog house mounted in the wall of your coal bin is the way to.
I just installed the Dog house and filled the coal bin.
Getting ready for the Feed tube arrives weekend of sep 6.
My aa260 is a 1959

Doug

You don't have to mess with the ash cone/separator very often if at all.. My ash separator has never clogged, and I ran 10-12 tons of coal through the boiler last winter.

I'd set up the 'TEE' for easy cleaning of the horizontal sections of your flue pipe, this does need cleaning a few times a season, this depends on the length of the horizontal section, the amount of natural draft, the average length of time the stoker is running. But with a 'TEE' and a cap, you can remove the cap and vacuum out the flue very easlily and neatly, with minimal dust and mess.

Greg L

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Sounds like a plan Greg. I see you have your barometric damper close to the chimney. Should I do the same? I will be running the Axeman 260. 10 tons of coal for the season? Were you heating your neighborhood?

Blackdiamond, I am going to take some measurements to see if I can make a coal bin behind the wall where the boiler will be going. Then I can use the auger. Where would the hopper sensor go? Is it the same as the anthrastat?
Can you post some pictures of the bin you made and the doghouse for it? There is a drawing for the bin on the axeman site in the broshure, the angled piece of whatever it is....is this to keep pressure off of the auger itselt, and there are things near the end of the tube...what are they?

Mozz, I haven't forgotten the drawing (in progress) can you post pics of your install as well?

Thanks all

Here's a pic of the doghouse that comes with a new AA. The only reason for it's length is to get the auger well into the bin so it can use as much coal as possible without messing with the bin. The inner bracket is just to keep coal in it's place.

OOOOOOOH...that's preety. Can you send me the dimensions on that? I would be able to make my own. Well, with some digging I will be able to make a bin, but, I still would like the correct steps to install a hopper just in case. What all I would need to ensure everything works properly. Thanks

It wasn't so pretty before I painted it.

The auger is 5" OD. The hole is 5 1/4" and has up/down adjustment. The auger does not touch the hole bracket in operation. The top stops 1 3/4" before the tall end to make room for the bin wall. Note the angle iron brackets to bolt the inside corners to the floor. It even came with drive pins to go into the concrete. This was all bonus to me, I didn't know the doghouse came with the boiler!

Certainly if I were you, and had the auger, I'd make it work. I think it'd be a lot of work to make it work without the auger. It's one of the mail reasons I bought the AA.

Mine is getting closer to being installed , I can here it creeping during the night. Here's a picture of the auger at it's last house of employment. I have about 50 pictures of the old install if you need to look at them.