Problem With AA130

My AA130 must have had the fire burn up to the top of the transfer head as evidenced by the burned off nice new red paint on the cover. I guess that's what I get for not tightening down the cover better, at least thats what I think may have caused it. The problem I'm having now is that there are little bits of coal droping out of the slot that's cut into the bottom side of the head. Can anyone tell me if there is a gasket or seal that may have been damaged by the fire going up there?

Yes there is a cardboard 'seal' or 'gasket' that is supposed to keep the fines from getting down to the slot or the brass bearing..

It is not the fact that the cover was loose on the tranfer heat,, the level of coal had to be low, and your ashing rate way too low.. the fire will not burn up into the transfer heat unless you are not ashing at all, and the fire burns higher and higher.. till the coal in the drop tube or feed tube is burning..

Use your manual ashing handle and get that fire down into the center of the fire pot.. you should only have black coal on the top of the fire, red coals visible through gaps in the fresh black coal around the perimeter of the fire,, the top 5-6" of the coal pile should be nothing but fresh coal spilling out of the drop or feed tube..

You can replace the cardboard gasket if you wish,, it really isn't that important, unless you have a lot of fines in your coal..

Greg L

I don't know what caused this, but am curious to understand. Often...well...not often, but sometimes, I've seen my fire burn up to the low part of the transfer head, that is, the part you can see from the view port. I've imagined that it could not burn up into the transfer head because of lack of air. Each time that's happend it ashed & let new coal in so it's never been an issue. Once I shut the asher off for most of a day hoping to run it long hot after to reestablish a full burn. When I went to turn the auger back on I noticed the transfer head was almost empty, just a small trail of coal coming down from the auger. I'm sure it happened because as the coal burned, it settled, allowing the head to empty. The point I'm trying to make is... if you lost power for several hours, or of you had a clog and coal was not augered up to the head, maybe the head was partially empty and that allowed it to burn up into it. I guess if that happened to me I'd be calling Pete Anderson & asking what causes it. I'd be willing to call him on Monday is you don't find the answer by then and you don't want to call.

It could be the Anthrastate not working or set too low, like 120* instead of 140*... the higher the ash temperature the Anthrastat tries to maintain, the lower the fire will be [more ashing].

Greg L.

thanks for the reply's LS and Freddy. I have the ashing set to 3 or 4 clicks (max) sometimes it just doesn't quite get the 4th click. 140 degrees on the anthrastat. Maybe there was a blockage for a while and the tube ran out???? I guess I'll replace that gasket because there is a small pile of fines building up below the hole. I don't mind calling Pete about it, I need to talk to him about the following anyway.

The only other issue I have with it is the gear box for the chain drive keeps leaking out the vent. Pete Axeman said to keep an eye on it and let him know if it keeps leaking. I've had the cover off twice now to check it and I think the oil is about 3/4 gone now.

Anyone else out there have this problem???

Yes, my gearbox often leaks out the vent,, leaves a mess on the floor,, but it never gets lower than about 3/4" below the lower edge of the box.. If I fill it up to the edge of the box, it always seems to foam up on long burns and pushes some out the vent.. Maybe I'm not using the right oil..

Let us know what Pete suggests about the gearbox venting...

BTW: my cover on my transfer head has a tapered gap [poor fit] the full length of the flat top edge.. it has a 1/8" gap on one end opening up to 3/16* at the other end,, there is no way my cover can seal completely.

Greg L

My understanding of coal head fires:

The fire burning up to the coal head is the result of too little fuel from too few teeth taken on the shake adjuster and too much air leakage through the coal head/anthratube, although the latter is less important. The coal head gasket will have to be replaced after the fire burns up into the head. A coal head fire will burn off the oil in the gasket. That gasket prevents most air flow through the head seams as does a tight coal head cover and having the bin end of the coal tube covered with coal. Keeping the wick oiler full keeps the gasket lubed and sealed from incidental air flow. The wick oiler requires SAE50w oil and must have the wick touching the journal for proper lubrication.

BTW Greg, the gear box requires straight SAE90w gear oil; the fan bearing box requires straight SAE50w

Your ash temp & teeth settings seem fine. I'll vote for temporary blockage. What's you bin set up? What kind & size of coal?

I changed my oils last week. I found it easiest to remove the transmission. Because of the angle that it sits at, with it on the machine it won't drain all of the oil and would be near impossible to accurately fill it. If left on the unit and filled until it comes out the fill hole, it will be over filled. Mind you, I do have a 2008 model, the old ones had a different tranny & may not be like mine. Here's a pic.

My transfer head cover is a machine fit. It fits so well it must be darn near waterproof.

I suspect the fire was a result of blockage/lack of coal feed and not too much air, however when you reinstall the seal make sure you seal the edge against the coal tube with 500*F or higher RTV. Sealing around the gasket is more for keeping out the fines than any air leak concerns. Also the cover interface can be sealed the same way to preclude air from leaking. But just by common sense it doesn't follow that a leaking interface between the cover and return head could cause the problem, considering the fact that the firebox is open to the coal bin by way of the hollow center.

The coal in the drop or feed tube blocks 90% of any airflow up the auger tube's center, or through any air gaps around the tranfer head or cover.. The transfer head is inserted loosely into the boiler's feed tube, no gasket, no sealant.. the air is not a problem unless the feed tube is half empty of coal.. The fire will not burn up into the feed tube unless the boiler is not ashing enough..

If the ashing activity is correct, the ash will be cut off the bottom of the column of ash, fire and fresh coal.. lowering the fire, making the layer of fresh coal thicker.. you should never see a fire like my top photo..

My transfer head was built with the gap I described.. with a tube full of coal,, it isn't an issue.. The cardboard gasket is for fines,, there is next to zero air passage through the brass bushing or the fines slot.. the combustion fan pulls air through the 11" or 16" diameter coal fire. The cardboard gasket is an attempt to clean up the environment around the boiler,, keeps the mess down..

I'm using 90wt in my gearbox.. but it must be foaming too much.. I may try some 1140wt gear oil..

Greg L.

.

Most of the time mine looks like your bottom photo, but often it's like the top. It doesn't stay that way too long though. When the boiler is cooking fairly hard it will stop ashing until the ash cools below 140. Just about the time the fire looks like the top photo it'll start ashing and bring in new coal.

Did you just fill the bin with wet or frozen coal? Mine will stop feeding due to freeze ups or fines sticking the coal together.

I think the problem is too cool a setting on the Anthrastat. If I lose coal, mine just goes out.

Set it and 140F and the lowest click setting you can. Usually 2-3 teeth and it will run forever.

I talked to Pete today, I've been a little busy with very important matters (hunting). He said the fire going up to the transfer head is often associated with lack of coal in the feed tube as some of you have said, he said he has not heard of a loose transfer head cover causing it. Maybe there was a stopage of coal flow that I was not aware of but with my tapered hopper I doubt it. My Superior coal is all dry. I did notice that the anthrastat was at 130 not 140 as I thought it was. At first I thought I must have screwed up and I set it at 140. About 2 days later it was down to a little over 130 again. So maybe that was my problem. I've only ever turned it with the allen screw in the middle as the directions state. Is there a tightness adjustment for the knob???

edit: I forgot to mention about the gearbox leaking problem. Pete gave me a replacement vent to try. He said if it still leaked he'd give me a new box. Well, .....it leaked more than the original one. But, what I think I'll try is adding a 2" or 3" piece of pipe between the gearbox cover and the vent. With the vent at the top of a length of pipe it should stop leaking, (maybe) I'll post a pic if it works.

I found my anthrastat out of calibration recently and I have only turned it with a 1/8" hex key! (well, maybe just once I grabbed it and twisted the bejeevers out of it just to be irreverent!) The black indicator "knob" (gosh, it looks so much like a knob!) is held in place by a small set screw. I noticed that my solenoid was not tripping--ever. Upon inspection, I discovered the knob in question was loose.

With the help of Greg at LsFarm, I calibrated the anthrastat and tightened the knob set screw in the correct postion.

To calibrate the anthrastat, assemble the following:

1. a candy thermometer or other thermometer capable of accurately measuring a water temp of 120-150degF by immersion.
2. a large (tall) pot of water to accomodate most of the anthrastat rod when immersed within.
3. a 1/8" hex key
4. a small screwdriver for the set screw.
5. a continuity tester

To calibrate:

1. heat water in the pot to a point between 120 and 140degF
2. shut off heat source.
3. insert rod of anthrastat in the hot water and wait five minutes for the rod to come up to the temp of the water.
4. place continuity tester clips on the two contact screws of the anthrastat
5. insert the hex key in the adjuster screw (the screw you use to change anthrastat settings when in use) and turn screw slowly just to the point where the continuity light changes from off to on or on to off; stop.
6. note the temperature on the thermometer measuring the water temperature
7. loosen set screw on the black indicator "knob"
8. turn pointer on the black indicator "knob" to the same temp shown on thermometer; tighten set screw.
9. done.

Above all......BE CAREFUL. Dont' burn yourself!

Thanks mikeandgerry, I may try that calibration method.

My trick to stop the gearbox leak seems to be a success. Check the before and after pics after a long burn, just the slightest drip at the top of the vent compared to a gusher before. I think I may make it about 1" taller which should stop the leak completely.