WL 110 Annual Cleaning

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kstills
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Post by kstills » Fri. Aug. 22, 2014 11:47 am

I made a metal brush last year to clean the tubes, the brush and threaded rod are about 18" long.

After about 1/2 hour of trying to pull the brush back up out of the first tube, it occurred to me that the threaded rod was flat on the top because I had used a hammer to tap it down through the tubes.

Once I got going, I managed to insert the brush into a tube that still had a diffuser in it.

(At about this point in the morning I was starting to get a little displeased with myself).

Luckily, I was able to force the brush past the diffuser and out the bottom (probably cuz of the cheap build quality..... :out: ).

I got the tubes cleaned, and remembering last year, inserted the shop vac hose into the stove pipe before turning it on to clean that out (see? I'm not completely stupid....)

Pulled off the grate and cleaned out the fines (about 3/4 full after one year) put the grate back on and fired her up.

Had 7 out fires in 7 days. (ok, but still pretty stupid....)

This morning, I found out that I had put the grate in without seating it properly, which was causing (I hope) my outfires.

If you ever hear a loud 'bang' coming from my direction, don't be surprised....

Seriously though, I do have a question. Is there supposed to be a gasket on the bottom of the grate where it fits into the pan, or is there only a gasket on the back where it mates to the hopper? Because those outfires could only have been caused by one of two things (I think); 1) air flow past the grate where it wasn't seated not providing the required volume to keep the coal burning (I did not record any change in draft) or 2) the angle of the grate changed just enough to not allow the coal to fall off the end properly.

To be clear, the back of the grate was up against the back of the boiler, it simply wasn't seated properly on the pan.

If it's air flow, then a gasket on the bottom would seem to make sense.

Matt, Dave, any thoughts?

And here's a suggestion/thought. Would an adjustable grate be of any benefit? I'm talking adjusing the angle that the coal if fed across it, and I would think that the adjustment would only have to be a few degrees in either direction. That might help with coal that generates clinkers like I had two years ago.

Update:

Just found out from the home front that the boiler is chugging along like it should be, so misaligned grate was the problem.

 
coalnewbie
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Post by coalnewbie » Fri. Aug. 22, 2014 1:02 pm

Firstly, if tubes are blocked it does point to the need for a more enthusiastic maintenance schedule, however, the main issue is timing. The time to service your stove is as soon as it is turned off for the season. If your a 12 month runner see above.

Summer humidity and coal ash are not a pretty combination. All stoves have a problem there. For the record I like the LL build quality and after 6 years of use with a number of their products and the WL and AK are very well built stoves. We all have purchasing options and I pay very careful attention to product quality in whatever I buy and a meekly lined up for my 6th stove happily and thanked them for selling it to me. They have saved me tens of thousands of dollars over the six years of use, I am a happy camper. My latest purchase will pay for itself in one to two years depending on the winter severity. I am not smart enough to think of a better way to invest my money.

UPDATE: Glad you found the issue.

 
kstills
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Post by kstills » Fri. Aug. 22, 2014 1:12 pm

coalnewbie wrote:Firstly, if tubes are blocked it does point to the need for a more enthusiastic maintenance schedule, however, the main issue is timing. The time to service your stove is as soon as it is turned off for the season. If your a 12 month runner see above.

Summer humidity and coal ash are not a pretty combination. All stoves have a problem there. For the record I like the LL build quality and after 6 years of use with a number of their products and the WL and AK are very well built stoves. We all have purchasing options and I pay very careful attention to product quality in whatever I buy and a meekly lined up for my 6th stove happily and thanked them for selling it to me. They have saved me tens of thousands of dollars over the six years of use, I am a happy camper. My latest purchase will pay for itself in one to two years depending on the winter severity. I am not smart enough to think of a better way to invest my money.

UPDATE: Glad you found the issue.
I guess my teasing is lost on some folks....hopefully not Matt or Dave. :)

The tubes weren't blocked by any means, however those metal brushes once they're started in one direction don't respond well to going back in the opposite direction. I suppose I knew that last year, but forgot it when I started the cleanout this year.


 
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Flyer5
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Post by Flyer5 » Fri. Aug. 22, 2014 10:42 pm

Tips & Tricks

How the gasket goes. The grate not being seated will cause problems. And you almost hurt my feeling. :D

 
kstills
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Post by kstills » Mon. Aug. 25, 2014 11:32 am

Flyer5 wrote:
How the gasket goes. The grate not being seated will cause problems. And you almost hurt my feeling. :D
Yep, that's what I have installed, so I guess all is good.

She's running like a champ now, holds steady on the LL and drafts like crazy even on the warm days.

Hear it's going to be a cold winter, can't wait.... :shock:

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