# How often do you rebuild?



## ssbn642blue (Feb 16, 2011)

For the Guys/Gals that have a pre-EPA stove,  how often do you rebuild it???  I mean take it apart and totally rebuild it.


----------



## BrowningBAR (Feb 16, 2011)

ssbn642blue said:
			
		

> For the Guys/Gals that have a pre-EPA stove,  how often do you rebuild it???  I mean take it apart and totally rebuild it.




I don't plan to. I'll have the Vig for another 2-4 years before I swap it out for a Defiant or Defiant-sized stove.


----------



## fbelec (Feb 16, 2011)

that is going to be a very hard question to answer, only because it depends on your stove and how it is run and how often it's used. if your a weekend user it might be ten years. if you have to move your stove to do chimney cleaning that might be one to rebuild more often than usual because of banging around the stove could loosen up some of the furnace cement. i'm on my second rebuild in the ten years that i've lived here. rebuilt it last year knowing about my cracked fireback and if i have the money for a new fireback i'll have to take it down to the base again and rebuild it this summer.

frank


----------



## defiant3 (Feb 16, 2011)

In the twenty something years I've been in the stove biz., I can say that this i8s among the hardest AND easiest questions to answer.,  Based on usage and climate, it could be 6-12 years between rebuilds.  Not helpful i know.  But the things to watch for in an older Vig. are:  Does the stove respond to your wishes?  Can you accurately control the heat output under all conditions?  Or does it burn hot?  Or are burn times getting shorter?   Also, what is the condition of the fireback? This doesn't have as direct a bearing necessarily, but in really old ones w/1 piece fireback, it does as f.b. eplacement requires total rebuild.  You wouldn't want to have to go through that mid-season, so if she's got tat classic e-w crack goin' on ,think hard about it this summer, cause when it gets really bad it fouls the damper operation.  Very bad.  Infor mation is readily available, and if your handy you can definately do it, it just helps not to be in a hurry.  Happy heating!


----------



## Fsappo (Feb 16, 2011)

If its a cast iron stove, I've always used the 10 year rule of thumb.  Maybe because it was a nice round number, or maybe back in the day VC told me that.  Sooner of course if somethin needs replacing.


----------



## coaly (Feb 17, 2011)

Every year !  I lift the doors off to grease the hinges, and put a dab of grease on the draft cap threads. Consider it rebuilt. I did paint it once since new in 1982.
Too bad Fisher didn't make trucks.


----------



## gnatboy911 (Feb 17, 2011)

Coaly....  +1   nice!


----------



## Wallyworld (Feb 17, 2011)

When ever it needs it. Firebrick, angle iron to hold the bricks in, replace the baffle, done it all. Torches and a welder are pretty handy


----------



## bucketboy (Feb 18, 2011)

i done it 2 years ago , all new bricks and pressure washed the doors and replaced the baffle. i got a surprise when i bought the bricks (9 dollars each can) but i should have at laest 10 years on the new bricks.


----------



## fbelec (Feb 18, 2011)

the one thing i can add about doing it sooner than later is it comes apart a lot easier. bolts, nuts and the like.


----------



## Fsappo (Feb 18, 2011)

fbelec said:
			
		

> the one thing i can add about doing it sooner than later is it comes apart a lot easier. bolts, nuts and the like.



Excuse me, I am Frank.  Please legally change your first name.


----------



## tfdchief (Feb 18, 2011)

I guess it depends on the stove and how hard it has been used. 

I have burned my Buck 26000 as an insert, mostly 24/7 since 1982. The only thing I have done is replace the door gasket and oiled the fan motor. Unless you count direct connecting it to a S/S liner a few years ago. It is still looks pretty much like the day I put it in....no metal degredation, warping, or worn out or broken parts. The Buck was a solidly built steel stove with excellent heat exchange and convection that is thermostatically controlled with 3 fan speeds at 3 progressively higher temperatures.  It is UL listed anad rated for burning coal with the coal grate and fire brick installed. My biggest complaint is the fan motor in the rear.....there is only one way to work on it or oil it....pulll the beast out of the fireplace :-S


----------



## fbelec (Feb 21, 2011)

Franks said:
			
		

> fbelec said:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



i like your name


----------



## begreen (Feb 21, 2011)

ssbn642blue said:
			
		

> For the Guys/Gals that have a pre-EPA stove,  how often do you rebuild it???  I mean take it apart and totally rebuild it.



There are a lot of variables involved that would affect the frequency of rebuilding. The most obvious is hours of use. Other factors might be the type of wood burned (green or dry), average operating temperature, ambient moisture (including over the summer), and frequency of routine maintenance. Also, it depends on the stove design. Simple steel stoves may only need firebrick and baffle replacement. A simple stove like our 602 got it's first rebuild around the 20 yr mark, though it could have used it a few years earlier. A more complex stove may need it more frequently. And some refractory dependent stoves like the early Resolute Acclaims needed it every few years.


----------



## gzecc (Feb 21, 2011)

tfdchief said:
			
		

> I guess it depends on the stove and how hard it has been used.
> 
> I have burned my Buck 26000 as an insert, mostly 24/7 since 1982. The only thing I have done is replace the door gasket and oiled the fan motor. Unless you count direct connecting it to a S/S liner a few years ago. It is still looks pretty much like the day I put it in....no metal degredation, warping, or worn out or broken parts. The Buck was a solidly built steel stove with excellent heat exchange and convection that is thermostatically controlled with 3 fan speeds at 3 progressively higher temperatures.  It is UL listed anad rated for burning coal with the coal grate and fire brick installed. My biggest complaint is the fan motor in the rear.....there is only one way to work on it or oil it....pulll the beast out of the fireplace :-S


I just swapped my motor on my 28000. Works nice now. But what a pita.


----------

