2017-18 Blaze King Performance Thread PART 2 (Everything BK)

[shoot-straight]

Not at all. It’s fabulous to work with, not enough good can be said about it. Anyone who has worked with swollen/burst copper or cpvc would agree.

I had 2 pex fittings, Korean brass 90's. One while I was home, no damage. One when I was On vacation, 30k in damage, plus 10 years off my life.

All fittings switched out now.

 

[begreen]

It's probably fine, but what we know for certain is that we don't know.
http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/qa-spotlight/how-safe-pex-tubing

 

[shoot-straight]

It's probably fine, but what we know for certain is that we don't know.
http://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/blogs/dept/qa-spotlight/how-safe-pex-tubing

Pretty much everything man-made is toxic to us. Heck lots of natural stuff too. Pick ur poison. Literally.

But it's all about moderation. Soda isn't poisonous, but if you drink enough it can cause damage to you.

 

[estepracing]

So how's those Blaze King stove's doing...

Blaze King King Wood Stove

 

[jetsam]

I always feel bad for begreen when we get into this kind of stuff, because he really can't lock the main BK thread.

I think we may have corrupted him, anyway.

All The Best Stuff Happens After The Derailment! ™

 

[kf6hap]

Has anybody with an Ashford tried a stove top key damper for smoke smell or cleaner glass yet?

 

[becasunshine]

Dear Fellow Blaze King Stove Owners,

We *think* it may be time to remove, clean or replace the CAT in our Princess.
(Installed 2014, used part time on weekends for two seasons, used full time for 1.5 seasons.)

I have anxiety.

Please hold my hand.

Thanking you in advance.

Love,

Beca Sunshine

 

[webby3650]

Dear Fellow Blaze King Stove Owners,

We *think* it may be time to remove, clean or replace the CAT in our Princess.
(Installed 2014, used part time on weekends for two seasons, used full time for 1.5 seasons.)

I have anxiety.

Please hold my hand.

Thanking you in advance.

Love,

Beca Sunshine

I really really doubt that’s the case. That’s not much use on it. Have you vacuumed it out throughly? Cleaned out debris in the back side of the cat?

 

[becasunshine]

I really really doubt that’s the case. That’s not much use on it. Have you vacuumed it out throughly? Cleaned out debris in the back side of the cat?

Nope.

I used to remove the shield and vacuum the CAT off from the front with the ash vacuum when I shoveled out the stove.

I'm going to be totally honest here and tell you right up front that in the push of effort and curve and everything else involved with learning to live here full time, I *totally* forgot about that step both last year and this year.

(In my defense, I maintained a pellet stove in one location and a wood stove in another location simultaneously for *years.* Broke the pellet stove innards down, pulled the combustion motor and cleaned the exhaust from both ends, etc. Life got in the way in various ways right after we moved here. Details did fall off the radar- but it's all good.)

I'm full of anxiety because IT'S THE PRINCESS. AND I DON'T WANT TO UPSET THE PRINCESS.

We've never pulled the CAT out and vacuumed the back side. I'm sure that's overdue.

We were fine up until the last polar vortex. We burned hard during that last blast; it was brutal here due to our proximity to the water. Since then, we've noticed that we have to keep the t-stat turned up to keep the CAT engaged. We can get a blazing fire when the stove is not hot enough to engage the CAT. Once we engage the CAT, the fire damps down- even with the t-stat wide open. The fire doesn't go out, and the CAT will remain hot enough, but it falls to the lower half of the CAT range, closer to the threshold, unless we have the t-stat wide open.

Furthermore, when we do bend down to take a look at the CAT, either end of it will glow, but the middle is no longer glowing enough to be visible, even with the t-stat wide open.

We are reluctant to remove the CAT to vacuum the back of it without a replacement CAT and/or gasket in hand. (LOL, we had a bad experience with this once when with a pellet stove combustion motor gasket.)

What do you advise?

And thank you for your response- this is exactly the type of feedback we need!

 

[Diabel]

So how's those Blaze King stove's doing...

Blaze King King Wood Stove

Sorry about the plumbing question. I did not mean to hijack this thread. But I feel I injected some life into it.

Btw old fashion copper will be going into my construction I feel.

Cheers

 

[becasunshine]

I always feel bad for begreen when we get into this kind of stuff, because he really can't lock the main BK thread.

I think we may have corrupted him, anyway.

All The Best Stuff Happens After The Derailment! ™

Please send better picture of Dog by Fire. <:3~

 

[webby3650]

Nope.

I used to remove the shield and vacuum the CAT off from the front with the ash vacuum when I shoveled out the stove.

I'm going to be totally honest here and tell you right up front that in the push of effort and curve and everything else involved with learning to live here full time, I *totally* forgot about that step both last year and this year.

(In my defense, I maintained a pellet stove in one location and a wood stove in another location simultaneously for *years.* Broke the pellet stove innards down, pulled the combustion motor and cleaned the exhaust from both ends, etc. Life got in the way in various ways right after we moved here. Details did fall off the radar- but it's all good.)

I'm full of anxiety because IT'S THE PRINCESS. AND I DON'T WANT TO UPSET THE PRINCESS.

We've never pulled the CAT out and vacuumed the back side. I'm sure that's overdue.

We were fine up until the last polar vortex. We burned hard during that last blast; it was brutal here due to our proximity to the water. Since then, we've noticed that we have to keep the t-stat turned up to keep the CAT engaged. We can get a blazing fire when the stove is not hot enough to engage the CAT. Once we engage the CAT, the fire damps down- even with the t-stat wide open. The fire doesn't go out, and the CAT will remain hot enough, but it falls to the lower half of the CAT range, closer to the threshold, unless we have the t-stat wide open.

Furthermore, when we do bend down to take a look at the CAT, either end of it will glow, but the middle is no longer glowing enough to be visible, even with the t-stat wide open.

We are reluctant to remove the CAT to vacuum the back of it without a replacement CAT and/or gasket in hand. (LOL, we had a bad experience with this once when with a pellet stove combustion motor gasket.)

What do you advise?

And thank you for your response- this is exactly the type of feedback we need!

Get a good vacuum, like a 5.5 horse shop vac, not an ash vac..
Use a paint brush and the vacuum to clean the face of the cat, then pull the stove pipe up to gain access to the back of the cat. Debris falls on the bypass and gets flipped back toward the cat when the bypass is opened. Overtime it builds up back there.

 

[becasunshine]

Sorry about the plumbing question. I did not mean to hijack this thread. But I feel I injected some life into it.

Btw old fashion copper will be going into my construction I feel.

Cheers

Please send pictures of Most Excellent Dog. Thank you. <:3~

 

[Tar12]

Get a good vacuum, like a 5.5 horse shop vac, not an ash vac..
Use a paint brush and the vacuum to clean the face of the cat, then pull the stove pipe up to gain access to the back of the cat. Debris falls on the bypass and gets flipped back toward the cat when the bypass is opened. Overtime it builds up back there.

Yep, discovered that on my first annual cleaning.

 

[becasunshine]

Get a good vacuum, like a 5.5 horse shop vac, not an ash vac..
Use a paint brush and the vacuum to clean the face of the cat, then pull the stove pipe up to gain access to the back of the cat. Debris falls on the bypass and gets flipped back toward the cat when the bypass is opened. Overtime it builds up back there.

OK, let me get this straight-

DO NOT pull the CAT out.

Pull the stove pipe out of the top of the stove. Clean the back of the CAT from above. Right? We totally understand using the Shop Vac for better suction. Got a Shop Vac, can do that.

Can we pull the stove pipe from inside of the house, over top of the stove? Also, is an overnight burn down cool enough, or do we need to wait a full day (24 hours) or more?

Sorry about the rudimentary questions, but this is honestly new territory for us.

Thank you for your response! <:3~

 

[becasunshine]

Get a good vacuum, like a 5.5 horse shop vac, not an ash vac..
Use a paint brush and the vacuum to clean the face of the cat, then pull the stove pipe up to gain access to the back of the cat. Debris falls on the bypass and gets flipped back toward the cat when the bypass is opened. Overtime it builds up back there.

Does it affect the process if you have a double wall stove pipe?

 

[webby3650]

OK, let me get this straight-

DO NOT pull the CAT out.

Pull the stove pipe out of the top of the stove. Clean the back of the CAT from above. Right? We totally understand using the Shop Vac for better suction. Got a Shop Vac, can do that.

Can we pull the stove pipe from inside of the house, over top of the stove? Also, is an overnight burn down cool enough, or do we need to wait a full day (24 hours) or more?

Sorry about the rudimentary questions, but this is honestly new territory for us.

Thank you for your response! <:3~

No need to pull the cat. Just take the stove pipe off, or hopefully there’s a slip section and you can just lift the pipe up. You may need 24 hours.

 

[webby3650]

Does it affect the process if you have a double wall stove pipe?

Nope

 

[MissMac]

Nope.

I used to remove the shield and vacuum the CAT off from the front with the ash vacuum when I shoveled out the stove.

I'm going to be totally honest here and tell you right up front that in the push of effort and curve and everything else involved with learning to live here full time, I *totally* forgot about that step both last year and this year.

(In my defense, I maintained a pellet stove in one location and a wood stove in another location simultaneously for *years.* Broke the pellet stove innards down, pulled the combustion motor and cleaned the exhaust from both ends, etc. Life got in the way in various ways right after we moved here. Details did fall off the radar- but it's all good.)

I'm full of anxiety because IT'S THE PRINCESS. AND I DON'T WANT TO UPSET THE PRINCESS.

We've never pulled the CAT out and vacuumed the back side. I'm sure that's overdue.

We were fine up until the last polar vortex. We burned hard during that last blast; it was brutal here due to our proximity to the water. Since then, we've noticed that we have to keep the t-stat turned up to keep the CAT engaged. We can get a blazing fire when the stove is not hot enough to engage the CAT. Once we engage the CAT, the fire damps down- even with the t-stat wide open. The fire doesn't go out, and the CAT will remain hot enough, but it falls to the lower half of the CAT range, closer to the threshold, unless we have the t-stat wide open.

Furthermore, when we do bend down to take a look at the CAT, either end of it will glow, but the middle is no longer glowing enough to be visible, even with the t-stat wide open.

We are reluctant to remove the CAT to vacuum the back of it without a replacement CAT and/or gasket in hand. (LOL, we had a bad experience with this once when with a pellet stove combustion motor gasket.)

What do you advise?

And thank you for your response- this is exactly the type of feedback we need!

One thing I can tell you from personal experience, is that it’s a good idea to have a spare cat gasket on hand, just in case. Then you don’t have to worry about taking it out. But I certainly wouldn’t remove it until you have a new gasket in hand, cause the old one will fall apart. So, regardless of whether you’ve got to pop your cat out - why not order a couple of gaskets? Or i know some fellas by the stuff in bulk by the role.

 

[coutufr]

Has anybody with an Ashford tried a stove top key damper for smoke smell or cleaner glass yet?

If I cut the double wall pipe to fit a stove top key damper there is no way back. I cleaned the inside of the glass and it seamed to help with the smell at first but it could be the placebo effect. My new theory is that the air wash is picking up the smell from the creosote coating the inside of the glass. At low temperatures the wood stove burns hotter decreasing the amount of creosote coating the glass. The key damper is also potentially modifying the way the airwash operates. My next step will be to check the draft at different temps using the cooper tubing technique.

 

[shoot-straight]

Has anybody with an Ashford tried a stove top key damper for smoke smell or cleaner glass yet?

I have A key damper that I use When it's especially cold and windy and I expect higher draft. No comment on its use to reduce smoke smell. The only time I jave had it is when it's warm out and I have poor draft. Did the gasket change from Bk, seemed to help some. Don't really have a problem with it.​

 

[Highbeam]

Does it affect the process if you have a double wall stove pipe?

Do not remove the cat until you are ready to replace the cat. I can’t think of any reason to ever remove the cat for cleaning.

From the inside, through the flue, there is a little metal curtain blocking the back of the cat from full access but you can verify it’s clear and no puke or junk is back there. Suck on both sides of the cat to clear all cells.

Use your cell phone camera as an inspection camera to look through all cells.

Also, don’t forget to verify that the rest of the chimney is clear including the cap.

 

[shoot-straight]

I find It funny that you're not supposed to blow air through your cat, yet you can vaccuum it....

My cat gets plugged with ash when it's super cold, I have high draft, and I am running it on higher settings.

 

[black smoke signals]

find It funny that you're not supposed to blow air through your cat, yet you can vaccuum it.. Compressor air contains moisture (bad for cat) according to Firecat.

 

[Highbeam]

find It funny that you're not supposed to blow air through your cat, yet you can vaccuum it.. Compressor air contains moisture (bad for cat) according to Firecat.

Also compressor air is often 90-150 psi out of a blast nozzle designed for high velocity which could strip the magic from the kitty. If you regulate the air down to 25 psi it is much safer. Some folks put the shop vac hose on the discharge to blow through the cat but if I tried that I would blow ash all over the house!