Coal Bear Restoration

[coaly]

Remove the liners and brick the sides. 1 1/2 angle iron around top if needed to hold in place. The brick forms the hopper. No need for air through the sides since all air needs to come up from the bottom.

Any kind of angle iron frame to support grates is fine. Just make sure if they don’t fit the area close enough to the sides and front you leave no opening around grate frame for air leakage.

The chimney provides the low pressure area making a vacuum at the stove collar. Atmospheric air pressure PUSHES into the air intakes below grates and ALL the air must go through coal bed to ignite coal. Any leak around it, the air takes the path of least resistance and is not forced through the coal bed. It won’t start or burn correctly. That is the secret burning coal. Lots of air through it, and it takes off with very little small pieces of dry kindling. If it takes more than 10 minutes to get coal burning you’re doing something wrong. You want strong flames like a torch ripping up through the coal. Many make the mistake of establishing a wood fire and think they can switch over to coal by pouring it on hot coals with a little flame.

I put paper and cardboard strips across the firebox, then short small pieces of kindling front to back. Sprinkle some coal over it before lighting so all the heat generated starts heating the coal right away. When the flames are ripping upward, slowly add coal, just enough for flames to get through it, not slow it down. Within minutes coal will start to glow and any blue flames are a sign of ignition. You’ll know in minutes how a coal stove is going to work by the design of air flow. Once started it’s very strange to keep shoveling coal on top like your putting it out with dirt. You will only see the glow from the bottom. In time small areas of glow will cover the entire bottom. Once established and covered make sure there is a hollow light area for the flame to start and fill that way keeping one area light for a pilot flame. The more air you give it, the more blue flames on top. Flicks are like idle, steady low flame is medium, and blue flames reaching near the top is high.

With any coal stove the main object is keeping ash from touching grates! Airflow coming up through them cools them, and when allowed to get too full any will melt. That’s the killer of coal stoves, not emptying ash daily.

Use a barometric damper in the connector pipe to control draft. Coal requires constant precise draft. When starting I use something to hold the damper shut. This is the open position calling for more draft. You need lots of air up through it when starting, and many open ash pan door to get it going. A lazy wood fire takes forever, make it rip through the coal and it will ignite easily. You can always have an unsuccessful attempt, but when you do it correctly once, slow starts are behind you.

I use one match every year at the beginning of November and fill once, shake twice and it goes until I leave it go out. From a full hopper, only shaking to clean ash and not adding any burns about 3 days. The difference is the steady heat. With wood it may be burning, but not heating the area. Coal is more constant heating well almost until it needs to be shaken and kicks right back up. You will notice stack temp will be like a wood stove, very high when starting. Once switched to coal temp will drop to about 150*f and not much more than 200 running hard. That is the efficiency difference burning coal with very little loss up the stack. If you don’t get similar results, the grate and flow through coal bed is not correct.

 

[coaly]

I think the grate system and vented liners were inspired by coal burning in a fireplace basket. That was soft coal that is a cross between wood and hard coal. As long as it gets air under it or from the sides it burns fairly easily. Burns with smoke, a little blue and mostly yellow flames, very dirty. Ignites with lower temperature but still surprises you how hot it burns.

I burn it in fire tube boilers in traction engines, locomotive and antique equipment. That’s where I got my experience with replacing or making grates and the style needed to clean and stoke a fire. Boilers require a deep bed around the side sheets to prevent air leaks from coming up through the coal bed. That chills the side of the sheet causing uneven contraction making stays and rivets leak. Once you get the hang of it you will know a clean smooth fire with even flicks across it from a rough fire with hills and valleys only burning in spots without an even glow across the entire bottom. It’s better for any stove to have a deeper bed with no leaks around the sides, so I fire horseshoe shape like a locomotive with a shallow spot front and center of door to maintain flame when throttle is closed and the fire has to set idle until more steam is needed without blowing off the safety constantly. Stoves are easy once you master boilers.

 

[Bmutts20]

Thank you coaly, I’ll send an update when it is finished or if I have other questions

 

[Bmutts20]

I think the grate system and vented liners were inspired by coal burning in a fireplace basket. That was soft coal that is a cross between wood and hard coal. As long as it gets air under it or from the sides it burns fairly easily. Burns with smoke, a little blue and mostly yellow flames, very dirty. Ignites with lower temperature but still surprises you how hot it burns.

I burn it in fire tube boilers in traction engines, locomotive and antique equipment. That’s where I got my experience with replacing or making grates and the style needed to clean and stoke a fire. Boilers require a deep bed around the side sheets to prevent air leaks from coming up through the coal bed. That chills the side of the sheet causing uneven contraction making stays and rivets leak. Once you get the hang of it you will know a clean smooth fire with even flicks across it from a rough fire with hills and valleys only burning in spots without an even glow across the entire bottom. It’s better for any stove to have a deeper bed with no leaks around the sides, so I fire horseshoe shape like a locomotive with a shallow spot front and center of door to maintain flame when throttle is closed and the fire has to set idle until more steam is needed without blowing off the safety constantly. Stoves are easy once you master boilers.

I finally got all of the fabrication done on my stove and hunted down what I believe is the perfect shaker grate size for the coal bear stove. The grate I purchased is from woodmans parts plus. This is the information. Ashley Duplex Grates with Frame 19 5/8" x 14 3/8"
SKU: 40386

There is light fabrication involved. Once you add the bottom row of brick this grate takes nearly the rest of the space in the stove. I tried to burn p last night but had a difficult time achieving air flow much passed idle and it burned through 3/4 of a bag in a little more than 8 hours. I lit the stove again this morning and put an entire bag of nut in it. Air movement was much better and taller with but as expected. I topped it off with a half bucket of p gravel to see if I can get the day out of this burn and see what it is like when I get back from work. The stove does hold a hefty load of coal but it is frustrating to load it with the smoke screen but it is a fun stove to work with. Thank you for all of the help coaly!