Appalachian 52 BAY Wood Stove Insert

English BoB · Jan 29, 2015

mellow said:
I use a condar catalytic probe you can see pics of it in this post: https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/appalachian-52-bay-wood-stove-insert.83621/page-3#post-1113063

I see the probe in the pictures you posted, thank you,
After reading the installation manual....I know....I know....there is a small screw to the left of the damper for a front mounted catalytic probe. Remove screw and insert catalytic probe.
Is does not say what size.

Thanks Bob

mellow · Jan 30, 2015

English BoB said:
Is does not say what size.
Thanks Bob

Order it from the guys at servicesales.com, they know the correct size.

mellow · Feb 3, 2015

English BoB said:
I see the probe in the pictures you posted, thank you,
After reading the installation manual....I know....I know....there is a small screw to the left of the damper for a front mounted catalytic probe. Remove screw and insert catalytic probe.
Is does not say what size.

Thanks Bob

6.5" Condar cat probe

English BoB · Feb 5, 2015

mellow said:
6.5" Condar cat probe

Thanks Mellow, just ordered.

Bob

mellow · Feb 11, 2015

mellow said:
I wanted to followup with a picture of the door latch, I am not crazy about it, it is not the easiest to open and shut but I am sure with time it will wear down and smooth out, which also worries me, it doesn't look easy to replace if something happens to it, I am guessing the whole handle would have to be replaced.

View attachment 65137

My prediction was correct, the latch does get worn out and gets sloppy with the only way to adjust it is to do what I did last night, put vice-grips on it and try to bend it back without snapping it off. I have been on a gasket kick, I have tried 4 different manufactures gaskets on the door this season to help and none really did the job well.

I am hoping that Fil-Tec will send me some 1/2" high density gasket samples so I can try that, tried medium and low density and had the same results, they wear out quickly and allow air in.

mellow · Feb 11, 2015

coltfever said:
Glad you took the primary air cover off. Thanks for the pictures. I've been wanting to see how it looked. Its what i pictured. Mellow my door latch is a little different look on the inside of the stove but still alot alike also. I don't like the way the handle design is at all but mine has not shown any wear at all. I haven't had to replace any of my gaskets.

Can you post some pics of your latch?

English BoB · Feb 12, 2015

English BoB said:
Thanks Mellow, just ordered.

Bob

mellow said:
6.5" Condar cat probe

Mellow, The cat probe arrived yesterday, I tried to remove the screw - it came loose - but will not come out. Is there anything holding it on the backside ?

Or the thread may be stripped and holding just enough to prevent it pulling out.

I dont want to cut the head of the screw off and cause a problem.

Your advice would be helpful.

thanks Bob

mellow · Feb 13, 2015

You won't cause a problem, thick metal behind that screw. I would reach into the firebox and feel the screw while turning it, see if you can put some pressure on it and get the threads to grab and back it out. If not I would just drill it out.

English BoB · Feb 13, 2015

mellow said:
You won't cause a problem, thick metal behind that screw. I would reach into the firebox and feel the screw while turning it, see if you can put some pressure on it and get the threads to grab and back it out. If not I would just drill it out.

Thanks, will keep you informed.

Bob

English BoB · Feb 26, 2015

[q
uote="mellow, post: 1899030, member: 3870"]You won't cause a problem, thick metal behind that screw. I would reach into the firebox and feel the screw while turning it, see if you can put some pressure on it and get the threads to grab and back it out. If not I would just drill it out.[/quote]

I got the screw out, inserted the probe and this is what I found as a result.

sorry for the quality of the pics in advance. This first is the probe installed.
The second show the temp on the stack and the probe. If you cannot make them out, the stack is approx 250 deg and the probe is at 2,0,clock which is 1600 deg.
Now I was using the stack for my guide, which in the above case, I would have added more air to increase the stack temp for more heat. This resulted in shorter hotter burns.
Now I have a longer steadier heat output. After 10.0hrs house is around 60 deg lately when I get home, the probe is still in active range and I can refill without it dropping out of range.
A short burst of air 5 - 10 mins and the fire is right back up.

Feel free to weight in with comments as this is the first time ive used the cat temp to regulate burning.

Bob

Woody Stover · Feb 26, 2015

English BoB said:
I was using the stack for my guide, which in the above case, I would have added more air to increase the stack temp for more heat. This resulted in shorter hotter burns.
Now I have a longer steadier heat output.

Yep, it all depends how much wood you get burning and how hot the stove is before you cut the air. You can choose weather you want a low cruise or a wall of heat. ==c

I usually go for a medium cruise...don't like that riding that razor edge of the hot burn, where I'm close to the cat going high.

mellow · Feb 27, 2015

Sounds like you are burning her right now, nice long steady burns are the key. If it stops doing that check your gaskets or your door latch first, then check your cat to see if it needs to be cleaned or replaced.

English BoB · Jul 19, 2015

mellow said:
Sounds like you are burning her right now, nice long steady burns are the key. If it stops doing that check your gaskets or your door latch first, then check your cat to see if it needs to be cleaned or replaced.

Supposed to be 91 degrees here today. So I started cleaning the stove - to hot to be outside, As I vacuumed in the damper housing there were some "clunks " sucked up, then I found pieces of combuster.
So, they need to be replaced. All the info was in this thread how to, part numbers, pics - great.

The biggest hurdle is getting those 9/16 bolts out of the shield, Iam sure they will break and have to be drilled, so wish me luck.

Replacements are $118.00 each on Amazon, part # AC1-19N

English BoB · Jul 19, 2015

.Well it all came apart, here is whats left of the cat and check out the warp in the flame shield !!!

$$$$$$$$$

mellow · Jul 20, 2015

Now that you have a probe on it hopefully the new cat and shield will last longer.

Be sure to go over the entire cat housing if the shield is that warped, I would be worried the damper would not be closing as much as it should. The rest of the stove should be fine as it is thick steel but still would be good to give it a once over.

Woody Stover · Jul 20, 2015

English BoB said:
check out the warp in the flame shield $$$$$$$$$

You might try to just beat it back flat with a hammer, but that looks like pretty thick steel plate...

coltfever · Jul 22, 2015

bob if you haven't taken the damper housing out by now put a few drops of 3n1 oil on the bolt treads and they should back out easy. The housing is kinda heavy so you might want to cut you 2 or 3 wood support to hold it in place until your ready to drop it down.

English BoB · Jul 22, 2015

Woody Stover said:
You might try to just beat it back flat with a hammer, but that looks like pretty thick steel plate...

The steel was 1/16inch and strightened out pretty well, phew........

English BoB · Jul 22, 2015

coltfever said:
bob if you haven't taken the damper housing out by now put a few drops of 3n1 oil on the bolt treads and they should back out easy. The housing is kinda heavy so you might want to cut you 2 or 3 wood support to hold it in place until your ready to drop it down.

Thanks for the tip.............

Old School · Nov 20, 2015

I know this is an old thread and until now I haven't chimed in on the 52 Bay because for the last three seasons I have regretted purchasing the stove. That has changed this season and so far I have been much happier with the stove. I won't bore you with all the details but when I purchased the stove the dealer advised it would work fine as a slammer install which is what I did and quickly learned that wasn't going to work and after many months of calling back and forth with the dealer worked out a deal to purchase a 6" 35 ft liner that I installed 2 years ago as a basement install which helped some but I was still not happy. That is when I found this site and started thinking about drier wood and a block off plate. So this year I stuffed the damper area with Roxul and I am using wood that is 18 months c/s/s and the stove is a different animal all together. I have burned 5 or 6 overnights so far with usable heat 8-10 hrs and a good coal bed with no babysitting. Until now I would spend ridiculous amounts of time getting it up to temp to engage the cat and cut the air down and then it would struggle to stay up to temp after the blower cut on and wake up to a cold stove. I wanted to share my experience in hopes that it will keep someone else from going through the same frustrations. I will add that it still does not put out the immediate radiant heat that my old smoke dragon upstairs does but the overnight burns and steady heat are more in line for what I needed for the location of this stove. I now plan to remove the surround so that any heat trapped in the fireplace can get out and I think it will be a better looking setup as well. I will also fabricate a metal block off plate in the near future.

clemsonfor · Nov 20, 2015

Yep wet wood does not burn. Get that oak seasoned for 24-36 months and it will be better probably.

mellow · Nov 20, 2015

Good to hear, you might want to give your cat a good cleaning, with the less than optimal burning it might be a bit clogged and you could get even more heat out of it.

Old School · Nov 20, 2015

Thank you for mentioning that I should have included in the first post that I did clean the cats when I swept the chimney earlier this fall and they were in need of it. Luckily they were not damaged though.

English BoB · Nov 20, 2015

Old School said:
I know this is an old thread and until now I haven't chimed in on the 52 Bay because for the last three seasons I have regretted purchasing the stove. That has changed this season and so far I have been much happier with the stove. I won't bore you with all the details but when I purchased the stove the dealer advised it would work fine as a slammer install which is what I did and quickly learned that wasn't going to work and after many months of calling back and forth with the dealer worked out a deal to purchase a 6" 35 ft liner that I installed 2 years ago as a basement install which helped some but I was still not happy. That is when I found this site and started thinking about drier wood and a block off plate. So this year I stuffed the damper area with Roxul and I am using wood that is 18 months c/s/s and the stove is a different animal all together. I have burned 5 or 6 overnights so far with usable heat 8-10 hrs and a good coal bed with no babysitting. Until now I would spend ridiculous amounts of time getting it up to temp to engage the cat and cut the air down and then it would struggle to stay up to temp after the blower cut on and wake up to a cold stove. I wanted to share my experience in hopes that it will keep someone else from going through the same frustrations. I will add that it still does not put out the immediate radiant heat that my old smoke dragon upstairs does but the overnight burns and steady heat are more in line for what I needed for the location of this stove. I now plan to remove the surround so that any heat trapped in the fireplace can get out and I think it will be a better looking setup as well. I will also fabricate a metal block off plate in the near future.

Welcome to the forum. I can relate to every thing you say and my 52 is a different beast this season as well. I installed a probe temp gauge with the help from Mellow, replaced the cats and now have a good supply of dry wood. Havnt had any overnight burns yet just evening fires to take the chill off, shoulder wood and uglies,

bob

Old School · Dec 24, 2015

I am considering replacing the 3 speed switch with a variable speed so that I can slow down the fan more on my 52. I read back through this thread and saw where others considered it and I am wondering if anyone actually did so. If so what were the results?

Appalachian 52 BAY Wood Stove Insert

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