Maintenance on a oslo

Check all the gaskets. Close the doors on a dollar bill, the bill should be closed snugly in the door, not easily removable if the gasket is good. Try it in multiple locations.
Remove your Ashpan, clean out all the debris that gets built up behind it. Ash gets packed in there over time and is about as hard as cement. This build-up prevents the pan from being fully inserted and the door won't close properly.

Clean the flue collar area and the area above the battle. If this isn't getting done when the flue is cleaned I'll be glad to fill you in on the details on how to acess the area above the baffle.

A couple things I found useful to clean and maintain my Oslo:

1. Unbolt 3 bolts fastening top (not oval plate) onto stove - two front, and one back (the back one is a bit tough to access with big hands). Then the top just lifts off to provide quick, easy access to clean ash from baffle insulation blanket, inspect from top, and permit some stove-side access to the flue. Majority consensus from posts of past site threads is that it's OK to leave bolts off as the weight of the top is sufficient for good gasket seal. Just make sure to reset properly so you have a good seal when you set back the top. Good thread with another related thread within it - https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/oslo-top-question.142046/#post-1935005
2. Some Oslo owners have complained about their primary air lever (Handler for Air Vent) sticking or jamming. There are a couple threads on this also. Take off the 'dog house' cover, Inspection Cover (10 mm bolts) wipe/ clean and squirt a bit of powdered graphite between sliding Air Valve and the surrounding groove of the stove bottom that receives it. It makes a BIG difference ! I typically need to do this a few times during the burn season, usually when ash get pushed into holes of doghouse cover.

16 years and I've done side door and ash door gasket. I replace the top insulation blanket every 3 years or so. I bought a 10' roll of the insulation.
I would like to clean out the secondary air tubes, but it looks like I'll break the bolts getting it apart.

I think Webby and Cincy pretty much covered everything you need to do . . . it's a relatively easy task.

Elle said:

how do you know if you need a new insulation blanket?

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Elle, I have the two piece cast iron burn plates. So for cleaning, to access the shelf below the chimney at the back of the stove, I slide the plates out the front The blanket lays on top of the plates. The blanket material is fragile, Just getting it out and back in, tears it up.

But your stove has the new burn plate. Someone with it can comment on what they do.

Elle said:

I remember something about the dog house...wasn't there a defect or something? Yes, I am planning to get at that this summer cause i didn't yet. Mind does stick a bit

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Access and maintenance to the dog house is easy. Open the front door, remove the two bolts, lift off the cover over the slide. I use P&B dry lube. Squirt it up and it slides better than new. I lube mine every year. Opening the front door made the issue worse. I assume the falling ash would gum it up. I never open the front door.

As to a defect, I'm not sure. It may have been the sticky slide issue.

begreen said:

There was a defect in some of the F400/500/600 control levers that would allow them to bind. IIRC Jotul came up with a mod that corrected the problem about 4(?) yrs ago.

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I seem to recall it had to do with the shape of the lever arm. As far as I can tell by the time I purchased my Oslo January 2009 it had the the corrected version, but still had the issue of the sliding Air Valve sticking in the track, which has already been addressed as a easy fix.

Elle said:

how do you know if you need a new insulation blanket?

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I would say it's more or less a personal judgment deal . . . I waited until mine was torn up enough so that I didn't feel as comfortable with it's insulating properties due to its condition. Fortunately, my local dealer was great and just cut off X number of feet off a roll of the insulating material they keep on hand . . . saving me quite a bit of money vs. buying the OEM Jotul blanket cut exactly to length.

I just clean everything from the top down. Chimney cap is taken off and brushed clean then chimney pipe witch brush. Then remove all large ash, then I use an old vacuum to clean everything even above the blanket with the thin attachments. Moving the baffle holding the blanket a little to sweep behind the burn tubes. I check all gaskets and around this time of year have the chimney sweep come out to just look over everything. I have sinced moved and no longer have my Oslo, unless who ever buys my first house doesn't want it. A great stove very simple to use operate and clean. I am looking at a new stove for my finished basement and an insert for the fireplace on the first floor. Will keep updates on purchases, looking at the kuma sequoia for the basement very nice stove, and a jotul insert, not sure what size since I haven't measured the firebox yet.