Hearthstone Baffle replacement

Here are some pics of the baffle that sits right above the secondary burn tubes. There is a small lip - about 1.5 inches that goes up toward the top of the stove just above the burn tube closest to the door.
You should be able to feel the baffle between the tubes... I've bonked mine a few times with logs and it sort of reminds me of rigid styrofoam or extruded foam insualtion with a skim coat of concrete on the outside (!?). I have taken a couple of little dings out of the material.

Hope this helps!

There won’t be any steel up there, it’s cast iron

Click to expand...

I am not sure why I said steel, I meant to say cast iron. Thanks for correcting me ;-). Tomorrow AM, I will stick a needle or nail to it. To me it does NOT feel like styrofoam. And mine does NOT look like VTHC's. I'll try to take a picture tomorrow. Mine is all black. It's going to be a cold night here, so I just filled the box up with wood. Stay warm

FYI..... I have a Hearthstone Morgan select insert and according to my user's manual the warranty on the secondary burn system (baffles) is 5 yrs from date of purchase. My wife actually cracked the board in the second season of operation and my dealer replaced it at N/C. My understanding of the baffles is that they don't "wear" out. They may discolor or warp if overheated but really they are just pipes with holes that carry air for the secondary burn. Apparantly the "upside" of the secondary system is that is doesn't "wear out" like the catalyst does.

VTHC,

Great photos! Thanks for responding...


firestarter38,

The baffles are the flat, ceramic plates that sit on top of the secondary air supply tubes, but both together comprise the secondary system. I don't know if the baffles ever wear out (or just get broken over time), but I've read that the secondary tubes can burn through and need replacement (not just the Shelburne, but in general).

vixster?

So sorry for the delay... I've been busy with work and it's cold! What a combo.
Here are some pictures. Note my baffle is all black. I got frustrated with the pictures because everything looks white or grey. And the heat from the coals made it difficult to say there. It's quite black up there. Flash made it white. My pictures aren't as good as VTHC. I haven't done the nail test yet. I will this weekend.. PROMISE! And I didn't see any dings. But here you go. Also, I was comparing the cut on the edge, if that had any implications.. Thanks Vixster

Looks as though there is something resting on the tubes. If so, that would be the baffles. Can't imagine anyone putting anything else there. If there were a space between the top of the tubes and the underside of the top casting, that would look different (from what I can see in the photos).

Don't worry about the baffle. It is not nearly as fragile as you may think. It's quite heavy and dense not like a chunk of styrofoam, should be a half inch thick. You can poke it with a piece of kindling, thwack is with your finger, or scratch it with a needle. To break it you need to seriously thump it with something. Mine is very white though. If I am burning poorly, it will get black until I get a hot fire again. Since your fire looks hot, I can't imaging why that baffle looks so black.

I would be happy if the company put out an unbreakable baffle of some sort.

The baffle in my Shelburne was black when I bought it this fall. I think it was overspray from the stove being painted. Maybe they started installing the baffle earlier in the build-process. Either way it is difficult to tell from your pictures for sure but I would say it looks just like mine. Mine, however does feel like fiberboard and is easy to distinguish.

Argh... mine does not feel like fiber board.. feels solid like cast iron... will do nail test later.. I know my pictures stink.. BTW there is a large gap between so called baffle and roof of stove... like 1-1.5 inches...

You know, it almost looks like you have a tray that the baffle sits it. I wonder if you took the top off, would you see the baffle sitting on the other side of that metal?
That is how they should be built in the first place.

unhdsm said:

You know, it almost looks like you have a tray that the baffle sits it. I wonder if you took the top off, would you see the baffle sitting on the other side of that metal?
That is how they should be built in the first place.

Click to expand...

You say "should be built", but I'll take mine the way Hearthstone designed it. Based on my stove and the other postings I've seen, the baffle "normally" sits on top of the tubes, without a 1" - 1 1/2" space between. Sounds to me as though vixster has a Shelburne without the baffles (particularly probable if his dealer wasn't aware the Shelburne has baffles).

I was mixed up as the thread started out about a craftsbury stove.
The pictures look like the "metal" plate is right over the burn tubes, but maybe there is a gap between the two where a baffle would sit. Either way, I now realize we are talking about a Shelburne. Mine is new so I doubt the design changed.

according to what I understand, once it's epa rated, it can't be changed.

Vixster...
You are fine. Based on the pictures you posted you have a baffle. It is sitting on top of your secondary burn tubes (just like my stove, and Dan's). The reason mine is white (ish) is residue from my overnight burn. I believe initially the baffle was a darker color when i first got the stove last January. The description of the "feel" is based solely on me bumping the baffle with a small round, after i realized the material was not cast iron or steel (like the tubes).

The gap at the very front is the opening for the smoke to get up your chimney, so there should be some space between the baffle (above your secondary tubes) and the top of your stove so smoke can exit the fire box.

Are you getting good secondary burn when you lower the primary air? If so, your stove is running like it should... W/out the baffle i don't think the secondary system would be very effective (no secondary flames).

BTW: Sorry to the OP for the complete hijack of the thread...

vixster,

I may have misunderstood your posts. If you have something sitting on, or almost on, your burn tubes, with 1" - 1 1/2" above it to the underside of the stove top, that is very likely your baffle. I somehow got the idea you had 1 - 1 1/2" space between the burn tubes and the underside of the stove top, with nothing sitting on the tubes. Sorry for any confusion...

it's definitely between tubes.. I am just not sure of it's material! it's does NOT feel like "light weight" material.

well, after the stove cooled off for 4 days, I was really able to inspect the baffle. It very much is a different material. It already has a bunch of dings in it. It does feel thick. I was able to really feel it and move it (lift it). I certainly have a better understanding now.
Thanks for all your knowledge.

vixster said:

well, after the stove cooled off for 4 days, I was really able to inspect the baffle. It very much is a different material. It already has a bunch of dings in it. It does feel thick. I was able to really feel it and move it (lift it). I certainly have a better understanding now.
Thanks for all your knowledge.

Click to expand...

Vixster,

Man I am glad you got this situation taken care of... Only took a month ! (j/k)

Shawn

Shawn, haha , good to get something off my check list!

So are there actually two ceramic boards? (I hesitate to use the word `baffle' around Dan.) Juxtaposed? Air gapped?

And can the air tubes be easily removed and cleaned out to help them last longer? Reminding everyone that the title of this thread was Hearthstone Baffle Replacement--was that replacing baffle w/confusion? Because I am. Confused, not confusion. Comments from some posters have left me with the impression of a delicate ceramic Wasa Brod cracker up there, and others with something stout. How many Hearthstone folks have actually had to replace their ceremic boards, and how hard was it to do so, and so on. And thank you.

I haven't broken my baffle (there, I said it) yet, but it's probably because I'm so careful putting new splits in. I have read on this site that they are easily broken, and I'm cheap. Whether Hearthstone baffles are more fragile than others, I don't know. I do know: Wasa Brod good!

I am a day late and a dollar short to this conversation. I too had problems interpreting hearthstone's web site and information. even the dealer I deal with had troubles. to summarize:

the "baffles" apparently are called "ceramic boards" by hearthstone. for the shelburne they are items
42 part number 3120-370 Ceramic Board, Lower
43 part number 3120-371 Ceramic Board, Upper

they are relatively light weight and do wear out for some reason or another. I know I am careful with my 4 year old shelburne stove and yet after the last cleaning I noticed the stove was burning hotter. I saw the "baffle" was damaged and went to their web site to get another one. now I need to go back and look more carefully to see which one if not both are damaged and need to be replaced. its unfortunate that there are two as that means about $150 in repairs. for all I know the guy I I hired to do the chimney sweep damaged them trying to take the stove apart. live and learn.

and yes, they are easily broken.

Almost all new baffle boards within the last 8 years or so are made of some type of fiberboard. Be careful when you sweep with a Hearthstone. A lot of them had the fiberboard baffles cemented in the back for shipping purposes. They need to be chipped out in the rear end of the stove to be removed comfortably without damage. It's still not fun. I do miss the days when baffles were made out of plate steel or bricks but stoves have become more efficient since they decided the fiber boards work well.

That said, I have a back up set of baffle boards for my Quad for when I get a little overzealous with the wood loading. MOST companies have tougher fibrous baffles than Quad does.... SBI has AWESOME fiber baffles... rah rah rah. No need to go on. If you have a Shelbourne it has a baffle of some sort. IF it's damaged the best bet is to get the serial number and model number and contact your local dealer. With those two numbers it can be nailed down quite quickly.....

I've yet to see a post explaining how to change the baffles in a Shelburne. If you could remove the secondary tubes and tilt the baffles to lower them out, that would be the easy way. Removing the cast iron top of the stove and then replacing the seals for reassembly seems like it'd be a lot more work.