Englander baffle mod question

[ckarotka]

My baffle board is still in one piece but warped a bit. This leaves gaps for gases to escape before being burned. Why can't I take those dimensions to my local steel guy and have him cut a chunk or 1/4" plate to fit. Then apply a gasket to the three sides and call it a day?

 

[pen]

My concerns would be that many steel baffles warp also. Additionally, I don't know if those burn tubes could handle the weight when that stove is cranking and the tubes are hot.

pen

 

[rottiman]

My concerns would be that many steel baffles warp also. Additionally, I don't know if those burn tubes could handle the weight when that stove is cranking and the tubes are hot.

pen

+1 Pen, tubes will never carry the load. plate will warp too. Even tried 1/4" armor on one of my regency's, that didn't come close to the 30 in output, and that warped too

 

[ckarotka]

The board will not sit on the tubes, rather it sits on the channel for the air wash system so load is not an issue. Warping is however. Any suggestion on a material to use or just buy a new board every few years??

 

[rottiman]

i'd stick with the factory design myself. Your choice though. Either way, steel is gonna warp too.

 

[BrotherBart]

Turn it over and let it go the other way.

 

[begreen]

What if you took 3/4" angle iron and welded it into a box shape with the flat of the ell on the top? Maybe add a section in the middle as a stiffener. Then fit in the ceramic board sections, then weld the plate on the bottom and attach a stainless skin to the top.

 

[BrotherBart]

What if you took 3/4" angle iron and welded it into a box shape with the flat of the ell on the top? Maybe add a section in the middle as a stiffener. Then fit in the ceramic board sections, then weld the plate on the bottom and attach a stainless skin to the top.

Pretty good way to over stress the secondary air manifolds welded to the sides of the firebox that were only designed to hold up a feather light ceramic fiber board.

If ya want a stove with a steel baffle, buy one. Personally I got real tired of paying fifty to sixty bucks every three or four years for the local iron works to fab me a new 1/4" plate baffle for my old stove because it warped to hell. And having to put a floor jack in the stove to bend it back into shape so I could get the damned thing out.

I love these ceramic boards.

 

[precaud]

Put a layer of 1/4" Kaowool ceramic blanket on top of the fiber board. It will cover the leaks around the edges.

 

[ckarotka]

BB I did flip it after cleaning. I'll try some wool above, I don't think it's really effecting things too much. I just saw it, now it's "broken" in my mind only.

 

[EJL923]

I have a cast iron baffle in my Jotul, but its very thick, prob 3/8. It is a two piece design and hasnt budged after two seasons of 24/7 burning. It was designed that way, but yes it can be done. From the looks of them, they will easily go 5 years, prob more. About half the weight rests on the secondaries.

 

[pen]

I run the heck out of my 30 and the baffles look just fine as we go into season 4. The only damage to them is as a result of me hitting them (scratches).

Really, if you just don't knock them around they should last a very long time. One of mine warped a year or two back but it seems to have worked itself back flat.

pen

 

[precaud]

I received my sample of 1/2" board from Skyline Components today. It is essentially the same as the 2300F M-board. Weight per volume is slightly higher (no doubt there is some batch-to-batch variations) and the surface characteristics are basically the same. See all my previous comments about it being easily damaged when hit by wood.

So, yes, the original material is tougher stuff. But as has been said by several posters many times in this group, you're not supposed to be jamming wood into the secondary tubes and baffle anyway. For those who are willing to cut their own replacement baffle pieces to size, this material presents a very cost-effective alternative to buying pieces from the OEM. And with reasonable care when loading your stove, I see no reason why it shouldn't last as long as the original material.

PS - I was totally off base when I wrote in an earlier post that the vendor was primarily a salesman. Mr. Li has a PhD and probably has forgotten more about this stuff than I'll ever know...

PPS - their website is: http://www.skylinecomponents.com/CeramicFiberInsulation.html