PE Pacific Door Gasket Replacement Need A Few Pointers, Please

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Dix

Minister of Fire
May 27, 2008
6,685
Long Island, NY
OK, got the door handle taken care of, now on to the gasket.. I hope to get this done tonight.

Door with new gasket laid out. I assume I cut off the excess?

PE  Pacific Gasket 101312 001.JPG
Old gasket to the left, silicone on the glass, the old gasket "connector" on the glass.

PE  Pacific Gasket 101312 005.JPG

Door scrubbed out & ready before install.

Am I ready to roll?
 
Hey Dix.
Don't cut your gasket until the very end of the process...
Once you have the groove cleaned of all the old gasket cement, run a damp paper towel or a rag all the way around to clean out any dust.
Once that dries, run a small bead of gasket cement in the very bottom of the groove, & with your fingertip or a Q-tip or something that will fit in the groove, & spread the cement onto all the groove surfaces to prime them.
Then run a 1/4" bead in the bottom of the groove & starting at the midway point BETWEEN the hinges, lay the gasket in the cement & press it into the groove. Work your way around the perimeter WITHOUT stretching the gasket. When you get to the start point, lay the gasket on top of the first end so you know EXACTLY where to make the next cut & cut the second end with a SHARP pair of scissors...Press the rest of the gasket into the groove making sure that the ends abut each other...Put the door on the stove & close it tightly. Let it sit for as long as is specified on the cement container, generally 3 - 4 hours...HTH
 
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Hey Dix.
Don't cut your gasket until the very end of the process...
Once you have the groove cleaned of all the old gasket cement, run a damp paper towel or a rag all the way around to clean out any dust.
Once that dries, run a small bead of gasket cement in the very bottom of the groove, & with your fingertip or a Q-tip or something that will fit in the groove, & spread the cement onto all the groove surfaces to prime them.
Then run a 1/4" bead in the bottom of the groove & starting at the midway point BETWEEN the hinges, lay the gasket in the cement 7 press it into the groove. Work your way around the perimeter WITHOUT stretching the gasket. When you get to the start point, lay the gasket on top of the first end so you know EXACTLY where to make the next cut & cut the second end with a SHARP pair of scissors...Press the rest of the gasket into the groove making sure that the ends abut each other...Put the door on the stove & close it tightly. Let it sit for as long as is specified on the cement container, generally 3 - 4 hours...HTH

Thanks, Bob. Helped Alot.

I slapped the old gasket in, to get it running for the night, and have some heat. Atleast the door closes correctly now :mad:

Tomorrow AM, I'll do the gasket, and be ready to rock 'n roll by night fall.
 
Don't bother trying to reuse the connector, toss that. I started/ended my gasket replacements in the lower hinge corner. This way instead of trying to butt the ends together, I ended the finished end into the side of the started end. I believe I got that advice from Tom at CS, and was glad to have the help. When you cut the finish end, cut it about 3/4" too long, then pack it in tight against the side of the started end. Gives a great seal.

Don't forget to readjust the latch tab on the stove. You want the door to be snug, but not oversight. With a lot of pressure on the door from the latch being overly tight, it can wear the portion of the door that the washers & latch swivel area spins against. Remember, the door is merely cast iron.

The gasket looks small, May be just the pics. What size did Tom send?
 
Actually got the photos to load
 

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We always end the gasket between the hinges, as that is the tightest possible spot on the door. 3/4" too long seems a bit excessive, but if those methods have worked well for you, who am I to argue? Either way, Dix, you'll have a good seal when you're done. The main thing is to avoid stretching the gasket as you lay it in the groove.
 
Don't bother trying to reuse the connector, toss that. I started/ended my gasket replacements in the lower hinge corner. This way instead of trying to butt the ends together, I ended the finished end into the side of the started end. I believe I got that advice from Tom at CS, and was glad to have the help. When you cut the finish end, cut it about 3/4" too long, then pack it in tight against the side of the started end. Gives a great seal.

Don't forget to readjust the latch tab on the stove. You want the door to be snug, but not oversight. With a lot of pressure on the door from the latch being overly tight, it can wear the portion of the door that the washers & latch swivel area spins against. Remember, the door is merely cast iron.

The gasket looks small, May be just the pics. What size did Tom send?

The receipt says 5' gasket. A quick measure gave me 1/2" in width.
 
The receipt says 5' gasket. A quick measure gave me 1/2" in width.
You need a minimum of 7/8" gasket. The package only gives you the length? Not the width? if it is anything less than 7/8", it ain't going to work. I have tried everything from 5/8" to 1", and nothing under 7/8" works. I had a hard time with the factory 7/8" dense gasket to work. They really need to change the gap to a more standard gasket width.
 
We always end the gasket between the hinges, as that is the tightest possible spot on the door. 3/4" too long seems a bit excessive, but if those methods have worked well for you, who am I to argue? Either way, Dix, you'll have a good seal when you're done. The main thing is to avoid stretching the gasket as you lay it in the groove.
Agreed, and the other main thing to check it make sure you have the gasket at the corners at almost a tight 90 degree bend as you can and properly centered in the groove, or else you chance the corner(s) of the door resting outside or inside the gasket if you don't get the corner just right.
 
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It wasn't a package, just a cut piece of gasket 5' in lenght.

Would I be better off for now reinstalling the old gasket?

*Edited to correct feet & length
 
The factory one I got from Tom looks exaclty like the old one I took out and your old one as well. Black graphite style. 7/8" Just did mine last week. Has sticky paper on the back. Looks like they sent you the 1/2" white round they used to use. Hogz, if you dont use factory where do you get yours from?

Edit, only had two fires with new gasket but it seems to be fine. Passed the dollar bill test.
 
Good info in this thread. I'd order the proper gasket from Tom and run on the old one until the new one arrives.
 
Agr

Agreed, and the other main thing to check it make sure you have the gasket at the corners at almost a tight 90 degree bend as you can and properly centered in the groove, or else you chance the corner(s) of the door resting outside or inside the gasket if you don't get the corner just right.
thats good info on the corners Hogwild, when I replaced mine last month ( factory 7/8 black rope with the tape ) you can pull the corners to close to the glass and the stove lip corner hits on the far outside of the rope gasket.
I found this out when I put the door back on and used a flashlight to look in the frame gap to see where the lip met the rope gasket. My corners were short and not tight enough 90's , luckily the gasket cement was not setting up yet an I didn't cut the rope to short. Made the adjustments and the door seems to have a better feel to it when you close it than when it was new. (I traced the factory gasket path the first time an I think there corners were off cause thats where mine started seeping air an the gasket seemed to still be in good shape )
 
Good info in this thread. I'd order the proper gasket from Tom and run on the old one until the new one arrives.


Thanks, BG. I honestly don't think there is anything wrong with the old one. Everything was fine until the end of last season, when I saw it was hanging off of the door on the bottom.. Over the summer it just slowly came off.

I can also honestly tell you that I never paid attention to not using "Windex type" cleaners on the glass, and just sprayed away. There is the problem. I think the ammonia ate away ate the adhesive, hence my problems.

Off to reinstall the old one, and get a hold of Tom.

You guys are the best :cool:
 
Yes, when I looked at the one in the picture it looked to be sill in good shape.
 
Should I reinstall the connector, as well???
 
If your old gasket is in good shape, reuse it. I think th connector will prove to be more of a hassle than it is worth. Not sure what would hold it. More importantly, is to make sure you get the corners so they cover the knife edge corners, and get a nice tight butt joint at the ends of the gasket where they meet.

I have used the generic Windex equivalent on my glass with no issues. I do like the white gel cleaner getter though. I did have my old gasket fall off when it was installed with gasket cement though. I use silicone now, and have never had it fail.
 
The factory one I got from Tom looks exaclty like the old one I took out and your old one as well. Black graphite style. 7/8" Just did mine last week. Has sticky paper on the back. Looks like they sent you the 1/2" white round they used to use. Hogz, if you dont use factory where do you get yours from?

Edit, only had two fires with new gasket but it seems to be fine. Passed the dollar bill test.

I get the rope gasket at a local Ace hardware. They even have the graphite impregnated. But only round, not flat gasket. I used 1" for a while, man that stuff got a nice seal, but had to really adjust the latch tab out to keep it from being too tight. I still say 7/8" flat dense style PE uses dons not get a great seal on the latch side. I think either my knife edge is off or the door is off, cause they have never sealed great, cept with the 1" or else the latch tab adjusted as far as it can be. And that allows the latch rollers to contact the face of the insert.
 
OK, reinstalled the old gasket.

Currently have the door reattached to the stove with news paper in between the door & the stove so the adhesive (what is that anyways?? it smells nice !!!), awaiting drying time.
 

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Cruising.... on a Sunday afternoon (well evening, but you get the drift) ;)
 
63 degrees at ten thirty PM here. Wind shifted to out of the south. Cold stove making sure the hearth doesn't float away. >>
 
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