Safe to burn?

[got wood?]

I inspected my older Lopi Endeavor the other week and I noticed that inside the firebox, the metal "spine" that supports the horizontal bricks at the top of the firebox is very rusted (see attached). I believe this metal piece is hollow and supplies the outside air for combustion. Is it worth saving this 1984 stove? Can this piece be replaced/welded?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

It's interesting that you have secondary combustion on a pre EPA stove.

I'd look the whole stove over carefully to see if there are any other issues before I made a decision. If all was in good condition I'd weld a plate over it. If you have to pay somebody I'd ask for the charge before I started. That money may be better spent going into a new stove that will burn less wood and not have stressed metal.

Matt

 

[begreen]

Depends on the condition of the rest of the stove and your budget. Does the stove burn hot in the middle? That area looks like it is self-destructing and putting too much heat back there. It shouldn't cost that much to weld a plate in there, especially if you can remove the part for in-shop repair. Or a cheap patch could be made of stainless with a healthy gob of furnace cement behind it. It could be screwed in place as a temp repair.

 

[got wood?]

The rest of the stove is in pretty good shape. No other rust, the bricks are fine (some cracks, none missing). I don't know about the hot spots, I use a gas flue thermometer not a stove top.

Your point about the stressed metal is concerning. This stove came with my house so I have no idea how well it was cared for (or misused) prior to me. That said, there have been two over-fire events that I can can lay claim to, but those were several years ago.

 

[SteveKG]

The rest of the stove is in pretty good shape. No other rust, the bricks are fine (some cracks, none missing). I don't know about the hot spots, I use a gas flue thermometer not a stove top.

Your point about the stressed metal is concerning. This stove came with my house so I have no idea how well it was cared for (or misused) prior to me. That said, there have been two over-fire events that I can can lay claim to, but those were several years ago.

I keep things a long time and repair as much as I can. Since the stove is otherwise ok, I would fix as outlined in the previous responses.

If you are mulling a new stove, this would be a good time to stop mulling and start shopping. Otherwise, fix it and keep an eye on it through the current winter. Clean it all up really well next summer and see how you feel about what you find. It might last many more years. Maybe.

 

[PapaDave]

Personally, if that were my stove and I had the funds to replace it, I'd replace it rather than repair.
It certainly doesn't owe any service.
My stove had a problem that I was able to get fixed, and now seems to be working better, but like I said, if I had the funds, it would have been replaced.
There are MUCH better stoves on the market now, so go get one! See how easy it is to spend someone else's money? :lol:

 

[woodchip]

Personally, if that were my stove and I had the funds to replace it, I'd replace it rather than repair.

If it were mine and I didn't have the money to replace, I would look at welding a plate over the area, then casting a small firebrick out of vermiculite cement to protect the weld.

Certainly worth looking at the cost of repair, nice to see an older stove with secondary combustion, although interestingly enough, steam railway engines had it in the 1940's