Baffle Plates for Jotul F500

[kbindera]

I inherited a Jotul F500 from the previous owner of my house. During a routine cleaning, I learned that one of the two baffle plates was bent. The unit has two plates that sit side by side and they are apparently made of vermiculite. I contacted some dealers in my area to order a replacement and they each have various bits of feedback which includes:
-I should switch from vermiculite plates to a single cast iron plate. This dealer says its more durable and will last longer, though not as energy efficient (and fragile) as vermiculite.
-I don't need vermiculite in my region (NY State). You only need these in certain states due to emissions regulations. This dealer says that I can get rid of them altogether.

Anyway, I'm a little confused as what I thought would be a pretty straightforward part order added more variables to the problem. Do I go cast iron? Do I need the vermiculite plates at all?

Any advice for a wood burning newbie would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Binder

 

[begreen]

I'd replace it with a new vermiculite baffle and then the insulation blanket on top. It should last a long time as long as it is not abused. The stove should burn cleaner and more efficiently. That could mean greater heat output. I read here a few years back that the original cast iron baffle plates had a tendency to warp so putting one in may not solve the problem long term.

What confuses me is the two plates. I thought there was only one continuous baffle in the Oslo, but could be wrong. Can you post a picture of the current plates? Also, are the plates being removed from the top of the stove (with top removed)?

https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/forums/viewthread/44285/#483256

 

[webby3650]

I am yet to see an F-500 with two baffle plates, the ones I have serviced have only one vermiculite plate, to remove this plate intact, the top of the stove would need to come off. Don't be too worried about this, not really a big deal at all. Some people will tell you the baffle will come out through the front but I have never serviced a Oslo where this was true.If someone sells a two piece replacement I would go for that as well as an insulating blanket.

 

[summit]

when Jotul bought out Scan, they starte using the vermiculite,or "skamol", in alot of their products. Scans are loaded with the stuff. Prior to that, they used 2 interchangable cast iron plates with mineral wool insulation on top.
I liked the plates myself, because they could moved and facilitated an easier sweep in a metalbestos chimney. The Skamol is pretty well fixed in place, you gotta pull off pipe. . The drawback to the cast plates was warping (mostly due to the less informed users of the stove that use the ahpan door to get fire going :-S ). The Skamol will eventually pit and crumble, but it very durable stuff against impact, way better than the ceramic fibre baffle boards used by many others. I'd give it a lifespan of @ 10yrs.

 

[topoftheriver]

Does anyone know the procedure of changing the vermiculite baffle in a Jotul Oslo 500? I have check Jotul and other sites that offer little to no information on the installation. However, when looking at the Oslo 500 schematic, I was curious if it could be done by dropping done the gas tubes or do you have to remove the stove top. If the top needs to be removed, 3 screws hold the top on but there may be other parts, like the sides, that screw into the top.

 

[webby3650]

Pull the top off. It's very easy and it won't mess up any thing else. The top is gasketed on. If you take the center plate off first, it makes the other bolts easier to reach.

 

[topoftheriver]

Pull the top off. It's very easy and it won't mess up any thing else. The top is gasketed on. If you take the center plate off first, it makes the other bolts easier to reach.

Could you go into a bit more detail please. First, does the centerplate merely snap in with clips? The diagram indicated the bolts were inside the firebox pointing upward. So, where to you reach the screws or bolts holding the top? I have the manual and the PDF file schematic on my computer. The center plate appears to have two screws with clips from the inside going up also. That would mean the only access would be from the smoke outlet being romoved to reach in there. I am just not all that sure what direction to go in.

 

[webby3650]

It is easiest to reach the bolts if the pipe is off of the stove. But, I have removed them from the front before. It has two bolts with metal clips that grip the top when the bolts are tightened.
If I remember right, the top is held on with 2 bolts in the front and 1 in the back. They are 10mm.
On the last Oslo baffle replacement I did, the replacement one was iron and was 2 pieces. Both baffles have a ceramic wool blanket on top of the baffle.
The 2 piece replacement can go in without removing the top, but the old one still has to come out. It's just easier to remove the top.