I bought the stove from a friend and after bringing it inside my house I noticed that the bottom plate has a crack from the front left leg all the way back.you have to look closely to notice it.can anyone tell me if its safe to burn.my friend being a chimney guy did patch it with some special cement or something.this is obviously all new to me.does anybody knows where I might be able to get parts for it,specially the plate in question.thank you all
1977 vigilant parlor wood stove
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Such cracks, in my experience, almost never cause failure of the stove. Replacement of the bottom plate will be very expensive - my guess, if you could find the part, is about $300 for that alone! Add in the labor and time and it may not look good......
Here is what I would do. The cement really doesn't hold anything together - it just fills the crack so stuff could not fall though it. BUT, chances are your crack would never get that large anyway!
So, a two part suggestion....
1. Place at least two mending plates - these could be anything made from steel 1/16th thick or thicker - on the bottom of the stove - somewhere toward each end of the crack. Install these by drilling and tapping (or through bolting) into the stove bottom. Cast iron is easy to drill and tap...but if you are not familiar with doing this, just drill all the way through. You may have to grind a bit on the inside around where the hole is to get the bolt to fit flat down (bottom inside has ridges, etc.).... bolt each plate on with 3/16" or heavier bolts or screws....
the holes should be at least 1" back from the crack - IMHO.
2. Instead of ash or sand, place a small layer of refractory cement in the bottom of the stove...then let the ash build up on that. Or, you can just clean out the area around the length of the crack on the inside and use furnace or refractory cement there. Chances are it will just crack off anyway, so # is really what you are using to do the mechanical job...
If you need a diagram I can sketch one up
Here is what I would do. The cement really doesn't hold anything together - it just fills the crack so stuff could not fall though it. BUT, chances are your crack would never get that large anyway!
So, a two part suggestion....
1. Place at least two mending plates - these could be anything made from steel 1/16th thick or thicker - on the bottom of the stove - somewhere toward each end of the crack. Install these by drilling and tapping (or through bolting) into the stove bottom. Cast iron is easy to drill and tap...but if you are not familiar with doing this, just drill all the way through. You may have to grind a bit on the inside around where the hole is to get the bolt to fit flat down (bottom inside has ridges, etc.).... bolt each plate on with 3/16" or heavier bolts or screws....
the holes should be at least 1" back from the crack - IMHO.
2. Instead of ash or sand, place a small layer of refractory cement in the bottom of the stove...then let the ash build up on that. Or, you can just clean out the area around the length of the crack on the inside and use furnace or refractory cement there. Chances are it will just crack off anyway, so # is really what you are using to do the mechanical job...
If you need a diagram I can sketch one up
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