BK Ashford stove issues

[Weather_Guy]

A new member here with some questions regarding my Blaze King stove. I purchased a house a little over a year ago that has a Blaze King Ashford 30.1. The previous owner purchased the Ashford in September 2019. I am only familiar with non-catalytic stoves and for the past 12 years, in previous houses, I have used an Avalon Olympic and a Hearthstone Homestead soapstone stove. This is my first experience with a catalytic stove.

While I have read the manual there are still issues I’ve encountered and have questions about. They include:

1. The 3 nearest local dealers won’t service the stove since it was not purchased from them (the store the stove was purchased from no longer sells or services Blaze King stoves). So, it looks like I’ll have to learn how to maintain the stove myself despite the bold letters in the manual stating “Blaze King recommends your dealer perform this task” for a number of the maintenance tasks. However, the local dealers are willing to order parts. What is the best way to get parts? Through a dealer or internet?
2. Following the instructions in the manual regarding catalytic combustor cleaning, while inspecting the combustor I noticed the honeycomb mesh pulling away from its frame (see attached picture). During burns the catalytic thermometer does go into the active zone and the combustor occasionally glows orange. Nonetheless, I suspect the gap impacts the efficiency of the stove and the combustor should be replaced? Could this be the reason for the charcoal sized embers I see at the end of a burn instead of seeing just ashes?
3. The manual says to inspect the combustor thermometer at least once a year by lifting it out. My thermometer does not lift out easily since the end of the probe is slightly expanded. I suspect the thermometer needs to be replaced?
   

I am trying to learn as much as I can to operate the stove properly and efficiently. Any insights or information anyone can provide would be appreciated. My apologies for such a long post.

 

[Tron]

Since you don't know how many hours the combustor has already seen and by the looks of it, I'd replace it. It's easy to do.
Regarding the cat thermometer, yes, they do tend to corrode a bit on the tip and swell, making them hard to remove. Try twisting it a bit. If you get it out, use some sandpaper to smooth out the lower part.
If you really can't pull it out, I suppose the only way is to cut it off above the stove and pull the rest of it down when you replace the cat.
Condar makes a good and rather cheap replacement. Just be sure to get the right lenght.
I don't know if your Ashford is the same as my Chinook, but my thermometer is 4" long and cost me $35 two years ago:
3-12-1 Catalytic Combustor Probe Thermometer 4 inch probe and 2 inch dial (3-12-1)

 

[stoveliker]

I agree with the above.

Parts should be gotten through a dealer; BK does not sell online.
Replace the cat.

Charcoal at the end may be due to wood that's not dry enough - but sometimes an "orphan" piece breaks off of a split, falls and stops glowing when the thermostat closes the air a bit, and given it not being connected anymore to bigger glowing pieces it may not re-light. That happens.
But if you have a lot, that tends to happen with wood that's wetter than ideal.

Is there a flame shield? (I have one in my, (I believe) 2018 Chinook)

Other than that, follow the manual regarding the bypass operation (when and how (cam it over)).

Buy (interam) gasket material so you can take the cat out and put it back. Gasket is needed.

 

[Murray01]

Surprised your local retailer won’t service the stove, it’s money in their pocket. Order gaskets from a BK dealer, lots of online seller that sell gaskets that aren’t up to BK specifications. As far as catalytic combustors, I order mine from a BK dealer but some forum members buy them online and have good results.

As far as maintaining the stove consult your owners manual and ask here if in doubt.

 

[tabner]

It's worth taking the time to get comfortable with the maintenance and features of these stoves, they're great, and I suspect in time you'll be very pleased with it.
I just replaced my original steel Catalyst last week, it looked similar to yours, some shrinking and distortion. I am not sure if this is kosher, but I ordered the ceramic replacement through amazon, but it was order fulfilled/distributed by Midwest Hearth, which i think is a quality provider. It was $240 for the ceramic and $290 for the steel i think. I have been running the Ceramic for a week or two and i am very happy with it. It definitely breaths easier (not that I have that issue, just commenting I notice a draft difference). I'm having to use my damper a bit more often to actually reduce draft, but that's better than the plugging issues with my old metal cat. To me, for the $240, I'm very happy I replaced it, I can notice a visible difference in my chimney smoke, and I sleep better at night knowing I'm getting full efficiency from the stove, and minimizing creosote deposits as much as possible.
I haven't found any maintenance on this stove yet that I would need a distributor to do. And that includes a replacement of the thermostat assembly (which is not recommended to do by a civilian), however with help from this forum I did it easily and have had no issues. (you should normally never need to touch the internal thermostat, but my stove had some damage to it so I did, unusual situation).
Not sure where you are located in CT, but I have called Preston trading post and they have ordered BK parts for me (a leg, a bypass handle, a thermostat, and a Cat probe). I have found that BK direct is by far the most knowledgeable (obviously I guess). If you ever get into real technical questions, I would call them for clarification first, and then call your local retailer to order specific part numbers based off BK's expertise.

 

[Tron]

Charcoal at the end may be due to wood that's not dry enough - but sometimes an "orphan" piece breaks off of a split, falls and stops glowing when the thermostat closes the air a bit, and given it not being connected anymore to bigger glowing pieces it may not re-light. That happens.

I have that, too (burning bone dry wood), especially when turned down low. It's exactly as you say: the almost-burned wood breaks down into coals, and some pieces just don't get enough oxygen (maybe they fall into a layer of ash) and quit burning.
You can mitigate that a bit by stirring the coals to get those pieces back into contact with heat and oxygen, but it's not like the whole stove is full of unburnt charcoal.
When I need the heat and the stove gets turned wide open at the end of the burn to reduce the coals, it's usually not an issue.