clean out t is completely fused on Santa Fe

[Courtney]

Help! I've been cleaning out my chimneys for a while now and after the real severe cold we had thought it would be good to do a clean - one of the stoves was making a high whining sound with the exhaust blower - thought the chimney might need a going over - but the clean out cap is completely stuck.

These stoves get a thorough cleaning daily, vac weekly. Just cleaned the dust in the bins. - they heat my home. both are only a couple years old. In early dec I did a chimney clean with no problem, and they were really ash free to begin with. Now I cannot service them. Tried a pipe strap, no luck. Any advice?

 

[Countryboymo]

Try a oil filter wrench.

 

[Jp16]

My Santa Fe will whistle at me too when the burn pot needs a cleaning. When the clinkers build up too much the air whistles through them. Sometimes it will moan like my kids at bed time...

 

[smalltown]

I use a rubber strap wrench. remember it doesn't turn all the much to unlock it. Once unlocked mine is always pain to drop the cleanout cover down. My best luck at this point is to use the kind of "rubber" material that is used for shelf or tool box lining. I cut out a big square to cover the bottom of the cleanout "T", and push down sometimes rocking a tiny bit. At some point when you have removed it several times I would paint a stripe with something like nail polish across the seam so in the when you reinstall it you can line up the marks, and slide the cover back on then turn to lock with the rubber strap wrench.

 

[Courtney]

I use a rubber strap wrench. remember it doesn't turn all the much to unlock it. Once unlocked mine is always pain to drop the cleanout cover down. My best luck at this point is to use the kind of "rubber" material that is used for shelf or tool box lining. I cut out a big square to cover the bottom of the cleanout "T", and push down sometimes rocking a tiny bit. At some point when you have removed it several times I would paint a stripe with something like nail polish across the seam so in the when you reinstall it you can line up the marks, and slide the cover back on then turn to lock with the rubber strap wrench.

Thanks! great ideas - I really had a problem with this. Eventually I had to drill it out, remove the T, take all the piping apart and reassemble. Crazy that it really wasn't very dirty at all after all that, only a cup or so of ash! However after all the muscle the seals on the t at the stove outlet were loose anyway, so it became a big project.

I found that Rutland Furnace cement ( good to 2000deg) make a good seal on the T, although a challenge to work with in the caulk gun. I really hope I don't have to do this again - what a pain!