Combustor fails again in my King parlor.

[ohlongarm]

In 2019 I, replaced my combustor under warranty through the stove shop where the stove was purchased.
There was a proration fee at that time, the combustor was shipped from Blaze King to the stove shop.
Now this combustor has failed, I thought the combustor was guaranteed 10 years, maybe I'm wrong, I burn 24/7.
The stove shop yesterday informed me that the failed replacement combustor only has a one year warranty, so no replacement per Blaze King, I'm going to call BK today and get the fine print details. Here's the combustor, you'd think they would last longer than they do.
No cracks, nothing plugged up, no ash, can see through both sides, what's up with this? Stove shop people are top notch, as are BK people but somewhere I'm misunderstanding the warranty on the combustor. Just have to plan on replacing it every few years

 

[gthomas785]

They are supposed to last 10-12,000 hours. 24/7 burning for 6 months a year works out to about 2.5 years.

 

[kennyp2339]

I'm a 2 year guy myself, perhaps your burning it to hot? and when I say that I mean to many times at the sweet spot of no flames but letting the combustor do all the work?
I'm curious of my outputs myself, I think after the burning season I'm going to replace the cat probe with one that gives temp readings, I just want to see what my temps are right behind the combustor to get a better idea of what I'm doing.

 

[stoveliker]

You get a 10 year warranty from BK when you buy the stove. After that it's the warranty of the shop (likely dictated by the cat mfg).

And as said above, a cat lasts 10-12k hrs, so you are right where one expects you to be

 

[ohlongarm]

I'm a 2 year guy myself, perhaps your burning it to hot? and when I say that I mean to many times at the sweet spot of no flames but letting the combustor do all the work?
I'm curious of my outputs myself, I think after the burning season I'm going to replace the cat probe with one that gives temp readings, I just want to see what my temps are right behind the combustor to get a better idea of what I'm doing.

My stovetop generally is in the 600's, my cat probe with the temps marked is at 1100 degrees , sometimes 1200 to 1400 on occasion.

 

[logfarmer]

I’m curious how long mine will last, bought a new cat 5th of December. My WS stove had a cat that lasted 7 yrs burning 24/7 6+ months.

 

[jalmondale]

My stovetop generally is in the 600's, my cat probe with the temps marked is at 1100 degrees , sometimes 1200 to 1400 on occasion.

Wow! I'm not an expert, but I thought 1400 was the absolute upper limit for the cat - I usually try to keep the probe between 500 and 800.

 

[ohlongarm]

Wow! I'm not an expert, but I thought 1400 was the absolute upper limit for the cat - I usually try to keep the probe between 500 and 800.

On my second BK King that's what it runs at, actual stovetop has rarely exceeded 700 degrees, cat probe one with numbers shows the aforementioned temps, actual double wall stovepipe a foot from the stovetop never exceeds 300 degrees.

 

[Dmitry]

In 2019 I, replaced my combustor under warranty through the stove shop where the stove was purchased.
There was a proration fee at that time, the combustor was shipped from Blaze King to the stove shop.
Now this combustor has failed, I thought the combustor was guaranteed 10 years, maybe I'm wrong, I burn 24/7.
The stove shop yesterday informed me that the failed replacement combustor only has a one year warranty, so no replacement per Blaze King, I'm going to call BK today and get the fine print details. Here's the combustor, you'd think they would last longer than they do.
No cracks, nothing plugged up, no ash, can see through both sides, what's up with this? Stove shop people are top notch, as are BK people but somewhere I'm misunderstanding the warranty on the combustor. Just have to plan on replacing it every few years

View attachment 291963

What do you mean saying "failed". Looks like a perfect combustor that needs some cleaning.

 

[Tar12]

My stovetop generally is in the 600's, my cat probe with the temps marked is at 1100 degrees , sometimes 1200 to 1400 on occasion.

Your numbers are right on par with what I see with my Princess...I run 24/7 as well for approx. 6 months..and as has been said the first one is on BK and then its your dime.

 

[spudman99]

A combustor failure is not determined by visual inspection. Yes there can be cracking or delamination of the substrate -- that would be due to extreme circumstances such as direct flame contact or rapid cooling from not opening the bypass and opening the door. Some of that is user error and will cause premature failure.

Failure of the combustor is typically determined by degrading performance. An older combustor will take longer to light off. You simply look at the combustor thru the glass when the cat probe is at the active line and you have just closed the bypass -- see how long it takes to glow. New ones glow immediately, older ones take a bit. Also you check the smoke trails from the chimney during the middle of the burn. A newer combustor will eat all the smoke and give a clean burn. An older one with less performance will let some smoke thru and that can be seen in the exhaust.

That combustor looks pretty good. Put it back in and see how it performs based on the above. Good luck, you have the GMC Yukon of stoves right there...hehe

 

[bholler]

I agree with pretty much everyone else. Sounds fairly normal. The warranty period means absolutely nothing other than you will get your first replacement free

 

[Highbeam]

If you use your BK for primary heat you can expect to go through cats. I have a long burn season and only get about two years before obvious cat failure.

 

[begreen]

Like a computer printer, the real cost is in the consumables.

 

[stoveliker]

Like a computer printer, the real cost is in the consumables.

We'll, for $200 vs $4000, there's a lot of cats needed to beat the cost of the stove...

 

[begreen]

Fine, I should have said, operational costs.

 

[ohlongarm]

If you use your BK for primary heat you can expect to go through cats. I have a long burn season and only get about two years before obvious cat failure.

Mine looks as new , except for discoloration, replaced in 2019, if I have to replace it within that time frame no big deal. I'm totally convinced 2 years is about it, burning good wood , really good 2/1/2 max. Burning 24/7 as we do. I burn quite a bit for fire ambiance, add flame impingement on the cat shield and it shortens the lifespan, I think.

 

[Tar12]

Mine looks as new , except for discoloration, replaced in 2019, if I have to replace it within that time frame no big deal. I'm totally convinced 2 years is about it, burning good wood , really good 2/1/2 max. Burning 24/7 as we do. I burn quite a bit for fire ambiance, add flame impingement on the cat shield and it shortens the lifespan, I think.

During the heart of winter I run my stove on the warm side..2:30- 3 oclock position...mostly 3..slight flames..never have dirty black glass...I use to worry to death about how I treat the cat..I now run the stove how ever I see fit and do not sweat it...I know every 2-3 years its getting replaced and to me it is a small price to pay for the return I get out of this sove..

 

[Highbeam]

Mine looks as new , except for discoloration, replaced in 2019, if I have to replace it within that time frame no big deal. I'm totally convinced 2 years is about it, burning good wood , really good 2/1/2 max. Burning 24/7 as we do. I burn quite a bit for fire ambiance, add flame impingement on the cat shield and it shortens the lifespan, I think.

My dead cats look perfectly good. They don’t have to physically degrade to die.