EKO refractory pics.

[huffdawg]

fff

 

[huffdawg]

Is that normal refractory erosion, anyone know what that blue green stuff is on the ash. are the refractory bricks supposed to be flush against the back wall


Huff

 

[taxidermist]

I push mine to the back wall then stack firebrick on end on the door side right up against the U block. I am not sure on erosion as I only clean my upper chamber out 1 time a year. I let the ash build up and it forms a V to help with bridging. I have used it this way for 2 years and dont get much bridging at all.


Rob

 

[goosegunner]

I used some rutland refractory cement that is rated to 3000 degrees to patch the erosion I had. It is holding up surprisingly well.

I vacuumed the ash out of nozzle area and put in a piece of foam board the size of the nozzle opening. I then troweled around the foam with cement. It squared and flattened the opening very well.

The stuff I bought was premixed and about $11 at Menards.

gg

 

[Gasifier]

That is a good idea Goosegunner. How long have you been runnning it with the fix like that?

 

[woodsmaster]

I used some rutland refractory cement that is rated to 3000 degrees to patch the erosion I had. It is holding up surprisingly well.

I vacuumed the ash out of nozzle area and put in a piece of foam board the size of the nozzle opening. I then troweled around the foam with cement. It squared and flattened the opening very well.

The stuff I bought was premixed and about $11 at Menards.

gg

Sounds like a great idea gg. I'll be trying that soon.

 

[woodsmaster]

Huff, don't look like much wear on the nozzle yet. The corners wear off. I think you want the bottom slide all the way to the back so the heat is forced to the front before going to the back.

 

[timberr]

Huff,

I pull my lower block's forward, trying to center them front to back. I was thinking that if they are all the way back that the heat is funneled to the sides and most of the heat goes up the outside HX tubes. By pulling them forward the heat should go up all HX tubes with more heat transferred to the boiler jacket and less going up the chimney. As for you refractory, what are you burning? After 3 seasons my refractory is still grey, yours looks kind of rusty. Can't help you with the green stuff, never seen that before.

 

[Clarkbug]

Huff, you burning any pallets or treated/painted wood in there? Or anything to start your fires with thats colored?

 

[ihookem]

HuffDAWG it looks like a piece of copper wire or some other metal got in the wood.

 

[huffdawg]

I have only been burning bigleaf maple and the odd bit of douglas fir . Sure would like to know whats leaving that greenish colour must be something to do with the maple.

 

[goosegunner]

I have only been burning bigleaf maple and the odd bit of douglas fir . Sure would like to know whats leaving that greenish colour must be something to do with the maple.

Could it be something in the dirt up there that the trees absorb?

My brother burns a lot of american elm. He gets clinkers in the ash that look like melted rocks, kind of like lava rocks.

gg

 

[goosegunner]

That is a good idea Goosegunner. How long have you been runnning it with the fix like that?

About two months so far and it is holding well. I will just touch up as needed.

I would like to have a metal nozzle insert like the froling.

gg

 

[henfruit]

The Vigas has come out with a cast iron nozel as an option.

 

[rkusek]

Thanks for the tip gg. After 4 yrs, mine still looks ok but I can see where it will need attention someday. I think the shop vac is the way to go. I took mine out at the end of year I usually take out the U blocks and behind. Last year I noticed I put a hairline crack in it doing this. I might just use the vac to get around it this time.

 

[ewdudley]

The Vigas has come out with a cast iron nozzle as an option.

Or build a little foundry out behind the shop and make your own; this would be a nice little project for maintaining the DIY iron-age tradition. Then a nice set of monogrammed throwing horseshoes, whatever.

 

[Fred61]

Haven't been around for a while but just popped in and saw this thread. My nozzle looks worse than that after 4 years of burning 3.5 cord, more or less per year. Called Zenon and told him that I would like a new nozzle to have on standby just in case I needed it. His response was "you don't need new nozzle, call me in five year." So it looks like I can't get a nozzle because I haven't waited the alotted time.

In order to protect the nozzle I cut my own in a firebrick and installed it. It sits nicely over the regular nozzle and is held in place by the packed ash in the bottom of the burn chamber. I always leave about two inches of ash in the chamber anyway. After four years, the chamber looks new. Being curious after burning two days with the new nozzle protector which worked fine, by the way, I decided to replace it with a brick that I cut with only a 3/4 inch wide slot as opposed tho the 1 3/8 inch slot on the first brick. I liked the flame much better as it was a nice blue torch instead of a larger lazy flame that entirely filled the chamber. My flue temp dropped significantly and it added about a half hour to my "tank charging" session.

I may have stumbled on to something though and this maybe should be left for another thread. I am one of the few that has never had a door gasket leaking problem. Now I have one. Could it be that those with leaking doors had an unbalanced supply to draft ratio. I am obviously now pressurizing the chamber. I'm usually pretty analytical about troubleshooting problems such as these but in this case, since my boiler is in my basement, I needed to stop the smell so I performed two fixes at once. I reduced the amount of supply air and removed the door gasket, soaked it in detergent and re-installed it 90 degrees to what it was originally. So now I don't know which was the fix.

 

[goosegunner]

Ok guys update,

I was wrong about the brand.

Refractory Cement
Meeco's Red Devil

It is premixed in a plastic 1/2 gallon container.

For setting and repairing fire brick withstands up to 3000 degrees.

Mike

 

[goosegunner]

Haven't been around for a while but just popped in and saw this thread. My nozzle looks worse than that after 4 years of burning 3.5 cord, more or less per year. Called Zenon and told him that I would like a new nozzle to have on standby just in case I needed it. His response was "you don't need new nozzle, call me in five year." So it looks like I can't get a nozzle because I haven't waited the alotted time.

In order to protect the nozzle I cut my own in a firebrick and installed it. It sits nicely over the regular nozzle and is held in place by the packed ash in the bottom of the burn chamber. I always leave about two inches of ash in the chamber anyway. After four years, the chamber looks new. Being curious after burning two days with the new nozzle protector which worked fine, by the way, I decided to replace it with a brick that I cut with only a 3/4 inch wide slot as opposed tho the 1 3/8 inch slot on the first brick. I liked the flame much better as it was a nice blue torch instead of a larger lazy flame that entirely filled the chamber. My flue temp dropped significantly and it added about a half hour to my "tank charging" session.

I may have stumbled on to something though and this maybe should be left for another thread. I am one of the few that has never had a door gasket leaking problem. Now I have one. Could it be that those with leaking doors had an unbalanced supply to draft ratio. I am obviously now pressurizing the chamber. I'm usually pretty analytical about troubleshooting problems such as these but in this case, since my boiler is in my basement, I needed to stop the smell so I performed two fixes at once. I reduced the amount of supply air and removed the door gasket, soaked it in detergent and re-installed it 90 degrees to what it was originally. So now I don't know which was the fix.

Fred that looks like a great idea. What is the brand size of the brick?

I have considered trying that with some type of metal but have no idea what type would work, any ideas?

gg

gg

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I have put baking soda in my kiln to "salt" pots- the sodium attacks the pot forming a sodium silicate glass finish that's pretty neat.

I digress- whenever I've put salt or baking soda in there I have got beautiful gobs of blue green stuff that looks almost like that clinker (but a bit more pure of color).

If it's not copper causing the clinker color, then I'd guess there's high salt-content in some wood that you used.

 

[Fred61]

Haven't been around for a while but just popped in and saw this thread. My nozzle looks worse than that after 4 years of burning 3.5 cord, more or less per year. Called Zenon and told him that I would like a new nozzle to have on standby just in case I needed it. His response was "you don't need new nozzle, call me in five year." So it looks like I can't get a nozzle because I haven't waited the alotted time.

In order to protect the nozzle I cut my own in a firebrick and installed it. It sits nicely over the regular nozzle and is held in place by the packed ash in the bottom of the burn chamber. I always leave about two inches of ash in the chamber anyway. After four years, the chamber looks new. Being curious after burning two days with the new nozzle protector which worked fine, by the way, I decided to replace it with a brick that I cut with only a 3/4 inch wide slot as opposed tho the 1 3/8 inch slot on the first brick. I liked the flame much better as it was a nice blue torch instead of a larger lazy flame that entirely filled the chamber. My flue temp dropped significantly and it added about a half hour to my "tank charging" session.

I may have stumbled on to something though and this maybe should be left for another thread. I am one of the few that has never had a door gasket leaking problem. Now I have one. Could it be that those with leaking doors had an unbalanced supply to draft ratio. I am obviously now pressurizing the chamber. I'm usually pretty analytical about troubleshooting problems such as these but in this case, since my boiler is in my basement, I needed to stop the smell so I performed two fixes at once. I reduced the amount of supply air and removed the door gasket, soaked it in detergent and re-installed it 90 degrees to what it was originally. So now I don't know which was the fix.

Fred that looks like a great idea. What is the brand size of the brick?

I have considered trying that with some type of metal but have no idea what type would work, any ideas?

gg

gg

Don't know! It's one of a half dozen bricks that I grabbed out of my brither-in-law's truck. He builds fireplaces. so I imagine they would be the standard firebrick sold at brickyards for fireplaces. They have a pretty smooth surface.

I would think that 409 stainless would be your best bet for metal.

 

[huffdawg]

I have put baking soda in my kiln to "salt" pots- the sodium attacks the pot forming a sodium silicate glass finish that's pretty neat.

I digress- whenever I've put salt or baking soda in there I have got beautiful gobs of blue green stuff that looks almost like that clinker (but a bit more pure of color).

If it's not copper causing the clinker color, then I'd guess there's high salt-content in some wood that you used.

All the maple was grown less than a mile from the ocean .

 

[Adios Pantalones]

I have put baking soda in my kiln to "salt" pots- the sodium attacks the pot forming a sodium silicate glass finish that's pretty neat.

I digress- whenever I've put salt or baking soda in there I have got beautiful gobs of blue green stuff that looks almost like that clinker (but a bit more pure of color).

If it's not copper causing the clinker color, then I'd guess there's high salt-content in some wood that you used.

All the maple was grown less than a mile from the ocean .

Pretty interesting stuff then!