Ever had to replace Oslo ashpan & door unit?

[buffygirl]

Any of you Oslo owners ever had to replace the ashpan and door unit? My local technician and the factory rep for our area want to replace the ashpan and door on our unit because of an ill-fitting ashpan door? This has me concerned. What are the chances this will seal properly? This has been an ongoing problem since we started up the new Oslo in October - local tech found the problem was ashpan door didn't fit properly - he called the factory rep who came in early Dec. and looked at it and said they would replace it - now 3 months later they are telling me they will replace the whole thing-- What should I look for ? Will this one fit any better? I'm not sure I want it replaced. I haven't opened the ashpan door since they were here in December for fear I wouldn't get it closed properly. Maybe I should leave well enough alone. What have been your experiences? What would you do - paint the thing yellow?

Buffygirl
Jotul Oslo new this Fall-09

 

[firefighterjake]

No problems at all with my Jotul . . . and I remember your problems with the ash pan door Buffygirl.

My own take . . . let them replace the ashpan and door . . . Jotuls are good . . . but even the most venerable companies can end up with a mistake or two once in a while (just ask Toyota!) . . . perhaps the day your Jotul was assembled someone was having a bad day, they were rushed, they were thinking about the weekend, etc. and things didn't quite line up or the cast wasn't inspected as closely.

My feeling . . . the ash pan is a nice feature on the Oslo . . . and it's a feature you will like . . . so get the dealer/company to go good on their warranty which they are willing to do . . . which speaks volumes about the company . . . if it is replaced and works you'll be happy with a fully functioning ash pan . . . and if for some reason it doesn't work you can seek more help and either replace the whole stove at best or at worse have to Mickey Mouse a fix like you have in place now so you're not out anything.

 

[grommal]

It sounds like they want to replace the whole bottom of the stove, where the ash pan lives. Perhaps the problem you've been having with the door fit is an issue with the hinge mount on the stove, rather than the door itself. If that's the case, then replacing the bottom should take care of it.

I wouldn't have any concerns about having it done, as long as the folks who will be doing it seem to know their way around the product.

Hope this takes care of the situation once and for all.

 

[Hanko]

A wood stove technician? what will they think of next? Wonder if thats a 2 or 4 year degree. First Ive ever herd of a problem like that with a Jotul

 

[logger]

The first time I cleaned our Oslo ashpan I only sweeped the front of the opening the pan goes in. When I replaced the ashpan, the ashpan door would not close. I took the pan out again and realized there were still some ashes back behind the pan that wouldn't allow it to go all the way back. I doubt your problem is this easy to fix, but I really dont know who looked at yours and if they checked behind the ashpan. Perhaps it just needs some more sweeping so the pan fits in further back and will allow the door to shut. This happened one other time and it was only one small unburned black coal that wouldn't allow the door to shut. I really hope a technician wouldn't miss something this basic, but who knows. Good luck with whatever happens.

 

[buffygirl]

The first time I cleaned our Oslo ashpan I only sweeped the front of the opening the pan goes in. When I replaced the ashpan, the ashpan door would not close. I took the pan out again and realized there were still some ashes back behind the pan that wouldn't allow it to go all the way back. I doubt your problem is this easy to fix, but I really dont know who looked at yours and if they checked behind the ashpan. Perhaps it just needs some more sweeping so the pan fits in further back and will allow the door to shut. This happened one other time and it was only one small unburned black coal that wouldn't allow the door to shut. I really hope a technician wouldn't miss something this basic, but who knows. Good luck with whatever happens.

I wish it were this simple - but unfortunately, the tech discovered even though the door was latching and locking, it was not sealing - the dollar bill almost fell out. To get the door to seal properly, you had to lift it up at the handle then turn the handle and click it shut. He took the handle latch off and turned something over on the backside so it would latch better but was not pleased with having to do this - that's when they called in the factory rep - who seemed familiar with the problem. Hmmm wonder how many others have had this? Anyway, I hope this solves our problem.

Buffygirl
Oslo

 

[Nonprophet]

I know that with our new/used Oslo that to get the ash pan door to close properly we have to lift it slightly at the handle and shut and latch it--but I think that's because there's some play in the door hinge (the door is pretty heavy after all), not because the castings are off. Once shut and latched properly our ash pan door passes the dollar bill test all the way around the gasket with no problem. I noticed that there's an alan screw on the hinge pin assembly, it looks to me like you tighten and loosen this to adjust for any slop in the hinges.....but that's just my guess as I don't have a service manual for the Oslo.

Speaking of, does anyone here have a PDF of the Oslo service manual that they could send me?

I'd say if they've tried adjusting the hinge and they've tried putting a new gasket in the ash pan door and you're still having problems, then maybe having them replace it is the way to go--but if the only problem is having to lift the door slightly to latch it properly, then I would probably just leave well enough alone. Our VC Defiant/Encore had the same issue, and other cast stoves we've used in rentals or cabins that had ashpan doors also had this "feature" (lol) so I don't really think it's that big of a deal, providing that you can get it shut where it won't allow air in. The risk of having them "fix" it is that by replacing the entire ash pan assembly/bottom that means partially disassembling the stove and then having to re-seal the metal to metal joints properly again. If they botched that (and properly using stove mortar DOES seem to be an issue sometimes with several manufacturers) then you've got a fixed ash pan door but now have a leaky stove at the metal to metal joints..........

Just my .02......


NP

 

[grommal]

The first time I cleaned our Oslo ashpan I only sweeped the front of the opening the pan goes in. When I replaced the ashpan, the ashpan door would not close. I took the pan out again and realized there were still some ashes back behind the pan that wouldn't allow it to go all the way back. I doubt your problem is this easy to fix, but I really dont know who looked at yours and if they checked behind the ashpan. Perhaps it just needs some more sweeping so the pan fits in further back and will allow the door to shut. This happened one other time and it was only one small unburned black coal that wouldn't allow the door to shut. I really hope a technician wouldn't miss something this basic, but who knows. Good luck with whatever happens.

And this is easy to test. If the ash pan door fits any differently with the ash pan removed, then the pan is interfering with the door closure.

 

[WOODBUTCHER]

The first time I cleaned our Oslo ashpan I only sweeped the front of the opening the pan goes in. When I replaced the ashpan, the ashpan door would not close. I took the pan out again and realized there were still some ashes back behind the pan that wouldn't allow it to go all the way back. I doubt your problem is this easy to fix, but I really dont know who looked at yours and if they checked behind the ashpan. Perhaps it just needs some more sweeping so the pan fits in further back and will allow the door to shut. This happened one other time and it was only one small unburned black coal that wouldn't allow the door to shut. I really hope a technician wouldn't miss something this basic, but who knows. Good luck with whatever happens.

And this is easy to test. If the ash pan door fits any differently with the ash pan removed, then the pan is interfering with the door closure.

I take my fire poker and scrape the buildup in the back (a problem spot if you don't take care of it when cleaning) especially with the design on my ashpan.
My FIL's ashpan on his 2008 Oslo is designed slightly different than mine (see picture) because of this little problem.

BTW, Both of our Oslo's ashpan doors has a good amount of play in it up/down.
My BILS' Firelight ashpan door has play in it also.



WoodButcher

 

[johnnywarm]

I didnt not fire up my new olso this winter. The chimney was too expensive for me in 09. Should i not use the ash pan if the stove runs fine from the start??? I dont use the ash pan on my F400 and like it that way.

John

 

[johnnywarm]

with the problem. Hmmm wonder how many others have had this? Anyway, I hope this solves our problem.

Buffygirl
Oslo

Any news Buffygirl??