For Jotul F500 owners, Oslo side burn plate crack

[My Oslo heats my home]

After a recent inspection of my Oslo, with the front door open and looking to the right, the right side burn plate has a crack. The crack direction is back to front and fairly horizontal. I rarely use the front door at all, generally side load only. I tightly place my splits in order to make the load as full as possible. At cruising 'speed' my Oslo will have stove top temps around 550-600

So I'm curious how many other Oslo owners have had any burn plate cracks etc... Also, has anyone had to replace their bricks, and how long did they last before replacing?

 

[firefighterjake]

Hmmm . . . nothing unusual there . . . I don't recall hearing of any folks with cracked burn plates in the Oslo . . . maybe some of the other, older models. I believe these are replaceable "wear" items though . . . but 3-4 years . . . seems a bit pre-mature for the age of your stove.

 

[summit]

pic plz for more definite confirmation and analysis.

 

[Wood Heat Stoves]

A crack in the burn plate is unusual but it's replaceable. Doesn't sound like you were doing anything unusual to cause it.

 

[xman23]

Is this the 2 piece cast iron plates or the newer material version. We have heard of people cracking the older cast iron ones. I have cast iron, and have had them real hot. So far they look good. Someone will know what the new material is. I thought it could be brittle and damaged stuffing the box. I bang mine with logs. Any chance that's what happened to yours?

 

[grommal]

Just checked. Mine is not cracked. If you're packing the stove very tight side-to-side, with long splits that fit tight enough that you can barely close the side door, then perhaps you stressed the plate when the splits expanded as they were warming up?

Not sure that a crack in these interior side plates is a big deal anyway, as long as it's not opening a big gap.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

pic plz for more definite confirmation and analysis.

Here is the side burn plate. Now that it's on film it looks much worse than I originally thought

 

[begreen]

It does look like a bad crack. Are you speaking to the dealer about this, replacing or just thinking about repairing?

 

[summit]

its just the inner burn plate. it's a seperate, non air sealed entity. think of it like a firebrick. you could go for 10 yrs and this wouldn't bother a thing. It's held on by 1 bolt to the outer casting,, and is easillt removed for replacement.
To prevent this from happening in the furture, pull it off every couple yrs, and dust out the hard ash that somehow gets between it and the outer casting.

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

It does look like a bad crack. Are you speaking to the dealer about this, replacing or just thinking about repairing?

I would definitely do a replace on something like that. I'm more concerned on the cause of it in the first place. I know for a fact it was not for reasons of it being struck by splits being loaded. It has to be heat related in some way. any other suggestions?

 

[My Oslo heats my home]

its just the inner burn plate. it's a seperate, non air sealed entity. think of it like a firebrick. you could go for 10 yrs and this wouldn't bother a thing. It's held on by 1 bolt to the outer casting,, and is easillt removed for replacement.
To prevent this from happening in the furture, pull it off every couple yrs, and dust out the hard ash that somehow gets between it and the outer casting.

I understand the idea of what protection it will contine to provide, my concern is cause. In my mind knowing it has a crack I will continue to check on it during the upcoming season and if it continued to get worse I would get upset at myself for not replacing it when I had the time in the off-season.

 

[begreen]

It does look like a bad crack. Are you speaking to the dealer about this, replacing or just thinking about repairing?

I would definitely do a replace on something like that. I'm more concerned on the cause of it in the first place. I know for a fact it was not for reasons of it being struck by splits being loaded. It has to be heat related in some way. any other suggestions?

Summit had a suggestion that's worth thinking about, but it could also be a defect. That's why I asked if you are speaking to the dealer about it. 4 seasons seems a bit premature for a burn plate cracking. If you are repairing yourself, clean it off and find the end of the crack, then drill a small hole at the end of it to prevent it from spreading further. When the plate starts warping below the crack it will need to be replaced.

 

[santopfr52]

A crack in the burn plate is unusual but it's replaceable. Doesn't sound like you were doing anything unusual to cause it.

I have a Oslo that is 5 years old and it started a crack and now is a 1 inch round hole that is buckling out at the bottom, I think mine was caused by my son slamming logs in from right door which cracked the stone. the replacement side burn plate is $139.00 and behind that is insulation that as long as good does not need to be replaced.