Just finishing installing a new secondary combustion package. I noticed on the right core side a hair line crack 4 inches long about 1 inch under the cap screw .can i finish the season ?or go on with a rebuild resolute aclaim 1988
hairline crack on core side resolute
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willty said:
It sounds like you have an original Acclaim? Has cast iron lower arched fireback with three piece inserts? If so, the sides of the stove, your "right core side", is actually the exterior panel for the firebox and a crack exposes the firebox to exterior air. That model used an insulation bat between the sides and the outer side panels, which just bolt to the outside and are not part of the firebox. You may be able to continue through the rest of the season. keep an eye on the crack. if it gets worse, or your burn times shorten significantly, or your temps are hard to control, you should repair it before more damage occurs to other parts of the stove.
The newer design replaced the rear lower fireback with refractory firebricks and added two side refractory bricks. This has helped protect the exterior castings better. The Acclaim gets very hot inside. A very effective design for combustion but the exposed cast iron and soft refractories can't take the constant heat. The new firebrick design has been more effective and less of a problem than the original. I'd upgrade to the new version.
As Sean mentions, all newer acclaims have replaced the cast with refractory because most of them ended up cracking and burning out.
That said, if you keep an eye on it, a hairline may be able to go a couple months until spring. The rebuild is a time consuming and expensive process...that is, if you can still get the entire kit. I hope they didn't pump the price up too high on those parts (see new thread on VC parts).
You can clean and dampen the area around the crack and put some black furnace cement there - although I doubt such a hairline is letting much air in.
That said, if you keep an eye on it, a hairline may be able to go a couple months until spring. The rebuild is a time consuming and expensive process...that is, if you can still get the entire kit. I hope they didn't pump the price up too high on those parts (see new thread on VC parts).
You can clean and dampen the area around the crack and put some black furnace cement there - although I doubt such a hairline is letting much air in.
thanks .called v.c. they have the rebuild.not to many dealers care to hear about a rebuild .just buy a new one.being i already bought the secondary refactory,i am going to rebuild ..great site by the way!!
willty said:
We have rebuilt many of these units over the years. The design for combustion is exceptional. I burned that stove in my oven home for several years. We updated it using the rebuild update kit, which effectively turns it into the current model. It is still going in that house. The new tenants rely on it as their primary heat. I think many dealers don't want to do the rebuild because they don't have a competent stove rebuilder on staff. If you do it yourself you will save a lot of money over buying a new one and the result will just the same (if you do it right). Good luck.
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