Help for my parents' old Blaze King

[tamure]

My parents have a large, old Blaze King stove. It is about 21 years old. The last year or two it has not been heating nearly as well as it used to. It just isn't putting off as much heat. My WAG is that the catalytic converter needs to be replaced, along with the gasket around the door.

They had a guy from the local stove company come out and look at it. He said the welds were shot, and that they need a new stove. I asked mom and dad to point out what welds he was talking about, and other than the ones marked with red arrows, they couldn't point to any.

Now, I am no expert on anything, but it looks pretty minor to me. Also, given the @#*$! price of a new stove, my folks want to keep this one working if at all possible. So is it really that bad?

From the pictures below, you can see that the gasket along the door is blackened in the corners. I can't tell if it's really a crack in the welds or if that's normal, but there is a slight gap there. Is this something that replacing the gasket will help?

Also, what are those two pipes along the top of the firebox? Am I right that the baffle is the square thing above them? I'm guessing the catalytic converter is above that. What are the chances of getting a replacement cat for a stove this old? Unfortunately I don't have the model number right off. Tomorrow I can try to wedge myself behind the stove to get a look at the identification plate on the back.

Any other ideas on what might be wrong?

Any help would be very greatly appreciated.

 

[begreen]

Dead cat would be my first guess. Has it been taken out and inspected? Could just be plugged. Do you know how old the current cat is?

The gasket appears to be showing minor leakage and not in the area of the weakened welds. The two seem unrelated. Watch the welds, but the stove does not appear to be on its last legs yet.

Yes, replacement cats should still be available for this stove. Check with the dealer or:
(broken link removed to http://www.stove-parts-unlimited.com/Blaze_King_Woodstove_Replacement_Parts_s/92.htm)
http://www.stovepartsplus.com/Merch..._Code=SPP&Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=BLAZEKING
http://www.woodstovecombustors.com/blazeking.html

 

[Todd]

Call a local metal fab shop and see if someone could come out and fix those welds. I don't think they look too hard to fix, prolly wouldn't cost much. If the cat is original it's probably toast. Best to replace the cat and all gaskets and they should be good to go.

 

[tamure]

Thanks for the links and input!

The model number is KEJ (no numbers after it). It is stamped manufactured on 10-26-88. So I believe it's an early King model.

They're going to try just replacing the cat and the gasket and see where that gets 'em.