Kent Tile Fire: warped baffle?

[Tinymoose]

Hi,
After many hours this morning I have determined that I have an old Kent TileFire, I think from around 1980. I've had the house for around 4 years, and have used the fire to varying amounts for about three winters. I had the fire checked when I bought the house, someone came out to see if it meets the current standards for my state (Western Australia). This winter I've felt like it has been using a lot more wood.

This morning I noticed that the ceiling on the wood burning area looked really bad. I think I've now worked out that this is the baffle, and I'm pretty sure mine is, well, destroyed. The plate that should have nice holes in has missing pieces at the bottom of the holes, and the plate is dropped. Looking very much like teeth and gaping jaw from a Stephen King novel..

From reading it appears that the baffle in the TF is welded in, and isn't a simple replacement job. I have a sad, sad feeling that my fire may just be at the end of its life, but I wanted to try a last ditch hopeful query.

I've attached some photos, the first is from a different post on here, and is what I think I should be seeing. The are what I am actually seeing. Apologies for photo clarity, the fire is on and quite scalding. I suspect, now that I've actually read up on fires, that I've been overburning, and probably using logs too long for the TF.

1) is my TF cactus and I need to replace it?

2) Any suggestions for a similar fire for replacement? This thing is a beast and without any type of fan or anything it heats my rather large home.

3) How likely is it that I destroyed my poor baby? Any chance of making me feel better and saying that damage isn't so likely to be from just me? The house was built in 1980, I used the fire in 2017, 2018, and this year. This year has definitely had more wood go through it than any previous year.

Thank you for any help. Bonus thank you's for emathatetic replies that don't make me feel like a fire destroying monster.

 

[begreen]

It's definitely warped and burning out in the middle. Maybe a patch could be welded there? Do you have a friend or know someone good at welding?

 

[Tinymoose]

Thank you

 

[Tinymoose]

New photos after giving it a clean out.

 

[begreen]

That is pretty rotten. There is not much good material left to weld to.

 

[Tinymoose]

Yeah What are the negatives to using it as is, say for the rest of this winter? Occasionally we get some smoke into the house when we open the door, but not all that often. I think we are using more wood than previously, but I'm also guessing that damage hasn't just sprung up between us using in 2018 and this year? I think my biggest fear is if it increases pollution.

 

[begreen]

There is no doubt that is will perform poorly if asked to limp through the rest of the season. I would retire the old soldier. It has had a good run. A modern, high-efficiency stove is going burn much cleaner than this stove, even when it was new.

What is the grey material that appears to be packed above what remains of the baffle? It shows behind the holes that remain.

 

[Tinymoose]

Thank you very much. I tried to clean that out a bit by poking and vacuuming, I'm not entirely sure but I suspect it may be decades of compacted ash?
I did some researching last week,it seems a Neo 2.5 might be a good bet for a new one, I'll just have to work out the finances.

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[begreen]

Sounds like the old Kent has not burned cleanly for a long time. A new stove will be much better as long as the wood is fully seasoned.
Yes, the Neo 2.5 is a decent stove. Their Super series is also good. It's been around, steadily improving over the past 25 yrs.

 

[Tinymoose]

Hi all, sharing an update. Back in 2020 we had a local chimney sweep out to clear the chimney and ask his thoughts. He very emphatically encouraged us to stick with our Kent rather than replace. He felt the baffle wouldn’t make that big a difference and that new wood heaters have got nothing on an old tile fire.

We’ve used it for the last four winters (currently in winter now), and it’s definitely continued doing the job well. Last year we had a big problem with smoke and had the sweep back. The problem turned out to be that the old style of chimney hat wasn’t weather resistant and had rusted so badly that it had collapsed and was blocking the entire chimney hole. He put a shiny new hat in and it worked like a charm all last winter and so far this year.

I just took photos of the baffle to show my husband, as the term came up and he wasn’t sure what a baffle was. Looking at these photos and from four years ago, it has definitely continued to warp.

Does anyone know what endgame for this might be? Like, am I risking exploding the heater or burning our house down?

 

[stoveliker]

I would get a different chimney sweep as he clearly doesn't know what he is talking about.

The baffle makes a huge difference and a properly sized modern stove will heat the same for much less wood.

 

[begreen]

The Kent was a great stove back in it's day, but that baffle is long gone. The stove will just self-destruct now. This has already started. Modern stoves are very good. If you rely on woodheat then I would consider getting a good new stove. The PE Super Classic will have similar performance.

 

[Tinymoose]

The Kent was a great stove back in it's day, but that baffle is long gone. The stove will just self-destruct now. This has already started. Modern stoves are very good. If you rely on woodheat then I would consider getting a good new stove. The PE Super Classic will have similar performance.

Thank you! What does self destruct look like? We’re in the last month of winter and I’d prefer to make it through this season and then look into a new stove before next, unless it’s kind of a n emergency situation?

 

[Tinymoose]

I would get a different chimney sweep as he clearly doesn't know what he is talking about.

The baffle makes a huge difference and a properly sized modern stove will heat the same for much less wood.

Thank you! Sounds like I need to do some research on what the baffle actually is / does.

 

[Tinymoose]

Ok, have researched and now better understand baffles and their purpose. New stove before next winter it is. Seems to be the better option for our wood use, and for environment in terms of what is going up and out into the environment as well as how much wood we burn through. I’ll get into looking at the PE Super Classic 👍

 

[Tinymoose]

I haven’t been able to find the Classic yet, but I’m not sure if that because sometimes products have different names here in Australia than overseas. Is this Super the same model maybe?

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[begreen]

Thank you! What does self destruct look like? We’re in the last month of winter and I’d prefer to make it through this season and then look into a new stove before next, unless it’s kind of a n emergency situation?

It will likely limp through the end of winter, but heat is now going in places it shouldn't and that warpage can be extending into the secondary burn system. In that case the stove is not easily repairable. I'm not sure if parts are still available in Australia, not here.

 

[Tinymoose]

It will likely limp through the end of winter, but heat is now going in places it shouldn't and that warpage can be extending into the secondary burn system. In that case the stove is not easily repairable. I'm not sure if parts are still available in Australia, not here.

Thank you! I was worried it might be a safety risk / harm more than just itself. It’s my understanding that the baffle can’t be replaced in these fires, so it’s always been a case of the whole system having to come out 🙁

 

[begreen]

That's right. It's provided decades of service, but now it's ready to be replaced.