Maintenance help for a newbie?

[Shorty]

Hi all,
We had our first season with a Jotul 118 black bear last winter. It warmed up and I totally put off looking to see what it needed for maintenance.

I've been doing some reading and I'm not finding a lot of info on these. It looks like I need a fire brick and an insulating blanket. It looks like I just slide the fire brick retainer up and swap the brick out but I have no clue what to do with the blanket..

Does the stove have to come apart? Is there anything in these pictures that is a red flag to you experienced guys about how we've been burning? Do I need to get an ash vacuum and totally clean this? I can't find my manual right now but I don

 

[begreen]

Looks like there is still life left in the firebrick. The insulation blanket should lie flat on top of the baffle. The manual is located here:

Jøtul Manuals, Installation and Operational Instructions

View Jøtul user manuals and identification tools here. Wood stoves, gas fireplaces, inserts and more.

www.jotul.com

 

[Shorty]

Looks like there is still life left in the firebrick. The insulation blanket should lie flat on top of the baffle. The manual is located here:

Jøtul Manuals, Installation and Operational Instructions

View Jøtul user manuals and identification tools here. Wood stoves, gas fireplaces, inserts and more.

www.jotul.com

Thanks! The manual does show the insulation blanket in the parts list but there's nothing else about it. I just figured out today that the mess I see on the top is probably the insulation blanket. My dealer just got back with me and he said that most people wouldn't even worry about replacing it.
Maybe all i really need to do is see if the blanket will lay back down and sweep the chimney then I should be good for the next season??

 

[begreen]

Yes, just try and gently smooth out the insulation blanket by pulling out towards the sides. Are you detaching the stove pipe from the stove when sweeping? Look for any crud that has fallen down on the insulation and gently remove it without tearing the blanket.

 

[Shorty]

Yes, just try and gently smooth out the insulation blanket by pulling out towards the sides. Are you detaching the stove pipe from the stove when sweeping? Look for any crud that has fallen down on the insulation and gently remove it without tearing the blanket.

I did get the stove pipe off and lots of crud fell in there. Funny thing was the blanket wasn't really wadded up. It seemed like maybe it was too long? I did get it evened out a bit after I vacuumed (probably not as gently as I should have) the stuff off of it.
Now all I need is the brush set for sweeping.