So yesterday Hurricaine Bill was hanging off the coast of Maine which resulted in some rain in the morning so I figured it would be a good time to start cleaning my stove in preparation for this Fall.
Things I did . . .
Polished my stove . . . although I wasn't really happy with the results since it left a kind of yellowish-looking residue that wouldn't buff off. It almost looks like some parts of the stove are covered in a thin layer of yellow polin . . . not really that notable until you're up close. I may end up painting the stove . . . or just waiting and hoping it will burn off.
Applied a couple coats of sealant to my slate hearth.
Cleaned out the ash pan and fire box . . . and cleaned the glass.
Checked the gaskets and seals with the $1 bill test . . . well $10 bill test since that's the only bill I had on me at the time.
Checked the bricks and inside of the firebox . . . opted to put a little bit of stove cement into the back two corners where it appeared some cement had come out . . . no issues with penetration (couldn't see any light outside when the light was inside the stove, but figured better safe than sorry) . . . and put some cement up near the baffle where it appeared as though there was some there before that had come out
Took off the doghouse and used some graphite on the air control lever . . . marked improvement . . . not really sure why I didn't do this last year . . . very easy fix for the sticky handle
Messed around with the front door latch so that it opens easier for my wife, but still has a good seal
Took the insulating blanket off the baffle and cleaned up the ash above the baffle by removing the oval plate on the top
Took apart the stove pipe and cleaned them . . . and then had a miserable time trying to get one pipe's screw holes lined up
Cleaned the metal chimney during a break in the rain
-----------
So I think I'm ready . . . don't think I missed anything during my very first pre-season check
I did have a few stupid questions though.
Stupid question #1: The $10 bill test worked great. Could not pull the $10 bill out of either the front door or side door. However, on the ash pan I could pull the bill out with some effort. Should the gasket be replaced? Is this to be expected after only one year of use?
Stupid question #2: The center oval top plate can be unbolted and left unbolted . . . correct? For some reason this just doesn't seem right since if it is left unbolted the $10 bill can still be pulled out in the same manner as the ash pan . . . in other words it will come out with some pulling force.
Stupid question #3: I forget how the oval top plate sits on the stove. Is it flush with the nearby raised lip or is it slightly higher than the oval lip that surrounds it? I'm trying to figure out if I put the gasket back on correctly or not.
Things I did . . .
Polished my stove . . . although I wasn't really happy with the results since it left a kind of yellowish-looking residue that wouldn't buff off. It almost looks like some parts of the stove are covered in a thin layer of yellow polin . . . not really that notable until you're up close. I may end up painting the stove . . . or just waiting and hoping it will burn off.
Applied a couple coats of sealant to my slate hearth.
Cleaned out the ash pan and fire box . . . and cleaned the glass.
Checked the gaskets and seals with the $1 bill test . . . well $10 bill test since that's the only bill I had on me at the time.
Checked the bricks and inside of the firebox . . . opted to put a little bit of stove cement into the back two corners where it appeared some cement had come out . . . no issues with penetration (couldn't see any light outside when the light was inside the stove, but figured better safe than sorry) . . . and put some cement up near the baffle where it appeared as though there was some there before that had come out
Took off the doghouse and used some graphite on the air control lever . . . marked improvement . . . not really sure why I didn't do this last year . . . very easy fix for the sticky handle
Messed around with the front door latch so that it opens easier for my wife, but still has a good seal
Took the insulating blanket off the baffle and cleaned up the ash above the baffle by removing the oval plate on the top
Took apart the stove pipe and cleaned them . . . and then had a miserable time trying to get one pipe's screw holes lined up
Cleaned the metal chimney during a break in the rain
-----------
So I think I'm ready . . . don't think I missed anything during my very first pre-season check
I did have a few stupid questions though.
Stupid question #1: The $10 bill test worked great. Could not pull the $10 bill out of either the front door or side door. However, on the ash pan I could pull the bill out with some effort. Should the gasket be replaced? Is this to be expected after only one year of use?
Stupid question #2: The center oval top plate can be unbolted and left unbolted . . . correct? For some reason this just doesn't seem right since if it is left unbolted the $10 bill can still be pulled out in the same manner as the ash pan . . . in other words it will come out with some pulling force.
Stupid question #3: I forget how the oval top plate sits on the stove. Is it flush with the nearby raised lip or is it slightly higher than the oval lip that surrounds it? I'm trying to figure out if I put the gasket back on correctly or not.
