SCAN 60 Secondary Airtube and Bolts Upgrade.

[REDTAIL]

My SCAN 60 is only about 3 years old and the secondary air tube is toast. Last year it
was rainbowed, this year it's smiley faced and is nearly desintigrated on the bottom.

So, I checked with my dealer. They want $114.00 plus tax/shipping for a new one, which
I assume would the same sub-standard product. I didn't want to pay $140 bucks and then
have to replace it again in 3 years...

So, I'm fabricating my own out of better material and it's turning out to be cheaper than
buying one from Krog Iversen/SCAN/Jotul.

I picked up some 1" 304-stainless tubing that is twice as thick as the original air tube for
less than 50 bucks online. I bought a Cobalt tap and drill bit (5/32") and I'm in the process of
fabricating a new one that will hopefully be more durable and last longer than 3 years...

I'm also upgrading the stainless-steel allen-head bolts in the inside of the stove. These allen-head bolts
are so tight, from all the expansion and contraction, that they strip out very easily. I found some
10-32x3/8 stainless steel bolts online that have a hex-head, so I can get a wrench on them.

I'll have to drill out the ones that are stripped...

 

[pen]

Give it a go, at that price I'd be trying my own also.

Did your stove manual come with a schematic showing you the spacing and angle of the original holes? If so, I'd follow it for the fab'd one you are making. If you go with too large a hole, too many, or too few, it could affect the way the secondaries burn for you.

Also, are stainless bolts absolutely necessary? If you found them cheap enough or purchased them already then go for it. If not, I'd be looking for a high grade steel bolt to use instead.

pen

 

[begreen]

Scan used to have a 5 yr warranty which I thought covered the burn tubes. Has this changed?

 

[REDTAIL]

Give it a go, at that price I'd be trying my own also.

Did your stove manual come with a schematic showing you the spacing and angle of the original holes? If so, I'd follow it for the fab'd one you are making. If you go with too large a hole, too many, or too few, it could affect the way the secondaries burn for you.

Also, are stainless bolts absolutely necessary? If you found them cheap enough or purchased them already then go for it. If not, I'd be looking for a high grade steel bolt to use instead.

pen

I don't actually need any schematics; but I do have some diagrams, etc. I'm using the old tube as my schematic.
The way it's designed, you can't really go to far wrong with the hole placement. It's a 21" tube; 5/32" holes start at
about 2" from the end and they're 3/4" apart (everything is in a straight line across). There's a notch in one end and
a threaded 5/32"/10-32x3/8" hole on the other.

When you line up the notch on the left side in the hole in the stove, it automatically provides the proper placement
of the holes. I'll post some pictures when I'm done, which won't be until next week, as I am still waiting for my
Cobalt drills to arrive...

The original allen-head screws are stainless, and stainless is probably better than most other types of steel for the inside
of a woodstove. I got my replacement bolts from the very nice folks at Smith Fastener http://smithfast.com/.
The size I needed (10-32 x 3/8") was hard to find in my local area; one local hardware store had 10-32 x 1/2", but
those are a little bit too long.

 

[REDTAIL]

Scan used to have a 5 yr warranty which I thought covered the burn tubes. Has this changed?

I read the warranty. It looks like it might cover the airtube, but it's not crystal clear weather it does or not.
It doesn't cover replaceable/wearable items. The airtube could be considered a wearing part. At least,
their airtube is a wearing part!

If they did cover it, they would give me the same sub-standard tube, which would likely need to be replaced in about
3 years, again... Their airtube is stainless steel, although I'm not sure which grade of stainless it is, but it's only
1/16" thick. My new upgrade is 1/8" thick and it's 304 stainless, which is a very good grade of stainless and
will handle over 1,500 degrees.

 

[begreen]

Well that would be a first for me if they did call a burn tube a wearing part. This is not like a gasket. It should last a long time.

 

[REDTAIL]

Well that would be a first for me if they did call a burn tube a wearing part. This is not like a gasket. It should last a long time.

I agree. It should last a long time! Like about 12-15 years. Not 2.5... That's not the only component
in this stove that I'm having to upgrade and replace.

Actually, the gaskets are holding up pretty well.

 

[precaud]

Well that would be a first for me if they did call a burn tube a wearing part. This is not like a gasket. It should last a long time.

In my experience, that's the norm for Euro stoves. Anything in the flame path is considered to be a wearing part.

 

[REDTAIL]

In my experience, that's the norm for Euro stoves. Anything in the flame path is considered to be a wearing part.

Well, if you take that literally, then the glass and the allen bolts would be wearing parts too. In my case it was a part
that definitely wore out and prematurely at that, in my opinion.

 

[begreen]

Haven't found this to be the case with Jotul or Morso.

 

[precaud]

Haven't found this to be the case with Jotul or Morso.

Morso are the ones who use the term "flame path" in their warranty statement. That was a few years ago when I had one. Here is their current one; it's no different:
(broken link removed to http://www.morsona.com/index.php/warranty)

"1. No warranty is extended to internal consumable parts, such as (but not limited to) baffle plates, baffle assemblies, fire-bars, front grates, grate assemblies, firebricks/vermiculite liners, glass panels, ash cans, and sealing materials such as sealing rope. It is expected that such parts will be exposed to normal wear and tear and will require replacement from time to time."

Basically, their warranty covers the outer castings and that's about it.

 

[BrotherBart]

Just one more reason I figure that stove warranties end about the time they go out of the dealer's door.

I will say it again. If you are buying a wood stove get it all in writing from the dealer. What is covered, what is not and if the sucker splits down the middle who pays the freight bill.

If they won't do that, well, figure it out.

 

[precaud]

Just one more reason I figure that stove warranties end about the time they go out of the dealer's door.

In most cases that's probably a reasonable assumption. I have had two circumstances with new stoves that required warranty service. In one case (poorly installed door gasket), the dealer responded immediately. In the other (gross cast iron assembly issues complete with air leaks, etc.) I was stonewalled by both the dealer and the company. Neither wanted to deal with it.

So the scope of the problem obviously plays a big part in their decision. Simple stuff; no problem. But more complicated issues, they don't like those scenarios.

 

[REDTAIL]

Here are some pics of my new airtube. The Cobalt tap and drill bits went through
this stuff like it was aluminum! No problem whatsoever. Steel bits won't hardly
scratch it!

So, I upgraded the stainless tubing, it's now twice as thick; and I replaced the crappy
allen screws (stove-wide) with stainless hex-head bolts; and I also moved the position of the threaded
hole for the right-side collar, up to the top so I can easily remove the tube without removing
any side-panel skamol (just the little triangular pieces, which are very easy to remove).

All-in-all. Not bad for 50 bucks!

 

[precaud]

Looks great, good work!