Sealing my crack (PICTURES INSIDE)

[bkatzman]

Attached are some pics of my Cawley Lemay 400 showing a 6-8 inch crack in the firebox. I have looked far and wide for a confirmed way to fix this from welding to JB Weld.

I found a link to these high-high temp sealants (broken link removed to http://www.gascoals.net/Accessories/RutlandHeatSafe/SiliconeSealantsMortarCement/tabid/927/Default.aspx)

Does anyone have any experience (good or bad) or advice on how to seal my crack?

Thanks for your help!
Bryce

 

[Jags]

It appears to be cast iron. If that is true, to weld it, you should find a true "welder". Someone who knows metal. That crack is in a very high temp area of the stove and looks like it could have come from an over-fire.

You probably can find some goop to slather on the crack, but a crack that large is gonna "move" on ya, and probably break loose the goop of your choice.

To do it right, it should be welded.

 

[Adam_MA]

I have nothing to add, but I thought I would let you know that when I first read the title to this post, I quickly read it as "Selling" my crack (pictures inside) :lol:

 

[polaris]

If it is cast iron you can drill a small hole at each end of the the crack to relive the stress and stop the cracks migration. Then you can clean it throughly and repair the crack with Thermo Steel putty. It is very similar to JB weld but designed for high temp (1700 degrees +) applications.

 

[pl@yer]

I'm a machinist don't work in that field anymore but have had occasion to repair 1/2" thick iron castings with an electrode designed for iron (5$ each rod). One day my exhaust manifold cracked and I was going to grab one of those iron sticks to weld it. Well a friend and welder at the shop said don't bother with that. He grabbed a mig and welded it up with mild steel wire! The weld held great had the car for about 10 years afterward. People always say you can only bronze iron but it can be welded.
My personal opinion would be to stay away from jb-weld and the like.

 

[Dune]

welding iron is tricky but brazing may work?
i'd drill holes at ends of the crack & hope it stops running, wet & rub furnace cement per instructions + monitor after further use . placing firebrix in front of crack & inside stove may help & if crack leaks air around firebrick, air will be preheated & may result in a cleaner burn

High heat, low melting temp of brass means brazing not good. Easy repair for experienced welder. Not all "welders" experienced.

 

[BrotherBart]

And the fact that a professional repair on that old stove is gonna cost a lot more than the stove is/will be worth.

 

[WoodMann]

When I first saw the title of this thred I first thought it would be something lewd.............

 

[bkatzman]

Sorry if I disappointed anyone (if you were looking for any other forms of "crack")!

I took it to our local stove repair shop to be welded (for less than $100).

Hopefully I will be crack-less for a while.

I'll let y'all know.

Thanks for the replies!

Bryce

 

[kavita]

greetings all -

we have a cawley-lemay 400 too, and just purchased replacement parts for the baffle, heat shields and ignition grid from Bucks Stove Palace in oregon.

Buck bought the molds for all cawley-lemay stove models directly from Mr. Cawley, before Mr. Cawley passed on.

here's the link:

www.stoves.com/

FYI - the cost for replacement parts from Bucks (including shipping) are HALF the price for the same parts carried by Woodmans Parts Plus. not sure why the cost difference is so great. we thought we were gonna have to sell the stove since the parts at Woodmans are so high. then i found Bucks - what a relief! now we've got a nearly-new Cawley.

Buck's Stove Palace also carries the exterior parts for the Cawley-Lemay line of stoves, if you ever need them.

their website ain't pretty but they're great folks.

enjoy,

kavita

 

[crazy_dan]

welding iron is tricky but brazing may work?
i'd drill holes at ends of the crack & hope it stops running, wet & rub furnace cement per instructions + monitor after further use . placing firebrix in front of crack & inside stove may help & if crack leaks air around firebrick, air will be preheated & may result in a cleaner burn

High heat, low melting temp of brass means brazing not good. Easy repair for experienced welder. Not all "welders" experienced.

nickel- silver brazing good up to 1740*f per wikipedia

That may be but. If someone has the right tools to silver braze it then they would probably have the right tools and know how to weld it.
Just saying if it is good to 1740 then it would have to be heated past that for the soldering/brazing process to work.

If it were me I would prep the crack by grinding a V shape the in to crack. Drill a hole at each end of the crack. Start a fire in the stove let it get hot. I would then weld the crack using Nickel rod. let it coast to cool and see how it goes from there. But I have the tools and such to do that.
The reason I would do that is because I would be out nothing but time and a few bucks on welding rod.
not saying this is your case, but that is what I would do.