VC Defiant secondary air probe???

[ibjessa]

I'm sitting in my living room amid a pile of firebrick; ash; and my VC Defiant catalytic stove manual. I'm replacing the catalyst which seems straightforward enough. The problem is the instructions are telling me to check the secondary air probe with a mirror and it is supposed to be about 1" long somewhere in there.

I've used the mirror from my makeup compact for about a half hour looking all around the combustion chamber and sides. Can anybody point me in the right direction on exactly what it looks like and where? Is it on the right side? Does it pierce the brittle cardboardy chamber? Is on on the outer side; the back; or the inside of the chamber?

???

Help!

Jessa in Rochester

 

[Heat Miser]

On my VC defiant the secondary probe was about 3-4" below the bottom of the catalytic element chamber. In other words, when you have the catalytic element removed, the probe will be smack in the center about 3-4" below the bottom edge of the element as it sits on the refractory material.

Not only will you need a mirror to see it, but probably a good light source as it is inside the chamber below the catalytic element. The probe will not be poking out that far from the refractory board, but does pierce it. It is about 1/4" in diameter or so. It is probably also coated in ash and will be just about impossible to service unless you completely disassemble the backboard and refractory material in the stove. I'd leave it alone unless you are having a problem with it.