Well the rebuild of the stove (VC encore defiant 2140) has been a learning experience...and isn't done yet.
Stove looks great - power wire brushing and polishing the outside worked well.
I am still having troubles with the running of the stove after many hours of wire brushing, re-tapping holes and trying to fit everything together. I think the upper fireback is not fitting correctly resulting in hot, short burns.
I am getting 4-5 hour burns with the griddle temp peaking at 700F (upper limit recommended by VC). The CAT is engaging and working fine. But I think I am drawing too much air or bypassing too much air. I have checked the primary air door closed and the secondary mostly closed when running - still getting a very hot, quick fire.
I am planning on pulling out the upper fireback and cleaning and re-installing. This piece was very hard to get into place, I had to try to pull it in using the bolts (actually several different size bolts to slowly more it into place). I think the cement at the top had hardened already so it would not fit properly but I did not whant to pull too hard and stip the holes. Now I think I have air gaps around the upper fireback to I am only partialy blocking flow when closing the damper door.
I suspect the upper fireback because I notice the setup was not tight after trying a couple test runs - those were very hot (over 800F) until I realize the griddle thermometer was broken (wife mentioned kids playing with it all summer - and I noticed I could put my hand on the griddle for at least a second when I was reading 350F)). Now I can see the damper door does not meet up that well - I added an extra gasket rope to seal it - so I think the whole upper fire back is leaking around the edges and top (which are nearly impossible to see).
Once I get the upper fireback re-done, the next step will be to try to test the stove for leaks.
Has anyone done this? What could I use for a smoke source? If not a smoke I was thinking I could remove the stove, tape over the flue opening and air inlets then install connection for a bike pump then use soapy water/snoop for looking for air leaks.
Has anyone done this?
I really don't want to give up on this stove...but I might be getting close.
Stove looks great - power wire brushing and polishing the outside worked well.
I am still having troubles with the running of the stove after many hours of wire brushing, re-tapping holes and trying to fit everything together. I think the upper fireback is not fitting correctly resulting in hot, short burns.
I am getting 4-5 hour burns with the griddle temp peaking at 700F (upper limit recommended by VC). The CAT is engaging and working fine. But I think I am drawing too much air or bypassing too much air. I have checked the primary air door closed and the secondary mostly closed when running - still getting a very hot, quick fire.
I am planning on pulling out the upper fireback and cleaning and re-installing. This piece was very hard to get into place, I had to try to pull it in using the bolts (actually several different size bolts to slowly more it into place). I think the cement at the top had hardened already so it would not fit properly but I did not whant to pull too hard and stip the holes. Now I think I have air gaps around the upper fireback to I am only partialy blocking flow when closing the damper door.
I suspect the upper fireback because I notice the setup was not tight after trying a couple test runs - those were very hot (over 800F) until I realize the griddle thermometer was broken (wife mentioned kids playing with it all summer - and I noticed I could put my hand on the griddle for at least a second when I was reading 350F)). Now I can see the damper door does not meet up that well - I added an extra gasket rope to seal it - so I think the whole upper fire back is leaking around the edges and top (which are nearly impossible to see).
Once I get the upper fireback re-done, the next step will be to try to test the stove for leaks.
Has anyone done this? What could I use for a smoke source? If not a smoke I was thinking I could remove the stove, tape over the flue opening and air inlets then install connection for a bike pump then use soapy water/snoop for looking for air leaks.
Has anyone done this?
I really don't want to give up on this stove...but I might be getting close.