VC Intrepid secondary air

[michoujordan76]

Hi all,

I have yet another question about my new old intrepid. I plan on having it properly rebuilt in the spring. For now, I used stove cement to seal up some of the leaking joints from the inside. There seems to be a pretty wide gap between the top plate and the front piece. It looks like the previous owner put cement in there from the front, not very attractive and damaged the enamel a bit. At least it's not terribly noticeable. Is this the secondary air inlet or should it be sealed up too? Please see attached photo. Thanks for any advice.

 

[homebrewz]

I've been to Hemmingford and it's a nice little town.

If this stove is anything like the bigger models, the secondary air inlet should be on the back. It's usually behind a small metal plate and the air shudder is attached to a bi-metal spring. The area pictured in the photo should be sealed as it's a potential source for air infiltration into the firebox, which might make the fire hard to control. Those joints should be sealed with with a gasket during assembly or with stove cement, depending on the construction of the stove.

If it's leaky around the top, you could try stuffing some loose gasket material in there.

 

[michoujordan76]

Thank you homebrewz! I will get some fat gasket material and squeeze it in there until I have it rebuilt next year.