Hi, Jim!
19.05.2016
Yes, if the fuelbed only is measured… but so far the “culprit of restriction” has not been pinpointed yet, or has it?
In the meantime, I was worried about a significant high end temperature, so to get the reduction started earlier in the bed, slightly smaller bits comes to mind; they consume the free oxygen earlier, and the reduction gets more surface, volume and time before reaching the grate…
This all, provied that the “draft” does not change… (increase)
Now, it seems that all hope for the “restriction culprit” to be found is in the hands of the “Argos Masters”.
Hi, Jim!
19.05.2016
If there were plenty of time, a thorough flow test with the motor running on high RPM gasoline, would undoubtedly and fast solve “the restriction culprit”:
All air taken through the gasline, component after component in counterflow direction loosend (in both ends) and attatched back into the line…
Soon the restrictive component will affect the airflow to the motor and there the “culprit” sits!
Perhaps this is too easy and naive? But the motor will shurely tell when it cannot get enough air.
Max I know you are probably sleeping right about now, but I will update you. I accept the vacuum as being ok. The last time I put the air cleaner on is when the vacuum jumped up. I think it had a little leak before and some vacuum was bled of — not sure but with the test I did yesterday, I AM pulling vacuum in the hopper and that is what we ask for.
I’m fighting the high heat at the grate. I woke up this morning thinking what would cause a high grate temp. ----- how about the ash door. I had checked it to see if any white as was around there . I found noon so I ruled that out. Today I went back to it. Still no white ash.— hhmmmmm!! Ok a couple of things I didn’t like about the ash door, so I changed them. One was I was using that fiberglass stove rope for a seal and it has been packed down pretty flat from opening and closing the as lid. So I smeared some high temp silicon over it. Let it set in the sun, but this stuff doesn’t cure that fast. Put it back to gather and took it for a ride. WOW!!! It was running so good, I was just ready to go home and pack for Argose when everything went south. Got home and smoke is coming out of my ash door. Never had that happen before but it appears that uncured silicon gave out. I had thought if I could get out of here by 12;00 I would go to Argos. It’s now 11;31. Con’t think I can open the ash door for another hour or so. TomC
On the grate itself, or below it? Undefined places leads to undefined answers and random speculations!
So, Where?
Now the leakage air from the soot & ash door is the “heat culprit” , no need to pic in the fuel?
What is the vacuum level in the ashpit when it does not leak in air?
And temperature?
Pepe and others have recommended on good grounds to “saturate” stoverope with high temp silicone or some stove paddy, do you have time to prepare that kind of seal?
Tom, The way I did my silicone impregnated gaskets was to take a piece of wire about a foot and a half long hook it through the end of a piece of stove gasket, Cut the end of the caulk tube about the size of the rope. This is your wiper and will determine the diameter of your seal don’t make it larger than the stove rope. Drill a hole slightly larger in the back of the caulk tube where the plunger would push if you were using the caulk gun. Before you continue find a place where you can hang the un cured seal, I used my overhead garage door track. Push the wire attached to your rope through the caulk tube from the rear and tie it to where you are going to hang it to dry. If you are going to make a gasket longer than the height you have put a second wire on the other end of your rope so you can hang it horizontally like a clothesline. After you tie off the first end just slide the tube down the rope. If you are making a real long gasket you may want to occasionally push the plunger in a little as the caulk gun would. This makes a perfectly round smooth seal. It takes a while to cure but can be accelerated with a hair dryer. Don’t sweat it buddy you still have plenty of time to get there and not miss anything. Pack your thing as the rope cures
The probe location is; I would have to look, it has been so long since I installed it. It is in the ash pit about 4 inches, either at the level of the grate or above it. With out revisiting the location exactly, I would say it is just measuring the temp of the gas in the ash pit.
The vacuum can run about 5 to 7 inches H2O. Can go over 12 or so when the cooling rails go up to 30 inches. I use to have 10 on the rail and 5 in the pit when all was well. The temperature in the ash pit use to be around 900 degrees and that is what it was running today when everything was going well. Then the truck lost power and I looked at the temp and it had gone to 1300 F. At that temp the gas gets weak.
I got new rope gasket material and put it on and drove 2 miles to the airport and all was good ( aspic was 5 in. and temp was 900 F ). Turned around and headed home and the gas got week and the temp jumped to about 1300 F. Of course when the gas gets weak I give it more throttle and all the vacuums go up.
Jim. That really sounds great, but doesn’t that mean you use an entire tube for one gasket. At least you have opened it on both ends. Can you save what is in the tube. That sounds like it makes a perfect gasket. I have already installed new rope. but tomorrow is another day.
My conclusion today is— something is broken in there that I could not see when I removed the char / ashes. Something like a fatigue crack in the air chamber that when it heats up, it opens up and allows air in to burn the gas OR SOMETHING. I missed my dead lines for this week so now I have time to take it apart and really inspect it. I’m thinking, something will pop up during a close inspection.TomC
Tom I think I used a 3/4 pipe nipple to push on the plunger with the rope going through the center. I used the whole length of rope however long it comes at Menards When done just put a bolt in both ends of the tube. If your bolt in the back screws in tight you can even use the remaining silicone in the caulk gun as intended.
Hi ,Max Mine go more saturated than one might expect. I believe one can have some control by the rate of feed and the amount of pressure on the plunger from the rear. Of course the harder you pull the tied off rope the smaller the diameter the rope will become so best to not cut the nozzle end of the tube to small or pull it to tight. Just keep an eye on the finished rope as you pull it through, taking you time to get the desired results. I was very pleased with the results my first time. I left it to dry over night in a very warm wood heated shop and cut to length as needed sealing the joint with a dab more
Max I did not touch it as it came out. It is much more uniform if you don’t. I am sure it is not totally saturated but It does have the needed elasticity to spring back into shape. I have so far only used it on my hopper to lower drum flange and my unit has only been test fired and not put into service yet. I am pretty confident it will make tight seals for hopper lids and ash doors if placed in the proper sized groves. I think for ash dumps some sort of heat shield or insulation should be used regardless of what the seal. I shielded or insulated every gasketed joint on my entire unit. Much easier to do it once than to do it over once all tar coated.
The fiberglass stove rope I used is braided but somewhat hollow if not stretched tight. I would suggest just trying it . I would cut the tube small first and stretch the rope taught to start with if you want a little fatter seal cut the nozzle slightly larger and don.t stretch the rope as tight. Remember that the compression you put on the caulk tube from the rear will help to eliminate air bubbles and permeate the rope more fully. It sounds more complicated than it is and you can make a lot of gasket material very quickly.
Hi Jim L
Sounds like good idea for a gasket.
Could take a caulk gun and cut part of the plunder off so the rope would fit beside it, might be able to put more pressure on it.
Jim , I Drill it right in the center feed the wire through a foot and a half long pipe nipple , tube what ever you have in reach then the caulk tube, and tie it off with the caulk tube in my left hand and pipe nipple in right I compress the caulk as I back up. If I am making a long rope I put a piece of wire on both ends so I can hang the second end so it don’t reach the floor. really pretty simple
Ahhhh? Jim, I feel the need for a youtube. Ok I have re-read your original post and I think I have found what is confusing. You DO NOT use the caulk gun. Is that correct? TomC
That is correct Tom no caulk gun. I can’t do a video till I get my phone warrantied out. Problem is todo that means I am without one for a week in my busiest time of the year. Read it again slowly ,lay it out on the bench as I explained seeing the pieces laying there it should come to you.
No. I am taking the gasifire apart. Took the shroud off and see a couple of heat tracks going from the bottom edge of the hopper barrel up a short distance on out side of hopper ( ? ) more laterTomC