Gayuta Andes 518 Coal Stove Advice

Hey guys I love this site.. I'm new to burning coal this year and I'm looking for advice. I have a Gayuta Andes 518 coal stove that is old. I have burned Nut coal in a few times to test it and it has heated my 2000sft house. It took a little over 40lbs to get the house complete heated but it will save me a ton of money this winter instead of using electric heat. One of my questions is, is there a way of keeping my coals going all night. I do not have a stoker and don't know if I can get one for this stove. If anyone knows of one that may work with my stove please let me know? Also is there a way to determine what kind of coal it is that I am using? I met a guy that has about 12 yards of pea coal for sale. I burned some of it last night and it doesn't match up to nut coal as far as BTU's, but he is offering me a good price. I just don't know if it’s worth it. I'm pretty sure that you can mix pea and nut coal and if this is true I make get both. Lastly if I build a wood box to store the pea coal outside is that ok. I know the nut coal comes bagged and on a pallet so I don’t have to worry about that. If anyone can help me out I would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance. By the way I live in upstate NY (Albany) if anyone knows of a good place/price to get coal please share.

I attached a pic of my stove.

A stoker is a different beast than what you have. You can't retrofit your stove to a stoker. A stoker also has a hopper and a feed motor that uses a timer to pull the coal from the hopper on to the grate. You can usually get 100 lbs of coal into the hopper which can last 2 days or several days depending on the temps and your house's ability to retain heat. If you're lucky enough to have a Leisure Line it'll even come with a thermostat that keeps the house at a constant temp.

If money is tight you might want to re-finish the stove you have and sell it and then look for a used stoker. Leisure LIne, Alasks, Reading, and Harman all makes good stoves. I saw one the other day on Ebay for 850.00. If you're willing to travel you can get some great bargains.

christoph wrote:I met a guy that has about 12 yards of pea coal for sale. I burned some of it last night and it doesn't match up to nut coal as far as BTU's, but he is offering me a good price. I just don't know if it’s worth it. I'm pretty sure that you can mix pea and nut coal and if this is true I make get both.

Welcome, we are glad you enjoy the site. Yes, the pea will burn at a reduced output as it has less room between the pieces for air to get to it. You can blend the two sizes. I used to burn pea in the warmer weather and nut when it got colder with my hand fired. If it gets really cold you can run stove size coal, at that size the output will jump considerably.

you should be able to keep an overnight burn going, are there fire bricks in that stove? if so shake down ash and slowly load her up to the fire brick and mound in the middle ,after it's burning well( be patient) reduce the air and she'll do fine. You need to have 2 CO detectors diff brands, pref. 1 being digital, keep a bucket of dry sand near stove , and have fun!

Thanks guys for the info especially about keeping the sand next to the stove. I'm gonna get through this winter with this stove and in the summer look for something different. Everyone here is great and I really appreciate your time. Thanks again

Chris from albany

The stove you have there will be a better stove than a new one. Instead of spending thousands of dollars on a new stove, have that one restored. You probably need to reseal all of the seams and have the fancy parts re nickled. After you spend a little money and some elbow grease on this stove, you will have a prize that you will not part with. Of course you need to learn how to operate it. Do you have a pipe damper? You need one for sure. Do you have a barometric damper? One of those might help it work better.
You should get it to burn overnight easily even as it is now. One thing you don't want to do is get rid of it.

Your stove is missing most of its decorative parts, like the skirt, foot rests and other trim. Check out the thread: Got the Glenwood Baseburner Installed and Tested, and you can see sort of what your stove is supposed to look like all complete

A good coal appliance becomes a heirloom as they will outlast us all if cared for.

Hey guys I love this site.. I'm new to burning coal this year and I'm looking for advice. I have a Gayuta Andes 518 coal stove that is old. I have burned Nut coal in a few times to test it and it has heated my 2000sft house. It took a little over 40lbs to get the house complete heated but it will save me a ton of money this winter instead of using electric heat. One of my questions is, is there a way of keeping my coals going all night. I do not have a stoker and don't know if I can get one for this stove. If anyone knows of one that may work with my stove please let me know?

No, you have a simple hand fired or sometimes called batch stove. You load and let it go 8-12 hours shake down the ashes, then reload. To increase efficiency and burn time, add a barometric damper to the stove pipe setup, other items can be cut back the air intake, or if you are burning nut coal through the day, after you reload it with more nut, sprinkle some pea coal on top, that will slow the burn down.

Also is there a way to determine what kind of coal it is that I am using? I met a guy that has about 12 yards of pea coal for sale. I burned some of it last night and it doesn't match up to nut coal as far as BTU's, but he is offering me a good price. it is only worth it if you can use it, unless you like being cold, or burn it spring and fall I just don't know if it’s worth it. I'm pretty sure that you can mix pea and nut coal and if this is true I make get both. Yes you can mix sizes Lastly if I build a wood box to store the pea coal outside is that ok. Yes, weather doesnt affect coal. I know the nut coal comes bagged and on a pallet so I don’t have to worry about that. If anyone can help me out I would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance. By the way I live in upstate NY (Albany) if anyone knows of a good place/price to get coal please share.

Other random thoughts I have, your stove appears to be of a good design, a bit more detailed pics of the stove: inside and outside, the installation with stove pipe could be helpful. Give your stove a season to prove itself and you to fight the learning curve on coal, there are alot of pluses to a handfired such as if you have a power outage it will still work.

christoph wrote: I live in upstate NY (Albany) if anyone knows of a good place/price to get coal please share.

There are few guys with ads for bagged and bulk coal on the Albany section of craigslist. There is also a forum member in Malta (stokerscot) who may have some coal to sell.

When you load your stove up for the night, how much coal are you putting in? The coal needs to be filled right up to the firepot line (top of the bricks if it has them). Installing a barometric damper will help regulate the stove's output, as will making sure the doors seal/shut correctly.

-Rob

Chris.....I am an hour northwest of you in the Amsterdam area......coal is going for $220/ton bulk and 250/ton bagged......Blaschak....Not sure it's worth traveling that far....there must be dealers closer to you

Hey guys thanks for all the responses. I’m blown away by how friendly everyone is and the time they spend helping newbie’s like me. First of all I never intended on selling my coal stove. I have quickly fallen in love with burning coal and the money that it saves me.
Sharkman suggested that I should get a barometric damper; I think I may already have one on my stove. I took a picture of it and will post it first. I hope someone can help me by telling me if this is/does the same thing. It is located right at the elbow coming out of the stove. On the smoke pipe I do have a smoke damper. I am searching this site trying to figure out the delicate balance with all the dampers. I also have, on the fire box a damper that unscrews. I’m not completely sure when to use which, but maybe someone can post a link or explain in simple terms for me.
Another question I have is, is there a way of washing coal? The pea coal that I can get a great deal on is extremely dirty. Dirty to handle and dirty to burn. It is stored outside by a busy road not covered. I really want some, I told the advice of sharkman last night and sprinkled the pea coal on last night before I went to bed and sure enough the coals were still burning this morning. I have attached more pictures of the stove accepting any feedback you guys are willing to post.
Once again thanks in advance for your time, I really appreciate it

Lastly I have a delivery of anthracite nut coal (bag) coming tomorrow morning, paid $300.

While technically that IS a damper, it's not barometric -- in other words, it won't automagically adjust to changing draft.

This is more along the lines here:

Go deeper on the coal bed...
You can go to the top of the cast iron burn pot...
As smitty said you have a manual draft bleed...
A baro is the automatic version of what you have...
Add the baro and close your manual shutters...
As for washing the coal...
Simple as a frame with 1\4 inch hardware cloth that is well supported...
Place on a low angle and make it high enough so it will be easy to rake into a wheelbarrow.
Spray with a garden hose and the dirt will run off with the water...

Nice looking stove. The damper on the loading door is to provide over-fire air for burning bituminous coal or wood. For burning anthracite it needs to be closed, although you can crack it a little after you load the stove to help burn off the gas.

As I mentioned earlier, you need to add coal until it reaches the top of the firepot. After looking at the pictures you posted it looks like you could add at least another 4 inches of coal, this will really help extend your burn times. If you have a good draft your stove should burn pea sized coal without a problem, but you will need to experiment and see of the pea provides enough BTU's in the cold weather.

-Rob

I don't agree with some of the others here on there take of Pea coal not burning hot. I've used both types. Believe me my stove burns pea coal very hot. Hot as Nut with out a doubt. If your burning it hotter that your in for trouble a fire will start or something will melt in your house or stove.
If you've got a good working chimney with a proper draft and a stove dedicated to coal then your good to go. I've burnt Nut for 14 years 24/7 as my main source of heat and have switched to Pea coal last spring and all of this fall 24/7 since Oct. 1st. Our temps were down to 18 deg.F yesterday and this Pea is going strong and the intake air knob is only cracked slightly. I've had to run it more open when I want the fire to build back up and can testify as too its heat output compared to Nut. It equals or out performs it as it is packed tighter into a more solid mass so to say. I tend it only 1 every 24 hrs. My furnace hasn't come on this fall yet.
Pea burns only because of less air space so you need a proper chimney for proper draft. If you don't have a proper stove and chimney you may find Pea burns cooler but then the nut will too because you can't get enought air going thru it.
I'm sold on Pea and I know when it gets to 30 below here day after day it will heat this 2K sq.ft. plus house with no problems.
If your grate will hold it and burn it buy some Pea and try it as well. Especially because your stove isn't airtight so on warm days you won't be able to keep the temps down with Nut. Also Pea will keep it down but when the sun goes down and you open the air intakes it will give you lot's of heat just as much as Nut.
Cheers