Where Can I Buy a Bi-Metal Draft Regulator?

MIG--damn, I missed that

Alrighty... take #2 of the steel draft box is coming along great. My welds got a lot better today, and I found some 3 in x 1/8 in steel flats to use. 1/8 seems to be the best thickness for this project and my welder. Here is the box thus far without the hinged flapper.

About time you stopped screwin around & got that right! Looks real good JR, now you're SERIOUSLY gainin on her.

Here is the setup. I bolted the thermostat to the stove, but I'm not drilling draft holes or attaching the draft box until I've tested the coil's response and temperature range. I may shorten the flap and move the chain attachment point, because it's still too far out from the spring. I think a short flap is all that is needed anyway, so long as there is enough vertical travel in it. The flap is heavy (16 guage sheet metal I think) but the spring doesn't seem too affected by it.
Dang pictures are sideways again!

Is that 1/8" you used for the flap & is that what they recommended?--mine is a piece of --I think 16 or 18gauge galvanized???? Oh hell, you answered that already Do you want your top closed on the spring box??? mine is. Bottom is open

freetown fred wrote:Is that 1/8" you used for the flap & is that what they recommended?--mine is a piece of --I think 16 or 18gauge galvanized???? Oh hell, you answered that already Do you want your top closed on the spring box??? mine is. Bottom is open

What do you mean about the top closed on the spring box? I don't understand. The top is open by design on the Daka model. I don't see what closing it would do. It's right under the lip of the cast iron top piece of the Chubby, so I don't think keeping heat in the spring box is a problem/requirement.

EDIT: Also, when my flapper is shut it's not air tight. It just rests on the draft box and there are little cracks around it where air can get through a little bit. Is yours the same? I'd think it wouldn't really be a problem because the stove always needs some air to breath.

Just throwin out some comparative things although you have entered an area that most men fear to tread It should not make any difference & if that's the way they designed it, it's all good. I'm lookin forward to see how this set up works come burning season. PS--my flap closes tight when needed--note magnet in pix-- God knows I've got enough under fire draft.

Nice work. I admire people willing to experiment with things. My observation is that the draft box seems kinda big. It isn't gonna need to open very much to let a lot of combustion air in and if your chimney is pulling hard I think your heat output is gonna yo yo quite severely until it strikes some point of balance. Just my two cents worth. I'm looking forward to seeing your results partner

Lightning wrote:Nice work. I admire people willing to experiment with things.

Thank you. I think some want to see me flogged for going outside the operating manual's SOPs. :whip:

Lightning wrote: My observation is that the draft box seems kinda big. It isn't gonna need to open very much to let a lot of combustion air in and if your chimney is pulling hard I think your heat output is gonna yo yo quite severely until it strikes some point of balance. Just my two cents worth. I'm looking forward to seeing your results partner

Fired it up tonight after biting the bullet, wincing a bit, closing my eyes, then opening them before I drilled five 3/4" holes in the side of the Chubby where the draft box mounts. There's no turning back now! The chubby has two 1" x 2" openings in the ash door, and from what I understand you never really leave it opened more than half way. So, that's 2 sq inches of air flow, max. 5 3/4" holes =2.21 sq inches.

So far the mark on the thermostat marked EPF, don't know what it stands for, holds the flap mostly closed at 400 degress. The 3 o'clock position closes the damper at 500 degrees (but that was with wood when starting it up withe the ash door open). It seems to be holding for a couple hours at 400 (ash door vent closed) without yo yo'ing so far. I just turned the 'stat down a little to see how it reacts.

It's like 82 in the living room: good thing bedrooms are on the other side of the house.

Also, I got some thinner sheet metal and fabricated a new flapper. Less weight seems better and doesn't pull on the coil as much.

Fred, at what gap does your magnet slam the flapper shut? I wonder what its purpose really is... why did hitzer add a magnet to the design.?

When the stove body gets to the desired temperature you've got it set for, the flapper tends to rattle some--it can be annoying (sets my dogs off)--being it's not 100% air-tight, even with the magnet holding the flap secure, you've got enough under draft to maintain desired stove temp. You may or may not need to do something similar, but you won't really know until the season actually starts & you're burning full time.

JR, I see you did the math on what you needed for area on the opening. That's using the noodle lol. I wanted to speak up earlier about it but seems you got it covered. I run my furnace with between 1 and 2 square inches of opening for primary air depending on desired heat output. How did it go over night?

freetown fred wrote:When the stove body gets to the desired temperature you've got it set for, the flapper tends to rattle some--it can be annoying (sets my dogs off)--being it's not 100% air-tight, even with the magnet holding the flap secure, you've got enough under draft to maintain desired stove temp. You may or may not need to do something similar, but you won't really know until the season actually starts & you're burning full time.

Your stove has a blower, right? No blower on the Chubby = no rattle.

Never use the blower. My ceiling fan does all the heat distribution I need. Time will tell on all this JR

SUCCESS!! When I turned the thermostat down a little last night, the temp dropped to 375 as planned in about 45 minutes. I turned it back up to what I thought would be about 425 and went to bed. When I woke up my son was playing a drum and yelling I'm a bubble monkey, I'm a bubble monkey! Wait, that's not my point. When I woke up, I went downstairs and the Chubby was at... 425! And, what's more there was still plenty of coal in there to get it going for the day if I wanted to, which I don't cause it's August! Of course I was only running at 425 overnight. 500-525 overnight might be a diferent story, and I still think a hopper would help this stove, but hey... so far it appears to hold where I set it without issue.

Next step, paint and finish the draft box, add maybe figure out how to better mount a gasket to it. I've got some RTV silicone I used to put a gasket on my pellet smoker door, but I still wish I'd built a gasket channel into this thing.

...And I'll post more pictures of the finished setup.