Coalpail.com Forum

I was just wondering about the stove pipe installation. The horizontal pipe to the thru the wall thimble is less than 3 ft. Does the pipe need to have an incline into the thimble ? Thanks
Jack

Jack Magnum wrote:The horizontal pipe to the thru the wall thimble is less than 3 ft. Does the pipe need to have an incline into the thimble ?

Probably not but why not give it a slight rise anyway?

This is from the manual;

Each joint,
including the one to the stove’s flue collar and the one to the
chimney itself should be secured with at least three sheet
metal screws. Screws may be a maximum of 3 inches apart.
A 1-1/4" (30 mm) overlap is required at each joint, including
the flue collar attachment. No more than two 90 degree elbows
should be used, and the total length of connector should
not exceed 10 feet (3 m). All horizontal runs of connector
must have a minimum upward slope of 1/4"(6 mm) per foot
(20 mm per meter).

BTW guys I fired up the stove the other day for the first time! Had a wood fire the first night then switched to coal. So far so sweet!

Mantis wrote:BTW guys I fired up the stove the other day for the first time! Had a wood fire the first night then switched to coal. So far so sweet!

Good for you! (I started my TLC yesterday be cause it was supposed to get cool & raw but it stayed to warm, so I'm letting it go out until late next week. (I've been running it with about a 1/3rd coal load anyway, to make clean out easier.

(BTW..I always get the draft going by removing the cleanout plate ( Part # 7
**Broken Link(s) Removed** & shoving some burning newspaper up into the exhaust pipe for a few minutes b4 I light the stove. Keeps smoke from entering the room) Replace the plate b4 lighting the stove.

Now that many of us are firing up our stoves, I'll mention something I do which is peculiar to the TLC:

There is a rail on the left wall of the ash pan area, (just above the ash pan & jut below the shaker mechanism linkage...see pic below) that always gets buried with ash when you shake down. If you don't clean it off, the accumulated ash misses the ash pan & can get all over your floor & also bind up the shaker linkage above it.

SO...

As part of my normal shake down procedure, I'll always take my short poker & clean off all the ash from that rail.
(This rail is also where you'll locate the "STOPS" I devised to prevent the Harman shaker problem of allowing to much travel & dumping your fire, if you choose to try them... "Stops" for Harman Shaker Mechanisms? )

I have a quick question about my TLC2000.I lit it for the first time today and it went great.I was wondering how low I can close the air inlet and still burn and not go out. I have it at 1 and a 1/2 notches from the left and the coals are a dull red just visable through the unburned coals on top. The fire box is about 1/3 full. I would like it to burn out but burn all of the coal before it does. Is this possible? Thanks, Chris

zeeklu wrote:The fire box is about 1/3 full. I would like it to burn out but burn all of the coal before it does. Is this possible? Thanks, Chris

The slide control gives you great control.( I rarely slide mine more than a few notches from the left ever) If you want to shut down I would just close the slider all the way left, & then salvage whatever 1/2 burned coal remaining tomorrow. If you want to burn it all up, open the slider to like 1/2 way & let it just burn out.

Great, thanks for the quick response. Chris

I fired up my TLC2000 last week for the first time. All went well but I noticed I need to run it with the air control lever all the way right to get a nice hot fire with the blue flames. Most people here seem to run with the lever way left. Am I doing something wrong or will it vary with different setups?

TPK wrote:I fired up my TLC2000 last week for the first time. All went well but I noticed I need to run it with the air control lever all the way right to get a nice hot fire with the blue flames. Most people here seem to run with the lever way left. Am I doing something wrong or will it vary with different setups?

Did you fill the stove up to the tops of the firebrick?.....You will not get hot or long lasting fires if you don't. Also, a new fire will want more air than a "mature" fire, but I never have to open the slider up more than about 1/2 way. I generally keep the ash door open when loading & leave it open (stay near it until you close the door) & then close it when the stove temp is at the heat I want with the temp still rising. (slider about 1/4-1/2 open tops)
What temp re you getting?

I'm getting about 480-490F at the top of the door using a fluke62 with the slider all the way open. The firebox was full and when I open the ash door the fire gets going hot. If I close the door and move the slider to 1/2 the fire turns dull red and heat output is low. Thanks for your help.

Do you need to run your stove so hot? I typically keep mine below 200* on a magnetic stack thermo &, with the blower running, that's all I need to keep my house warm until, probably around mid-December. Let m ask you a few questions:

1. Are you running a blower on the stove?
2. What coal are you using? (size & company)
3. When you load it, are you getting as much coal as you can cram in there, to the tops of the firebrick?
4. Is you cleanout plate in place. (part # 7 in the instructions)
**Broken Link(s) Removed**5. Are your secondary air sliders closed? (all the way down)
6. Do you have a manometer to check your chimney's draw?

Can you attach a photo of your stove (with the window door open) when it's loaded with coal

Yes, I'm using a blower, burning Blaschak nut size, secondary sliders are closed, plate is in place, and loading it to the top. I have a manometer but didn't use it yet and the stove is not on now(70s the past few days). My stack temp is 210-220 just above the stove. I did notice a gap where the pipe goes into the stove and sealed it with some stove RTV but did not run the stove yet with it sealed. Maybe I was losing draw there? Thanks again.

TPK wrote:I did notice a gap where the pipe goes into the stove and sealed it with some stove RTV but did not run the stove yet with it sealed. Maybe I was losing draw there? Thanks again.

While sealing that gap can't hurt, I think the very small loss of draft would not be any source of your problems. Everything you're doing sounds fine......I am really at a loss to understand why you need to have your slide control so far to the right???

I would open the ash door & look carefully at the inside of the slide control itself. It's possible that something is blocking or limiting the amount of air being allowed in????

Your stack temp seem fine.

Let's try an experiment. You may loose your fire but better now than in January!

Try this......get the stove to operating temp (say 200* on your stack thermo) & then close the slider to between the first & second notch & then just leave it like that for at least 4 hours.

If you lose your fire, you definitely have either:
1. an inlet slider problem on your ash door & maybe you can exchange ash doors where you bought it.
2. Very poor draft in your chimney. (your manometer can check that)
(If Greg (L S Farm) is reading this, he is the real expert on Manometer readings & maybe he could help us out in re draft problems)
I have a very weak draft but have no problem keeping a low fire going.

Let us know how you make out.

Anyone else have any thoughts???

Will do, I'll fire it up wednesday and give that a try. Thanks again for all your help.