EFM AF-150 Disassembly, Rebuild, Installation

 
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cntbill
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Post by cntbill » Thu. Apr. 27, 2017 1:19 am

I Purchased a older 80's AF-150, it was shut down a few days ago or so, and so I'm looking for some suggestions and tips on disassembly. Don't have much experience with an EFM except what I have read here on the forum and seen a few in operation.

I have to get it out of the basement of the house it's in by Saturday. Plan is to take it apart Friday so if I'm lucky and I get help I'll be taking it out Saturday. The outside basement access is more or less a Bilco door so I can't see it coming out in one piece.

My Train of thought is first to get the electrical out of the way, then the plenum and duct work disconnect.
Then from what I've been reading remove the auger, fan and motor cover, then slide the pot out.
Then move on to the covers and blower motor assembly.
Am I missing anything?

So is there anything I have to watch out for? I want to be careful and as gentle as I can as it is in nice condition.

I'm guessing the weight of the main unit after every thing is taken apart would be in the 300-500lb range so it should be manageable by two people, but I'm not sure about getting it up the stairway wether I should lay planks down and drag it up or try a appliance dolly.

So thoughts, suggestions?

Thanks,
Bill...


 
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Post by coaledsweat » Thu. Apr. 27, 2017 9:17 am

Planks and dolly, make it easy on yourself.

 
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cntbill
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Post by cntbill » Thu. Apr. 27, 2017 9:41 am

coaledsweat wrote:Planks and dolly, make it easy on yourself.
Yes, I was thinking two furniture dolly's, Thanks

 
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Post by Pauliewog » Fri. Apr. 28, 2017 12:16 pm

coaledsweat wrote:Planks and dolly, make it easy on yourself.
+2 on the Planks and dolly ....... And a come-a-long or chain fall if you have one or can borrow one.

Paulie

 
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cntbill
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Post by cntbill » Fri. Apr. 28, 2017 9:41 pm

Thanks for the suggestions guys ! It's home!

As it turned out there was no way the EFM would fit through the basement doorway without complete disassembly. So completely dissembled it and once apart the main unit was not really that heavy. The homeowner came home when I was finished and I was putting the sheet metal in the truck, he went down and checked it out and suggested that maybe the two of us could just carry it out...well that's what we did, stairs proved to be a little tricky, but we did it.
The only problem I had with disassembly was with the auger and auger tube, couldn't seem to get the auger out nor would the two set screw come loose with the limited tools I had. So I was able to disconnect the motor assembly from the pot, then pulled the pot with the air tube and auger out. So other than this issue everything else went fine. Cudo's to Stoker Don on his assembly video's, watched them and just reversed the process.

Couple of pics...
IMG_20170428_110343.jpg

At 11 AM

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IMG_20170428_140644.jpg

Getting ready to pull the Motor/Fan Assembly

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IMG_20170428_143939.jpg

Motor assembly removed, inverted ash pan supporting pot

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IMG_20170428_144506.jpg

Pot assembly out with connected tubes... yea going to need grates

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IMG_20170428_144524.jpg

Ready to go... sorry for the poor photos, couldn't get flash to work on crappy cell

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IMG_20170428_185616.jpg

It's home! Now for unloading and reassembly

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Post by StokerDon » Sun. Aug. 13, 2017 9:34 am

cntbill wrote:The only problem I had with disassembly was with the auger and auger tube, couldn't seem to get the auger out nor would the two set screw come loose with the limited tools I had. So I was able to disconnect the motor assembly from the pot, then pulled the pot with the air tube and auger out. So other than this issue everything else went fine. Cudo's to Stoker Don on his assembly video's, watched them and just reversed the process.
Bill,
Glad I was able to help, in a small way.

Once you pull the cotter pin out of the pot auger it should come right out, unless the bushings are corroded together. The feed pipe is sometimes corroded into the pot. Cut it off with about 2" sticking out,then put a sawzall inside and make 2 cuts opposite each other. This effectively cuts the pipe in half long ways. Be careful not to cut into the pot when doing this.

That looks like a really nice unit. Thank you for posting the pictures, I have never had a good look at an EFM hot air furnace and I don't remember seeing any pictures on the forum.

-Don

 
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Post by Rob R. » Sun. Aug. 13, 2017 10:03 am

That AF150 is a beauty. Nice find!


 
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Post by cntbill » Sun. Aug. 13, 2017 11:35 pm

StokerDon wrote: Glad I was able to help, in a small way.

Once you pull the cotter pin out of the pot auger it should come right out, unless the bushings are corroded together. The feed pipe is sometimes corroded into the pot. Cut it off with about 2" sticking out,then put a sawzall inside and make 2 cuts opposite each other. This effectively cuts the pipe in half long ways. Be careful not to cut into the pot when doing this.

That looks like a really nice unit. Thank you for posting the pictures, I have never had a good look at an EFM hot air furnace and I don't remember seeing any pictures on the forum.

-Don
Thanks for the suggestion, haven't attempted the feed pipe yet. The main problem I had at the time when taking it apart was the burner worm did want to come out, but once I had it unload and had more room to fiddle with it, I got the worm out, the shaft bushing was hanging it up.

So my list of things to replace include the worm and gooseneck bushings, and the burner plates so far, oh and of course gaskets. Maybe one of these times soon I can get them just need to figure where.

But at this very moment I haven't done much with the AF150 but need to get my butt in gear soon.... :oops:
Still need to finish getting the Bit coal out of the bin and the Warm Morning moved out. Then I can start figuring the placement for the furnace and feed.

But I have one thought... question, Would putting a hot water coil in make sense or even be a good idea? Pretty much like any other hot air stoker that has them installed, but then I'm thinking the S20 would be too much for such a thing?

I'll be taking more pictures as I go...

 
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Post by cntbill » Sun. Aug. 13, 2017 11:38 pm

Rob R. wrote:That AF150 is a beauty. Nice find!
Yes Thanks! I feel very fortunate finding one that I was able to purchase... :D

 
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Post by StokerDon » Mon. Sep. 11, 2017 8:25 pm

Sorry I left ya hang'in there Bill, I'm still getting used to this new forum layout.

Yes, you will need a new pot bushing, auger bushing, gaskets and burn plates. I would put all new pieces in, you don't want to be changing burn plates for many, many years once that stoker is in there.

You may also need new augers and feed pipes. Feed pipes are cheap, augers, not so much.

You should be able to buy this stuff from any EFM dealer. Mark's Supply is great to deal with and they have been working on coal fired equipment for a long time, 570-462-0748. You could also contact member "scrapper23_jr". He is an EFM dealer to and has been refurbing and installing them for a very long time.

-Don

 
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Post by Pacowy » Mon. Sep. 11, 2017 11:56 pm

I'm not as gung-ho as some people regarding replacement of used parts that haven't actually failed. Yes, old burn grates eventually are likely to crack, but new ones seem to be pretty susceptible to warping. IMO, you don't necessarily gain ground by replacing grates that show no signs of failure. Keeping a few spares around is certainly a good idea. Similarly, a spare motor and some shear pins are also good to have on hand in case failures occur.

I don't think the auger feed pipes are cheap if you get the EFM factory ones and/or stainless. Fairly cheap non-stainless copies are available. With the pipes and augers, I would suggest replacing only as indicated by condition. And for virtually all parts, I wouldn't hesitate to consider good used as reasonable (and likely more economical) alternatives vs. new EFM factory parts.

Mike

 
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Post by cntbill » Tue. Sep. 12, 2017 12:16 am

StokerDon wrote:Sorry I left ya hang'in there Bill, I'm still getting used to this new forum layout.

Yes, you will need a new pot bushing, auger bushing, gaskets and burn plates. I would put all new pieces in, you don't want to be changing burn plates for many, many years once that stoker is in there.

You may also need new augers and feed pipes. Feed pipes are cheap, augers, not so much.

You should be able to buy this stuff from any EFM dealer. Mark's Supply is great to deal with and they have been working on coal fired equipment for a long time, 570-462-0748. You could also contact member "scrapper23_jr". He is an EFM dealer to and has been refurbing and installing them for a very long time.

-Don
No Problem... know what you mean..

Yes, both Mark's and Scrapper have been recommended to me, most weeks I drive by Scrappers place at least twice during work, so I think I'll have to stop by one of these times.

This past week finally got to the pot assembly, got the grate ring out easily one twist with the hand impact screwdriver and wrench and "snap" which is just as well as new screws should be used ;) One grate is broken and most of the others are warped so definitely need to be replaced. I got the pot bushing out using the method you described for the feed tub. :D

But speaking of the feed tube is there a real reason or what is the reason I should remove and replace it ? It appears in good condition.

But now my real problem is the gooseneck the ring that supports the burner plates a section was broken and then my taping to remove some of the rust broke another section. My wife does not want to hear that I have to get a new gooseneck so I did some fancy welding and brazing and created the broken part, not the the prettiest but I am sure it will work, well at least for a while, hammered a bit on it and it stayed :? Below is a couple of photo's, should I chance it?
IMG_20170906_005053 (1).jpg

Before Cleaning

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IMG_20170908_004335 (1).jpg

After a little cleanup, you can see the feed tube holes

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IMG_20170911_001617 (1).jpg

My Patch Job

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cntbill
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Post by cntbill » Tue. Sep. 12, 2017 12:38 am

Pacowy wrote:I'm not as gung-ho as some people regarding replacement of used parts that haven't actually failed. Yes, old burn grates eventually are likely to crack, but new ones seem to be pretty susceptible to warping. IMO, you don't necessarily gain ground by replacing grates that show no signs of failure. Keeping a few spares around is certainly a good idea. Similarly, a spare motor and some shear pins are also good to have on hand in case failures occur.

I don't think the auger feed pipes are cheap if you get the EFM factory ones and/or stainless. Fairly cheap non-stainless copies are available. With the pipes and augers, I would suggest replacing only as indicated by condition. And for virtually all parts, I wouldn't hesitate to consider good used as reasonable (and likely more economical) alternatives vs. new EFM factory parts.

Mike
Mike,

Yes, I am with you on this, that is why I put a "Wanted" ad up for the grates. I have one that is completely broken, and at least three others that have cracks on each side of the mounting screw. And looking closer at them the only place where they are warped a bit is the top edge on each side of those cracks.

As far as the feed pipe goes that's up in the air at the moment as to whether I should replace it or not. I know if I decide to replace it I can make one, just need to get a piece of suitable pipe.

Here is the best photo that I have at the moment of the burner plates.
IMG_20170908_004645 (1).jpg

Haven't removed them yet...

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Post by Pacowy » Tue. Sep. 12, 2017 10:11 am

Those upper cracks seem a little unusual - maybe gasketing was cobbed up at some point? Similarly, if you make a new auger pipe those holes in the old one seem pretty generous; maybe try a search for those specs. Lastly, I suggest minimizing use of a hammer to remove rust from cast. ;)

Mike

 
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Post by Rob R. » Tue. Sep. 12, 2017 10:25 am

If I remember correctly, the holes in the feed tube should be 1/4".


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