Keystoker K-Lite Question

Hi all,
Been using the Keystoker Koker Lite for 6 years now, and have been very happy with it. This morning it seems like the white, nylon cam that spins and (I think) drives the push bar has been making a slight "groaning"/rubbing sound during half its rotation, and one half looks whiteish, and the other side looks blackish/grayish. I think it's made of nylon, and I don't know if it needs any type of lube or adjustment? I've never had this area at the bottom of the hopper opened up, and I haven't had to do any maintenance in this area, so this is new to me.

Don't know if there might be a way to add some type of lube or some other general maintenance that I could do to help it out? Any thoughts/experiences/suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks for your time!

If your stoker motor has the oil hole circled in the picture below, it should be oiled regularly... Use 20w oil and saturate the felt inside the hole. Mine made groaning noises until I oiled it.

maybe a little graphite/dry lube on it, it might attrack the fines and make it worse if you use a liquid type lubricant.

Yes, it's nylon, it made to protect you in case of a "hopper fire", they call it, when the grate burns back towards the chute/hopper due to too much draft, air leak on the grates, some malfunction, etc.... it will melt and stop feeding and the stove will go out eventually.

Thanks for the suggestions - I'll look for that hole/area - not sure if mine has that or not.
I have 3 in 1 silicone lubricant, and graphite powder. I may call Keystoker too, to see if they recommend a liquid or a powder for that area.
Thanks again!

Stuff breaks down at most misopportune time!!
6 years of good service might be a good time to have a spare set of all those nylon parts in-hand.
Nylon is pretty slick even without any added lube…WNY speaks wisely of not attracting fine grit with oil/grease.

And... If you've been using wet coal, it's likely a corrosion and fines build up under and around the pusher block. These hopper stoves do not do well long term if wet coal is used.

Thanks again - my coal is quite dry, so I don't think that should be an issue.
It is in its 6th year of service, and used full time from December through March, so there may be some maintenance coming soon.

One other question I have: Do any of you do any cleaning/lubing of the convection blower? Mine seems to be doing fine, but I wonder if I should be doing any regular preventative cleaning or lubing?

Very good practice using dry coal! It's also possible you have a large rock or chunk of coal in front of the pusher block. You usually get a wonky fire when the flow of coal is being blocked by a large chunk, but it can also cause squeaking and groaning when it happens.

The blowers usually have a 2 small holes somewhere on the case for the bearings (usually just sleeve type bearing) , good to lubricate them every season



I use some 3 in 1 electric motor oil,, SOMETIMES the holes are on the bottom the way it's; mounted, you have to remove to lubricate. i think my convection blower on my keystoker is like that, all the others are accessible. I had one on my Leisure line seize up and used some PB blaster and kept working it back and forth, let it soak and it finally started running again, I keep it oiled good now.

Going on 15 years on my keystoker 90K, just a direct vent blower so far, the case rotted out finally. had a spare i ordered a couple years ago. didn't take much to replace.

I attached a pic of my convection fan/blower - different configuration than the photo you sent. Mine has the two 10" filters on either side. I oil the combustion blower regularly, but don't remember ever doing anything to the convection blower?

I have a Keystoker koker and it has the same setup just bigger. I don’t think it has oil ports, or not that I’ve found. Probably sealed bearings. I have the manual for the blower. I’ll have to check. I just change the filters and vacuum out the dust. I do oil the combustion motor and the direct vent motor with 3 in 1 oil once or twice a season. Eight years old so far.

Same with me - always oil the combustion blower, but have never seen anything on the convection...

Have you ever lubed the nylon cam behind the push bar?

Wish I had the full size Koker, but my basement stairway made it nearly impossible to get it down there! K-lite does a good job though, no complaints - 6 years of heavy, consistent use!

Here is the info on the Dayton blower. Notice under Maintenance, permanent lube. Nothing to do but let it ride! I clean the pusher bar once a year. Take the entire thing out and clean the fines. Only had it groan once. After cleaning no issues. . The dry lube/graphite would be the way to go. You could put some on the nylon screws on the side too once you have it apart.

Thanks, good to know!
Does your manual give instructions for disassembling the push bar mechanism? I've never had that apart before, and I'm hesitant to futz with it - makes me nervous!

Not really. Just unscrew the motor and slide the whole assembly straight back. Once you have it out far enough you can drop the motor and nylon cam straight down and the pusher bar will be all by itself. Wait until you have an empty hopper or you’ll have a mess! I’m trying to remember if Keystoker has a video of that on their website. They have a bunch of how to videos. Check them out!