Burner Pot Deterioration.

I noticed clean coal showing up in my ash bin and the burner pot was not burning evenly. After shutting off the unit and cleaning out the burner pot I discovered that one of the pie shaped burner pot pieces had a large hole in the middle of it. it almost looked like it had been burned out.

thanks in advance for your thoughts...

It depends upon how old the pot is to determine if you should be upset or not. You need to replace that individual plate. Not too bad a job if you have the square door opening.

Opinions will vary, but mine is that you should just pull the entire stoker and freshen it up with new burner plate(s), gaskets, and check the pot bushing & auger.

Do you have a local EFM dealer?

Tim, I'm with Rob on this one. If funds are really tight, I understand not wanting to spend 2500.00+, but you have to fix the one grate anyway. If you have a round Door, I'd get over to Rite-Aid and get plenty of first aid supplies...big bandages are a must, as is antibacterial ointment. I don't know if you enjoy an adult beverage, but I'm telling you up front this is no walk in the park. If it can rust tight, it has, if it can be seized, it will be, if frustration bothers you...well, suck it up!
I'd liken it to trying to give a Wolverine a Prostate Exam, without any restraints AND wondering why he doesn't want to be your friend!! I've re-grown skin hundreds of times, but you will just have a ball with this one. You will NEVER again ask why numerous folks just love their Keystokers. Don't misunderstand me, EFM is a terrific product, but like a BMW, you better expect some "Extra Care" will be required AND likewise, tuning a Beemer AIN'T like tuning a Chevy.
Having said all that, the grates are only 20 each or less, BUT getting them out will challenge your constitution.

I assume you are familiar with the 'Monkey trying to have intimate relations with a football scenario, well, you are now the Monkey, and I hope you will fill us in on your adventure.'
If you just obtained this unit, then any reputable re-builder would have repaired, anti-seized, and freed up the square head bolts, so perhaps you can laugh at me making a big deal out of it, for your sake, I sure hope I can be the brunt of your humor.

PS: Nerve ending die in 4 days, skin regrows to about 60 % in 1 week, and the rest of the recovery will be within 90 days! (if things don't go as well as you might have liked)

I almost fell on the floor laughing with that Wolverine and prostate exam bit. WHAT A VISUAL!!!

whistlenut, why do you write 2500.00+? I recently had the job done, and the bill came to 1714.95. The company that did it had 2 strong young fellas doing the job, and I don't think they had any injuries. It took 4 hours. That included replacing the lower pot and pot side tube.

Also, the grates were not 20 each. They were 59 each.

$1715....makes me think about getting in the business.....

Yes, even that was pretty strong. Not sure why WN views this as such a big project.

Mike

CatholicBoy1957 wrote:whistlenut, why do you write 2500.00+? I recently had the job done, and the bill came to 1714.95. The company that did it had 2 strong young fellas doing the job, and I don't think they had any injuries. It took 4 hours. That included replacing the lower pot and pot side tube.

Also, the grates were not 20 each. They were 59 each.

I think he was exaggerating, but his point rings true...and that is if you hire out the job and it is tough to get things apart, and the stoker needs more than a single burner plate, you better hold on to your wallet. The lower air chamber and clean-out assembly is a lot of money from EFM, so hopefully Tim's is still serviceable.

Before replacing those parts with new ones it might be worthwhile to consider swapping out the whole stoker assembly for a good used or refurbed one.

Mike

You have to enjoy a sense of humor, and if you are one of the lucky ones, GREAT! I have never seen one that comes apart easily...not one.
I joke about the skin loss, not because I lose that much, but this job absolutely sucks.
Properly presoaked with penetrants, cleaned, lubricated and cared for...no issues, otherwise the Wolverine has the right attitude!
The Grates I bought last year were 22.50......2500 is a +/-, but it is quite likely that you will find more issues than simply changing the burner casting or grates.
Quick and dirty, sure.....short money, but since we are at the end of the season for many, perhaps it is a good time to do a full rebuild. Finances dictate the priorities......

Afraid I'm with Dougie on this one. Taking apart one of these that has been in service for a while can be,,,,,,,,,,, challenging to say the least. If it is an old style base with the full sides then expect to bust a couple studs off. A heat wrench lessens that P.I.T.A. The new style bases rule. Easy to get apart and put back together. As for the price, the guy with the parts, and who is the expert, calls the price. The cost for parts for a coal stoker can rival the cost of parts for a auto transmission. There are parts that are inexpensive and other parts that cost two weeks pay plus your second newborn. Bottom line, if you can fix it yourself you will save a ton of money. If you can't, maybe you should shop the job around until you find someone who fits your comfort zone.

I think we're all agreeing that there are some parts you'd rather not have to replace with new ones. And I agree with Scott about the mounting studs on the old bases. If you take extra care not to break the top row (i.e., the ones with the boiler behind them) the lower ones can be replaced if needed - normally without too much carnage - by breaking the welds (e.g., with a chisel).

Once the stoker assembly is out, if all that is needed is gaskets and plates, I don't see how it could take more than a few minutes, again without bloodshed, to have everything apart and be ready to start reassembly. I agree that going further than that could get into hassles and much bigger $, but that's where I'd suggest a Plan B of going for a sound used or refurbed stoker.

Mike

I did get some good advice here on this forum, and probably could have saved a fair amount of money, but I would probably have needed to have cash in hand. In fact, I still owe close to half of the bill for my repair, so I was fortunate that the company that did mine gave me credit, because I have no other credit that I could have used.

What happened to Tim, the OP? We're discussing his problem, but he must be already at work on this stoker.