Coalpail.com Forum

How long is your auger? Is it short and the barrel is right next to the boiler?

Here is a picture of the ash ring with the boiler not running. To me it seems like there is too much ash build up around the ring and fire. I do not have a manometer. To check for draft I used a cigarette and the smoke was sucked into the boiler. I am using CO monitors. I do have to apologize for one thing I thought I mention in my first post the coal is not wet nor is it oily but it does have fine pieces of wood mixed in which I try to eliminate as much as possible while loading the barrel. Im not quite sure what is meant by make up air. As for the auger length I don't know exactly how long it is. The barrel is right next to the boiler.

Scottscoaled wrote:How long is your auger? Is it short and the barrel is right next to the boiler?

Dump your fire and clean the pot. I think a bunch of your holes are plugged. Also check the fines plate is sealing correctly on the bottom.

bejm1 wrote:As for the auger length I don't know exactly how long it is. The barrel is right next to the boiler.

EFM does not recommend using such a short piece of auger for just this reason...it can cause smoke/fumes to be blown back into the barrel. This has happened to so many people I feel silly for not asking about the auger in the first place.

The ash ring when the stoker is not running is not relevant, only when it has been running continuously for 30-45 minutes.

I understand what you mean by dumping the fire. As for cleaning the pot and checking the fines plate to see if its sealing can you explain to me how this is done. I am trying to learn how to do all the maintenance on the boiler

Scottscoaled wrote:Dump your fire and clean the pot. I think a bunch of your holes are plugged. Also check the fines plate is sealing correctly on the bottom.

I haven't had any problems with the boiler until now that's why im wondering what could be the problem

Rob R. wrote:

bejm1 wrote:As for the auger length I don't know exactly how long it is. The barrel is right next to the boiler.

EFM does not recommend using such a short piece of auger for just this reason...it can cause smoke/fumes to be blown back into the barrel. This has happened to so many people I feel silly for not asking about the auger in the first place.

The ash ring when the stoker is not running is not relevant, only when it has been running continuously for 30-45 minutes.

The air isn't going thru your coal. The holes in the burner plate could have become plugged ( not likely but a possibility), or your fines cleanout plate could have warped and letting air escape out the bottom ( once again, not likely but a possibility) Then there is the possibility that you have the air and feed adjustments mixed up. Like you are adjusting the feed when you think you are adjusting the air or vice a versa. You could also have a buildup of fines, either plugging your bowl or plugging the holes in your auger tube. Right now I would dump the fire, which means taking a scoop and dumping everything in your pot over the side into the ash pan. Do a little investigating and see what's up. You have a square door EFM which means you should be able to do it easy enough. You didn't burn any corn in that by chance did you?

As I continue to investigate this problem and try a few things to resolve this issue I learned that in fact the coal was wet wouldn't have known it until I was told to empty the barrel and drill holes on the bottom. Once I started emptying the barrel I started seeing all kinds of wetness on the sides near the middle of the barrel. So I have drilled holes on the bottom and I am monitoring this process. I do know how to adjust the feed and the air properly I don't have them mixed up. And also I do know what is meant by dumping the fire. I appreciate everyone's help in this matter.

Scottscoaled wrote:The air isn't going thru your coal. The holes in the burner plate could have become plugged ( not likely but a possibility), or your fines cleanout plate could have warped and letting air escape out the bottom ( once again, not likely but a possibility) Then there is the possibility that you have the air and feed adjustments mixed up. Like you are adjusting the feed when you think you are adjusting the air or vice a versa. You could also have a buildup of fines, either plugging your bowl or plugging the holes in your auger tube. Right now I would dump the fire, which means taking a scoop and dumping everything in your pot over the side into the ash pan. Do a little investigating and see what's up. You have a square door EFM which means you should be able to do it easy enough. You didn't burn any corn in that by chance did you?

Please keep us posted on whether getting the water out of the barrel helps. If it has been feeding wet coal with a lot of fines you probably should check the air chamber (through the holes on the bottom with the lever pulled) to make sure it's not gummed up. Wet fines also sometimes clog the air holes in the auger pipe, which can lead to the smoke problem. Hopefully making sure the coal is reasonably dry will get things back on track.

Some bagged coal tends to come with a lot of water in it. If you're using coal that comes to you that way you might want to open and drain bags a day or two ahead of time so the water doesn't go into the drum in the first place.

Mike

bejm1 wrote:As I continue to investigate this problem and try a few things to resolve this issue I learned that in fact the coal was wet wouldn't have known it until I was told to empty the barrel and drill holes on the bottom. Once I started emptying the barrel I started seeing all kinds of wetness on the sides near the middle of the barrel. So I have drilled holes on the bottom and I am monitoring this process. I do know how to adjust the feed and the air properly I don't have them mixed up. And also I do know what is meant by dumping the fire. I appreciate everyone's help in this matter.

Scottscoaled wrote:The air isn't going thru your coal. The holes in the burner plate could have become plugged ( not likely but a possibility), or your fines cleanout plate could have warped and letting air escape out the bottom ( once again, not likely but a possibility) Then there is the possibility that you have the air and feed adjustments mixed up. Like you are adjusting the feed when you think you are adjusting the air or vice a versa. You could also have a buildup of fines, either plugging your bowl or plugging the holes in your auger tube. Right now I would dump the fire, which means taking a scoop and dumping everything in your pot over the side into the ash pan. Do a little investigating and see what's up. You have a square door EFM which means you should be able to do it easy enough. You didn't burn any corn in that by chance did you?

Sorry! Didn't mean to come off that way. Just making sure not missing the easy things. With a short feed auger everything is more critical. Where did you get your coal?