Trouble with S260 coal gun

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jrv8984
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Location: lower Schuylkill county, PA
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:03 am

gonna start by saying:
cleaned the boiler out, swirl chamber, cone, etc. Draft is measured at .04"
constant circulation, cast iron radiators (w/trv's on high), 70 gallon indirect dhw.

at 42 degrees outside, this thing should be driving me out of the house, The radiators are very hot, but not throw open all the windows hot like it should be with the TRV's on high.

operate limit set at 160, high limit set at 180 sv is set at 110 with the hysteresis set at 2.5

problems started because was getting a ton of unburnt coal, so i was semi sifting through it and throwing it back in the hopper. well it clogged up, and the fire all but went out. (learned my lesson) i'm guessing that the unburnt coal was because i had the operate limit set at 140 and high limit set at 160.

So the blower kicks on and the temp continues to drop to about 150 degrees before it starts an agonizingly slow creep back up to temperature. blower runs forever. I let it burn for 3 hours with the grate turned off, but the grate just seems like it runs forever. The temp doesn't climb over the 110sv setting before the blower kicks back on.

no problems with it last year once i got it up and running.

1. what the heck is the problem?
2. anybody care to share all of the settings from their inkbird controller? I'm wondering if something isnt set correctly causing my problems.

its 0100, thanks in advance for any help you guys can offerd


 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 4:30 am

Is your port cover (flapper) snapping shut when the fan starts and opening right after it stops? If it is not, there is a small channel underneath the popes hat which needs to be brushed out until the brush enters the swirl chamber. You must pull out the popes hat to find this channel. It is a tiny square or rectangular opening of only about 1-1/2" x 1-1/2 inch.

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 6:51 am

Probably needs a good cleaning if you have not done it in a while.

 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 7:19 am

yes the flapper draws shut and releases right away.
I thoroughly cleaned it before start-up
Reason I ask about the settings for the controller is because i had to replace it last year.

 
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lsayre
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Post by lsayre » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 8:38 am

Never return unburned coal to a Coal Gun. Most of it is burnt already, even if it doesn't look like it.

 
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McGiever
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Post by McGiever » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 9:04 am

lsayre wrote:
Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 4:30 am
There is a small channel underneath the popes hat which needs to be brushed out until the brush enters the swirl chamber. You must pull out the popes hat to find this channel. It is a tiny square or rectangular opening of only about 1-1/2" x 1-1/2 inch.

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StokerDon
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Post by StokerDon » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 11:33 am

jrv8984 wrote:
Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:03 am
problems started because was getting a ton of unburnt coal, so i was semi sifting through it and throwing it back in the hopper. well it clogged up, and the fire all but went out. (learned my lesson) i'm guessing that the unburnt coal was because i had the operate limit set at 140 and high limit set at 160.
You should read this.
Post by LsFarm - Axeman Anderson 260M Success.. Finally
It details the possible problem of a lot of unburnt coal in a 260. I know the AHS is a little different than the Axeman but the fire chamber is the same.

-Don


 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:44 pm

Well it seems to have straightened itself out. Although it used about 3/4's of the hopper last night, completely filled the ash pan in 16 hrs. Lots of shiny unburnt coal in that ash.

Yep I removed the popes hat and cleaned out everything including the passage way before starting this season.

 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:48 pm

Do these things prefer to operate at 160 or 180?

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:49 pm

jrv8984 wrote:
Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 1:48 pm
Do these things prefer to operate at 160 or 180?
180 degrees is the normal design temperature for most systems, but you can often run less than that.

I run mine at 165 until Christmas or so, then set it at 180.

 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 2:49 pm

Anybody got know of a replacement temperature / pressure gsuge for the boiler. The pressure side is no good.
Can it be replaced while the boiler is running?

 
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Rob R.
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Post by Rob R. » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 2:54 pm

Yes, but you will need to depressurize the boiler.

Supplyhouse.com has gauges.

 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 3:56 pm

And what is a good range for the ash temperature? Should I be able to see glowing coals above the ash grate or not at all?

 
jrv8984
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Post by jrv8984 » Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 3:58 pm

I think I may have had some of the insulating coal around the perimeter of the fire pot, hopefully I've gotten things taken care of.

 
lzaharis
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Post by lzaharis » Sun. Nov. 11, 2018 3:25 pm

jrv8984 wrote:
Sat. Nov. 10, 2018 2:49 pm
Anybody got know of a replacement temperature / pressure gsuge for the boiler. The pressure side is no good.
Can it be replaced while the boiler is running?
=================================================================================================

You can purchase a Marsh Instruments Tridicator round or square triple gauge with a 3/4" rear tapping or 3/4" bottom tapping from ACI Controls in Pittsburg, PA. These gauges are made in Ohio.

They are made in America and tested and guaranteed for 2 years and they can be returned to be recalibrated from what I remember when needed.


1-412-275-3992 ask for the inside sales desk.

I have the 4 inch square 3/4" bottom mount tridicator gauge that I replaced the two 4 inch round chinese junk gauges that Keystoker provided with the boiler and the replacement triple aquastat that I returned.

The front cover can be removed to manually adjust the altitude needle for your house as a system with a first floor
and basement would need to be set at 12 feet on the gauge.


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