All About Clinkers

Questions about clinkers—I am only a month into burning coal in my AHS130, and I am wondering about clinkers. I don’t know if I have had any or not, and I wondered if someone could let me know if the chunks of fused burned coal ash that you an break apart by hand are clinkers...or are they normal ash for these units? Are clinkers harder? I read in the manual that you should periodically check for clinkers in the boiler, but it doesn’t really say how to do that. Poke a rod though the sight tube? Poke a rod through the ashes from underneath? Any AHS130 users out there who regularly check?

Hello Trumpeterb

Definition: 'clink - er
/'kliNG-ker
Stony residue from burned coal or from a furnace.
A brick with a vitrified surface
Plural noun "clinkers"
Clinker-brick walls

Its also referred to as "bone"/waste etc.

I did not know how to type in the large period between letters in the definition so shame on me.

When you see ashes/coal that is fused together and fallen off the fire bed into the ash basket or has not fallen off the fire grate those are clinkers. Some of the ash that falls off in sheets can still be broken apart with simple handling when its cold and are not real fused clinkers.

Just be doubly sure you are wearing heavy gloves or welding gloves when your poking around in there.

Axemans make big clunkers when they work. Not a problem though, they spit them out like watermelon seeds. You'll see big fused chunks in the ash. I've had them as large as a football.

I’m pretty new but watched all Stoker Dons videos so I’m pretty sure this is an example.

I get a lot of fused stuff in my ash bucket. The boiler seems to drop them out well. They are almost always easily broken apart by hand. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to poke around in the ash layer to check for these or not...the manual makes it sound like I should, but if the boiler is spitting these out, and there aren’t any problems with the operation, I will probably just let it be.

Egghead wrote: ↑

Tue. Nov. 26, 2019 8:33 pm

I’m pretty new but watched all Stoker Dons videos so I’m pretty sure this is an example.

That's a smaller one. Give it a good run and they'll grow in diameter. Not a problem at all with our boilers.

Trumpeterb wrote: ↑

Tue. Nov. 26, 2019 8:41 pm

I get a lot of fused stuff in my ash bucket. The boiler seems to drop them out well. They are almost always easily broken apart by hand. I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to poke around in the ash layer to check for these or not...the manual makes it sound like I should, but if the boiler is spitting these out, and there aren’t any problems with the operation, I will probably just let it be.

They do break apart easily, just whack them on the side of the boiler or ash bucket. They also happen should one forget to fill the boiler and it has consumed the last of the coal. If you catch it prior to it dying you will find some rather large ones in the next ash bucket. Pay no attention and let her rip!