AA130 cyclone seperator funnel

 
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mozz
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Post by mozz » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 9:33 am

Long time no post. Been years since i was on here. Richard might remember me, i came down there to try and solder some computer parts once. AA has been running great since 2008, 24/7/365, a few belts has been about all it has eaten. A few auger jams with wood pieces. Right now it has fly ash (i think) that is falling outside of the ash pan, i guess you would say left side door area looking at it from the front. Looks like a silvery powder, not as dusty as the fly ash in the chimney cleanout. I'm taking it the funnel is either gone or blocked. I know i probably have to shut it down to repair this. There are 2 bolts on top near the flue exit, i think these have to come out and lift the pipe out? The funnel is at the bottom of this? Any info or repair tactics are appreciated. Also should i buy parts from Williamsport? I read someone used a funnel from AHS that might fit and is stainless?


 
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Post by Retro_Origin » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 12:58 pm

I just bent a piece of aluminum into the shape and shoved it down thru the popes hat ;D then cemented all round, sure probably not the best solution but how wouldn't it achieve the same thing?

 
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Post by mozz » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 3:06 pm

Yeah i am just wondering of that's why i am getting heavier fly ash outside of the ash pan. I guess i should shut it down before it gets cold and take a look to see if it's blocked or missing.

 
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Lightning
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Post by Lightning » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 3:18 pm

Seems to me that if the cone had a blockage there wouldn't be any black coal sand/dust able to get thru..

I also get a lot of coal sand that misses the ash tub. I've read that many Axemans have that trait.

 
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Post by mozz » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 3:45 pm

It never used to do that though. This almost looks like gray sand, very consistent. It's not powdery like the fly ash in the stove pipe or cleanout. I'm guessing the funnel is gone or the opening is rusted away. I'll find out next week, i'm off for a few days so might as well shut it down.

 
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Post by Lightning » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 6:21 pm

mozz wrote:
Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 3:45 pm
This almost looks like gray sand, very consistent. It's not powdery like the fly ash in the stove pipe or cleanout.
Yep, here's a pic of what accumulates around my ash tub. It looks like black sand but highly reflective with illumination. Towards the back is some ash that probably fell off the opposite end of the ash sled.

Maybe the load of coal you are using has more fines and sand sized particles in it than before. This material gets inhaled by the fan as it comes down from the transfer head before it can go to the fuel bed and be burned. What I think is happening is that they spill over the side of the ash sled if the reciprocation of the ash sled isn't keeping up with getting them into the ash tub.

It wouldn't hurt to check your cone.. I'd be interested to see if it's defective.

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Post by mozz » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 7:07 pm

Looks similar. If it burns it's coal, if it doesn't burn, it's ash. Right? The test coming up tomorrow. Toss some in the fire or try to light it with a propane torch. Maybe the bronze bushing and/or transfer head gaskets are shot. I do have extras of them. This coal is the remainder from early this year, same as i usually get from coal contractors out near Hazleton. Maybe it's getting ground up in the doghouse, would be easy enough to check what's getting fed to the fire.
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Post by Lightning » Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 8:09 pm

I'm pretty sure the coal sand is unburned coal, although I've never tried to ignite it to see. I'm not sure it would ignite with a torch anyway, but I'm curious to know what happens if you try..

Coal is relatively brittle. The sand particles are most likely tiny chips off of the bigger pea size pieces from handling, loading, dumping ect. It may even form in the feed tube while it's tumbling.. For me it's a non issue, I wouldn't put a huge amount of time or effort into trying to prevent it. That's just my personal opinion, for whatever it's worth 🙂

 
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Post by StokerDon » Sat. Oct. 01, 2022 8:27 am

mozz wrote:
Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 9:33 am
There are 2 bolts on top near the flue exit, i think these have to come out and lift the pipe out?
Does this mean you have never taken the Pope's Hat out for cleaning? If not, it's well past time!
mozz wrote:
Fri. Sep. 30, 2022 9:33 am
The funnel is at the bottom of this?
Yes. The Pope's Hat and the funnel are the major functional parts of the Cyclone Separator. The funnel has to have a 3/4" hole in the center and the edges have to be sealed to the boiler wall for the Cyclone Separator to work.

-Don

 
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Post by mozz » Sat. Oct. 01, 2022 12:51 pm

Last time they were apart was in 2008 when it got a total rebuild in my garage. More of thinking now what lightning said, that it's unburnt coal fines. If my picture and his picture are the same, it's a common problem i would think. I didn't get around to seeing if they burn yet today, will do that later and report back. Good to see a few people helping me on this. I know i used stainless bolts where i could in the rebuild so hopefully whatever needs to come apart won't be too labor intensive. I know the gaskets on the transfer head have to be there along with the brass ring bushing, i was told why the cardboard gasket needs to be there but can't remember why. I requested a parts list from Pete but haven't heard back yet.

 
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Post by Lightning » Sat. Oct. 01, 2022 3:49 pm

Check this post and save the pdf files to your computer ;)

Post by StokerDon - AA 130 M Restoration and Installation

 
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Post by Dudest » Wed. Oct. 26, 2022 2:08 pm

My refurb S130 came without a funnel! fired it up and smoke filled the basement. Anyway they sent me a stainless funnel. There was a couple of welded beads where the funnel could rest against i pulled it up against them and sealed with high temp sealant. They told me it was important to clean it every year.

 
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Post by McGiever » Wed. Oct. 26, 2022 10:56 pm

After 14 years of 24-7-365 ya might want to look behind the fan to see in the swirl chambers also.
Man that much coal could easily fill a rail car or two 😀

BTW: There is 1- 1/4-20 x3/4” bolt down low on the left side that holds in the AA cone. Nothing else to take apart. 😉

 
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Post by mozz » Tue. Nov. 22, 2022 8:42 am

Well after my coal delivery, unit was working fine. Then after day 2 it stopped feeding coal. This has happened before over the years, usually i just ram some emt conduit down the center of the auger until it frees the jam, usually a piece of wood. Well, shining a flashlight down there i could see a lot of fines. I didn't clean the bin for a few years and figuring with the wet coal i now had a sludge bridge. Couldn't get any pipe down the center except a flat drain snake and that didn't do much good. Today i pulled the auger out of the doghouse. Flighting was sticking out about 6 " and looked like a dull fish hook. End of auger was no longer square. Out comes the grinding wheel, cut the flighting off and a piece of the auger. It's now feeding coal, doesn't appear to be over whelemed with pieces but I'll see if it can keep up. Transfer head is full, fan belt back on. I hope it can get me through the winter if not a new auger in the spring. Not bad for 14 years 24/7 since i rebuilt it. I think i ash at 3.5, i should be able to turn that down safely or turn the anthrastat to 130.
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Post by mozz » Tue. Nov. 22, 2022 9:28 am

I did peer at the cyclone separator from the bottom, wasn't blocked and i ran a small pipe up it anyway to make sure. Maybe in the spring i will remove the popes hat and reseal.


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