Ok so i am going to dig my lines up and replace them with something better insulated, any suggestions or websites where to buy? Also I need a bigger blower? Any ideas or good sites for that?
Shep.....may I call you this?
BEFORE we move on...was this a NEW furnace that you got? Did you receive an OWNER'S INSTRUCTION MANUAL with the unit?
Before you go digging up your lines, you should take a look at everything else first. Is the unit on a solid surface? Concrete slab or gravel? Is that surface level? Is your furnace level? I ask this because with my first and last Shaver 165 the frame was all contorted and not square no matter what one would do to it.
You do NOT want to clean the flue while the stack/firebox is hot. Let it cool down to almost nothing and you will be fine. Unless you have a 5" chimney brush, that's what size you will need to do the flue..I had to special order mine. Clean that bad boy out several times.
How about the creosote build up in the unit? Do you have the black slime oozing out when ever you open the doors?
The plate in the rear is easy to seal, it's just a pain to get to. More time consuming, but it WILL be worth your time. Use a GOOD quality silicone. I found that it's accessible best by removing the rear roof ridge and then the rear face panels and then stand on a ladder and lift or remove the insulation and wipe down the surface really well....next you will want to remove some of the water as you will want the silicone to stick...other wise if there is warm/hot water in the tank, the silicone will NOT adhere as well. YOu can drain the water and just look for yourself by lifting the plate as to how far the water had gone down....I let it drain to where the level was about 1 foot below the plate. While you have the plate off, you will find that the plate rests atop of an edge that is inside the frame...make certain that plate rests flush on that edge...then silicone all along where the gap is and do it really well.
It IS imperative that you get that plate ENTIRELY sealed!!! Many issues stem from not having this plate sealed.
Now I've given you some ideas what to do, but like I mentioned, before you go pulling up your water lines, take the fore mentioned steps first.
Regarding your wanting to get a larger blower motor...there are a few fellows on here who have the plain jane stock 165 with the same 50 cfm blower motor and slide damper along with the t-stat that originally came with the unit and EVERTHING works fine for them. I'm hoping some of them will chime in here. "You need first deal with the basics". I don't know where you live, but if you are located where it gets cold and snows a lot, you might want to wait until Spring before you go ripping things up...you will ONLY get more frustrated.
Lugnut