Outdoor Wood Furnace Info
Outdoor Furnaces - Manufacturers with NON EPA-Certified Models Only => Shaver Furnace => Topic started by: horse62049 on October 01, 2010, 09:37:20 PM
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Has anyone replaced the caulk on the door yet if so what kind of caulk is best to use and how did you go about doing it noticed mine is leaking any good thoughts on this. Is it best to shout the door all the way after caulking it or leave it open just a little. thanks for any help.
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High temp silicone in a caulking tube at Menards is what I used. It's black. I put a couple thick beads all the way around the door and let it set up for a few minutes. Then I put wax paper over it and shut the door a little but not all the way to just get a form of the stove opening. Then opened the door and let it dry. Peeled the paper off afterwards. It didn't come off that great but it eventually burns away.
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I believe we had some high temp caulk that we got from Napa that we used on some burner tubes in the factory I work at.Been a while but it was good stuff.I would make sure you get all the old dug out ,and maybe run a wire brush down the groove really good to get all the old out.
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I talked to Shaver about this . They said to use regular silicone because it holds up better than the high temp stuff.
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can u replace the caulk with fire door rope
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If you can replace with rope gasket, and forget the caulk. I Have rope on mine, not a shaver but suppose to be a copy of a shaver from what I hear.( Natures Comfort)
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Hello,
I am new to the site (just registered). I recently installed a Shaver 165 and from the start the fire box door was leaking so I placed a thin washer between the door latch and the catch on the OWB housing. The washer seemed to work but I was thinking about drilling and taping a hole on the catch, and inserting a bolt so I could adjust the preasure on the door as needed to tighten the door seal as needed. Has anyone tried that? I had done some of the suggested mods to the furnace before I started using it, but I was wondering about the over flow tube mod. What does it do and how is it installed? When I first started the furnace two weeks ago the outside temp was in the 30* range but the last few days it was warm but I kept the furnace going because of DHW I now notice a lot of moisture pours out when I open the fire box door(black liquid), will this stop when the furnace cycles more frequently?
I purchased the furnace from Greg Steinacher in Jerseyville, IL. Greg did a good job in advising me of some of the needed mods and with following up after the sale.
I heat two seperate zones in my house and the dhw.
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Instead of drilling a hole for the washer, just use some silicone as if it were glue and glue/silicone the washer in place. It can be removed with a knife if you need to.
the black liquid is normal and is from condensation. It will go away after a while. I get it every year when i fire up the boiler.
I heard that Shaver changed the overflow tube/vent. I am not sure if this is true though. My shaver is 4 years ols and the tube/vent comes out of the side near the refill valve.
Anyway......
The over flow tube as it comes with the furnace allows the whole surface of the water in the water jacket to be exposed to the air. This allows more water to evaporate.
If you put an 90*elbow on the tube and add some more water, then only that little bit of water surface inside the elbow is exposed to the air. Much, much less evaporation.
Here is how I did mine. I got a 3 inch piece of 1" pex and slid over the overflow tube. I then got a semi clear plastic 90* elbow from Tractor Supply and put in the end of the pex. I secure with two hose clamps and put silicone (for plastic) and put around joints to prevent leaks.
I can now see my water level inside the elbow. I added seveal more gallons of water and raised the water level to where it is slightly higher then the top of the factory vent tube.
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Mike,
How's that rope gasket working out for you? My Shaver 250 will be burning now come three weeks Nov ember 18th...this Friday. The firebox and ash door were fine, but now there are whiffs of smoke leaking from the doors. I adjusted the both on the firebox door and one can only tighten it too much. Seems to me that the silicone caulk is crushed. I did not tighten the bolt down unitl just last week when it began whiffing.
My furnace has been running non-stop since October 28th and I really can't open the door and leave it open due to the animals wandering the woods here not to mention it's a bit of a fir hazard being here in the woods.
Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Lugnut
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I just received an email to Donald Burge at Shaver regarding the whiffing of smoke at the doors:
Don,
I haven't messed with the auto damper yet...will do so on Wednesday. However I have another question for you to ponder or ask your supervisor. My firebox and ash door are whiffing smoke. Both are tight, but IO'm still having air leakage around them. I adjusted the bolt on the firebox door, yet I still have air leakage. Any thoughts on how I can rectify this? The furnace is too hot now and has been to put more silicone on the door and I can NOT leave the door open for any period of time because of the area animals wandering the area of my home, not to mention that it would be a bad fire hazard.
So I'm open to suggestions and ones that will rectify my issues here.
Here is his response:
Please check youre stove flue then youre ash pan. And then fire grates hope this wors for you
Donald Burge
Weld-Rite Inc./Shaver Furnace
1.855.895.3111 ext. 207
Fax : 1.870.895.3105
Donald@weldriteinc.com
So I inquired what in the world would the chimney have anything to do with it...the chimney is clear as there is smoke coming out of it and the ash pan is clean. What would the fire grates have anything to do with this? :bash:
Lugnut
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if your chimney is partially blocked and needs cleaning it will blow smoke from the door
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Mober....thank you. I've let the fire burn down and out today so I could check this. It's warm today anyway....still need the heat for the DWH, but that can wait. I need to get this air leak thingy nipped in the bud. Thanks again. Have to measure the size of the chimney and go buy a brush.
I apologize for all the comments and questions, but I'm STILL in the LEARNING process. Hope that next year I can be one of the responders to questions and not just the questioner.
Lugnut
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Questions, that is how we learn!
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I think a lot of this shows the importance of choosing a good dealer. That's for those who didn't buy direct of course.
If ur chimney is clogged that could happen, but from what I've seen when that happens the stove won't come up to temp like it should and the fan kinda blows back out because it can't go in. Hoping you get it all worked out. I'd check to see if the door is starting to warp too, heard several stories of warped doors not fitting on shavers
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Questions, that is how we learn!
Yes sir you are most correct, but I don't want to seem like a burden as many of my questions may have already been asked. Is there an archives on this site and how far back does it venture?
Maybe there should be a page for "most frequently asked questions." J :thumbup: Just thinking out loud here.
So read below for my next new (to me) couple of questions.
Jerry
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I think a lot of this shows the importance of choosing a good dealer. That's for those who didn't buy direct of course.
If ur chimney is clogged that could happen, but from what I've seen when that happens the stove won't come up to temp like it should and the fan kinda blows back out because it can't go in. Hoping you get it all worked out. I'd check to see if the door is starting to warp too, heard several stories of warped doors not fitting on shavers
Scott...this is true in anything and everything one purchases. Here's how I went about doing what I did. I spent about one year researching and pricing OWBs and looking for the companies that were nearest to me OR that had reasonable shipping rates. I was also on a fixed budget and I knew what I could afford. Well first manufacture store that came out to visit me was from down the road about 1`5 miles....good..he's close. Well he sells Central Boiler. I inquired how much for installation and a furnace that would take care of my 3700 sq. ft. house and 1000 sq.ft. shop..."almost" $20k!!! I told him, I would have to live in my house for over 50 years to recoup my money. Now I'm 64 years old...you guys do the math!
Then there was another shop somewhat local and they came out. i don't recall the name of the unit, but their total cost was $15k. So after hearing this, I thought I b est look around and also better see about doing most of the installation my self or find a shop that will install but not rake me over the coals.
I ended up going with Shaver because of the "simplicity" of their OWB. No gimmicks no digital and should anything have to be replaced, I could get it at Fleet Farm or Menard's or Grainger for that matter. I checked into shipping and it was not too bad. And the price of the unit was very reasonable. I initially purchased a Shaver 165 and I will NOT going into detail, but will say this...I gave them a choice to either come pick the trash up and send me my money back, of build a brand new furnace, something that they would put in THEIR own living room and that the wife would display her fine china in. I also up graded to the 250 while I was at it. I got the new 250 and it is really nice......and then I notice that the owner's manual does not really explain lots of things...if it did, I wouldn't be on the website asking all these questions.
The fellow I talked to about the Shaver resides about 25 miles from me, and I've emailed him on occasion but he doesn't seem to know much about anything other than, put the wood in and let'er rip. At least this is what I have gathered. I was in contact for a while with a Jimmy Reese at Shaver, but he is no longer with the company, which is too bad because he WAS very personable and would respond to my questions either the same day or the next for sure. Now I send an email and the new guy , well......let's just say, I miss Jimmy.
The company that I somehow MISSED in my researching of OWFs was Royal American and they are located about 35 miles from me...I'm in Greenleaf, WI. and they are located in Plymouth, WI. I did go to them and purchase my water-to-air exchanger along with the brazed plate exchanger. ...even asked if they took trade-ins. So this is the gist of my dealing with Shaver.....
Chimney was a bit loaded with Creosote, and I cleaned it out this afternoon. I've read about the doors warping on these furnaces, I'll take a closer look at that this weekend. Wanted to get the furnace up and running again because it's going down to 28 tonight and the wife isn't home yet and I KNOW she'll be wanting to shower and there better be hot water for her....
Jerry
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Not downing your decision, I just was saying for the average customer it's reasons and things like this that make having a good local dealer important.
20k? 15k? This are crazy high numbers! Some people must try to make 10k on a job lol
In regards to the simplicity of the unit, brands like natures comfort or heatmaster aren't more complicated. I like you hate unnecessary gadgets.
I've never heard much good about Royal Americans either. Haven't had any personal experience with them. Didn't they go out of business and someone buy up there inventory?
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Scott,
I'm not aware of them going out of business unless it was just recently. When I bought my exchangers this last year, and I do believe it was in March or April, the place in Plymouth was still selling them. Neighbor of mine has a Royal American, though he has not told me why he bought it or if he has had good luck.
Like I stated in my of my earlier posts, now of these furnaces is perfect, they all have their issues or the dealers have issues.
Yep, I swear those were the numbers for installation of the furnace. They asked me if I was going to trench? I told them no, that's what I'm paying you to do. The furnace would have been setting exactly where the present one is...115' from the rear of my house and the shop is but a mere 75' from the furnace. There are unscrupulous dealers out amongst us as well....all out to take you for the almighty buck AND if someone is so naive that they can't see that they are being taken, well then, by all means take them. but I VALUE honest dealers and installers...but even those folks are far and few between anymore.
And yes, I AGREE with your assessment on having a GOOD local dealer.
Lugnut
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I just completed an install, it was 185 ft to one house and 175 to another, both with domestic water heating and furnace. They purchased a 5000e heatmaster, I did the entire install digging and all, there total bill was under 11,500.
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well there ya go...IF you had your shop in North East Wisconsin, I may have rang you up. :) But I went with whom I thought would give me the best quality for the least amount of money. Now, if any of my friends inquire as to who makes the best OWB, I know one company that I will not recommend. Actually I will tell them to do their own research and that they might want to access this forum and ask MANY questions before going with any one chosen company.
Jerry
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Just fired it up last week (temps been higher than usual) and stove has been leaking water. Looks like it is coming from above door but need a way to test it any ideas? Also, does anyone else have trouble with evaporation from the water holding take? My rope around the door burned out last year is the rope just a standard stove rope from lowes.
Thanks for time,
Mj
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Welcome to the site Marsh, yes the rope from lowes will work fine. If your door seal is bad that may be causing your stove to over heat and boil over or steem up loosing water and look like a leak.