Getting the stove serviced before winter

[Una]

I'd like to have our stove serviced before winter in Central London. Any suggestions? Contacts?

[dmr]

Assuming its a wood/coal burner rather than diesel then its generally a dirty but low tech job. Only big problem will be if any bolts won't undo. If you live on a boat then basic stove maintenance is something you should learn to do yourself, even if you get somebody else to advise you. You really really should be totally familiar with how the stove works and what faults to be looking out for.

 

.............Dave

[Una]

Good point. Will get on it.

[Tony Brooks]

Remove throat plate if it has one and sweep the chimney - a holly branch poked up and down it often does the job.

 

If the door seal(s) are falling out of compressed so they no longer seal they can usually be pulled out, the grooves cleaned and new seals stuck in. Getting the seal rope can be difficult/a mail order job nut I think Toolstation sell 6mm glass  fire rope and adhesive. I have this in my stove at home.

 

If you burn solid fuel then any of the "fire bricks" that are cracked should really be replaced to stop the metal stove side burning but if the crack is tight it will usually cause no problem.

 

If the stove is a Stovax Brunell hard luck. To get the throat plate out you must remove the fire bricks and once used for a season they always break so unless you can find someone who cuts to size its mail order again. I would not do anything to the glass apart from clean it unless the clips have rusted away, then you get the seized screw problem referred to above and back to mail order spares..

[Tonka]

When you say London, which bit ? I ask because Uxbridge Boat Centre do a lot of fire bits but are not on the internet.

[dmr]

There are likely quite a few local boaters who will give you advice and a bit of help, but might not want to take on full responsibility for a paid job.

What stove is it? Did it work ok last year or have you only just got the boat???

 

................Dave

[Una]

Dave, only got the boat in June. My son has used the stove a couple of times but obviously not recently. It's someone to advise, really. Happy to do the dirty work myself - I'd just like to be sure it's safe re CO.

[dmr]

Right, in that case get somebody in to have a good look at it. The dangers are CO but also woodwork etc near to the stove getting too hot. A problem is that some "rules" type people will suggest you tear the stove out and install a new one to the latest recommendations (not regulations!) even though the current one might be fine.

 

You must get a CO meter, and this is now a BSS requirement. The sort that gives a digital readout of CO rather than just an alarm is best as this will give you warning of very slight leakage. Burning the correct fuel (not wet wood etc) and general correct operation of the stove are also important factors.

 

.............Dave

[Una]

We have a CO alarm, heat resistant paint underneath and a mirror surround. Seems fine but I'd just like to know there are no leaks.

[Una]

When you say 'get someone to look at it' - who? Would it be someone from one of the marina's? 

[ditchcrawler]

Also when you start using it you need to think about sweeping the chimney on a routine basis 

[Una]

Thanks for the advice

 

[nbfiresprite]

1 hour ago, Una said:

We have a CO alarm, heat resistant paint underneath and a mirror surround. Seems fine but I'd just like to know there are no leaks.

Get a smoke candle or pellet, light it, pop it in the fire and close the door. Any leaks will soon show up. Best warn your neighbours before hand as they produce a dense white smoke. Or they may think the boat is on fire.

[Una]

Another great idea - where do I get one of those?

[nbfiresprite]

6 minutes ago, Una said:

Another great idea - where do I get one of those?

https://www.toolstation.com/smoke-pellets/p38123

[twooh10]

If you're on Facebook it might help to join the London Boaters group. I think they often recommend Ship Shape for this sort of thing.

Have a search of their page, it's the sort of question that gets asked a few times.

[Jen-in-Wellies]

10 hours ago, nbfiresprite said:

Get a smoke candle or pellet, light it, pop it in the fire and close the door. Any leaks will soon show up. Best warn your neighbours before hand as they produce a dense white smoke. Or they may think the boat is on fire.

Or they may think you've elected a new pope. ?

[Una]

?

[Una]

10 hours ago, twooh10 said:

If you're on Facebook it might help to join the London Boaters group. I think they often recommend Ship Shape for this sort of thing.

Have a search of their page, it's the sort of question that gets asked a few times.

Yes, thanks Twooh 10. I've been in touch with them. Waiting to hear back.