Sealing the stove door

[LadyG]

The stove on my boat looks pretty much brand new, it has been nicely installed, but the door does not lock easily, if at all, and I can see a gap enough for two credit cards along the top where the door should close tight. This may be due to the inadequate door locking mechanism.

I intend to fix the door lock [asap], but I wondered if anyone had any suggestions about the door gap. My thought is to replace the seal with an oversize [ie wider] length of sealing rope, maybe held in place with some special adhesive?

PS I suspect this is a cheapo steel stove, no brand name.

PPS the stove sits on tiles, but the tiles are held in place with wood, I think I would like a proper vertical edge [metal] to stop any embers falling out of the hearth. I assume that is a good idea? Should I also cover the wood with steel, ie sort of T shaped "fence/fender"

PPS I would like a safety catch on the door to use when travelling with the stove lit, or when unattended, so that it could not possibly open accidently. This could be a simple band of thick wire round the whole stove, not sure what others do?

My electrician is a boat safety inspector, I can ask him for advice, but really I want to fix the door lock today!

 

  

Edited October 2, 2019 by LadyG

[rusty69]

A picture would be good.

 

Does the stove leak through this gap? If so, perhaps the door is warped. If you haven't already, get a smoke pellet from screw fix or an other and check for leakage before the cold really bites. 

 

Does the door not lock because it is warped? Or perhaps the sealing rope is not fitted correctly/too big /distorted by rust. 

 

A picture would be good

PPPPPPPPPS. Too many ppps's to keep up  with! 

[LadyG]

14 minutes ago, rusty69 said:

A picture would be good.

 

Does the stove leak through this gap? If so, perhaps the door is warped. If you haven't already, get a smoke pellet from screw fix or an other and check for leakage before the cold really bites. 

 

Does the door not lock because it is warped? Or perhaps the sealing rope is not fitted correctly/too big /distorted by rust. 

 

A picture would be good

PPPPPPPPPS. Too many ppps's to keep up  with! 

It looks to be brand new, maybe warping has occured because I have lit it 24/7, I don't recall the "gap" when I used it a few months ago, in "test mode"

I think the lock is not big enough, it is a rather small piece of metal which rotates with the handle, I assume the piece of metal should be big enough to firmly close the door when engaged.

I have the CO monitor close to the stove, and have held it near to the door,  at no time has it sounded, so there is no CO coming out of the stove.

I am unable to take a photo, I assume you mean one of the door catch?

 

Edited October 2, 2019 by LadyG

[alan_fincher]

Personally I would not use a stove where you could insert two credit card thicknesses along any of a door seal, even if it is not triggering any alarms.

It could easily be venting OK up the chimney 99% of the time, but still leak dangerous fumes if strong winds blew the wrong way on the external chimney.

 

I have a hatred of cheap unbranded stoves, and if that's what you have it is probably the reason.  Bodging it with catches or seals it was not designed to have fitted sounds risky to me.

I'd be looking for a replacement stove from a reputable maker, like a Boatman or a small Villager.

 

Depends how much you value your life, really.

Edited October 2, 2019 by alan_fincher

[Arthur Marshall]

I had to double the thickness of stove rope on mine to get a good seal. The rope squashes down with use. It does mean you have to exert a bit more pressure to close and lock the door, but it's that pressure on the catch which keeps the door shut. 

PS the rope usually comes with a small pot of special glue for fixing it. 

[pig]

28 minutes ago, alan_fincher said:

leak dangerous fumes if strong wings blew the wring way on the external chimney.

 

[alan_fincher]

3 minutes ago, pig said:

 

Bagger!

[David Mack]

10 hours ago, alan_fincher said:

Personally I would not use a stove where you could insert two credit card thicknesses along any of a door seal, even if it is not triggering any alarms.

 

I agree two credit card thicknesses of gap is excessive, but I note that any of the cast iron cooking ranges - Epping, Stratford etc - have several lift out components where one cast iron surface sits against another cast iron surface, with neither machined to a close tolerance fit. So the aggregate length/width of gap is more than enough to allow CO out in the wrong conditions. Yet many of us are happy to have such stoves in our boats.

[alan_fincher]

3 minutes ago, David Mack said:

Yet many of us are happy to have such stoves in our boats.

I can't say I ever really am!

They always feel a bit worrying to me!

[LadyG]

OK, well I called on the services of a neighbour, he has helped me out before with  safety issues, and he sorted it, seems it needed two washers on the catch, in order to make it "catch". Seems fine now, another day, another problem. 

I think it will never end ?

[cuthound]

19 hours ago, LadyG said:

OK, well I called on the services of a neighbour, he has helped me out before with  safety issues, and he sorted it, seems it needed two washers on the catch, in order to make it "catch". Seems fine now, another day, another problem. 

I think it will never end ?

 

That's boating for you! ?