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Diesel stove regulator needs attention


Mike Tee

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It seems one of my replies has got lost in the ether, maybe vapourised?😉

Diesel vapourises at about 75oC, and you will not get a pool in the pot once it has warmed up. Kerosene vapourises at about 38oC so this is why it performs better than diesel, but its calorific value is less than diesel.

I had mentioned about the catalysers, the various rings and meshes in the pot. I'm not sure what is in the Refleks, but the Bubble has a small mesh cage covered by a cone of wires supporting two rings. These help maintain a consistent temperature in the pot and will glow red. 

As I said before, the big problems with non performance are air leaks in the combustion chamber which stops the natural draw through the burner perforations.

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2 hours ago, agg221 said:

Good luck!

Closed for annual holiday, back on October 4th - the saga continues.

On Lockgate website they have a help section which shows what looks like my regulator being re-assembled - doesn't look that complicated , I just wish I was more mechanically adept but confidence and arthritis say, loudly, don't try it 'cause a new regulator is around £350!

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21 hours ago, agg221 said:

I'm pretty sure that a longer chimney will overcome the instability issues. However, I think I also have a fuelling issue (apologies to the OP for the potential derail, but actually they may have the same basic problem).

 

The fundamental problem is that I haven't ever seen it running properly. That means I don't know what 'normal' means in terms of fuelling. Take a simple one - assuming I set the stove up and turn it on but don't light it (I know this isn't the correct procedure for lighting, this is a diagnostic question) - what level should the fuel reach before it cuts out on the regulator float? Similarly, if the stove is running, what level of fuel should be visible in the base of the stove, and would that vary with setting or should it be largely constant as the increased flow is matched by the increased burn rate? Should it basically be a bit damp, or should there be a shallow pool across the whole stove base? I have a thought that maybe the regulator is at the wrong height relative to the stove base, perhaps because it has been knocked and the pipe bent at some point before my ownership, meaning it is never getting enough fuel in before cutting out (nothing to do with the regulator itself, just relative positions). If that was the case, it could never fuel properly so wouldn't run right whatever I did.

 

My last last but one post on this old thread of mine shows what a correctly running Old Dutch should look like at various regulator settings.

 

Note that because of the short chimneys used on narrowboats, you cannot get it to run with a predominately blue flame at the higher regulator settings, due to not enough draught to pull in enough air.

 

 

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Hi,

Drip Feed oil burners - Kabola, Refleks have become the biggest ( I almost typed boring) problem after leaves in the cut, or my boat goes much slower after Oct 00,01 am,  I have one, a Kabola OD4, they are good stoves. Fuel sitting in the pipes all summer, goes off, the small bore copper 'twix' carb and burner pipe gets blocked, I had all these problems with my 20 year old unit, and the burner pot developed a pin-prick hole. I took it home, re-built it, cost about £300.......now like new it lights first time, (took me 17 years to achieve this), burns perfectly. I have managed a low flame setting, for the unit and can get it to run without the pump..........the big problem with these units is one carb. seems to fit all - some units, like mine really only need setting 1 to 2.5, anything over that and the flame is too big. it boils...........have fun, until next year. Oh! and the units like to run constantly............ short term burns coke them up.

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Just tried to light my Refleks stove today for the first time in a long while. It initially let diesel in and I lit the stove, but it went out after 10 minutes or so. When I came to see why it would not let any diesel into the burner pot. When I took the lid off the regulator the float was stuck in the up position, so no fresh fuel was getting in. Tapped the float and it dropped, moved it a few times to free it off and all was OK.

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17 minutes ago, PeterF said:

Just tried to light my Refleks stove today for the first time in a long while. It initially let diesel in and I lit the stove, but it went out after 10 minutes or so. When I came to see why it would not let any diesel into the burner pot. When I took the lid off the regulator the float was stuck in the up position, so no fresh fuel was getting in. Tapped the float and it dropped, moved it a few times to free it off and all was OK.

Had to give the Dickinson a tap last year, Tried it last week ready for next tip and all OK this year

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  • 4 weeks later...

Update (if anyone's interested!) 

Had a guy from 'DaysAfloat' at the boat this morning - he went right through the diesel supply from the storage tank to the internal pan of the fire - virtually every pipe was blocked with crud that had accumulated over the years before my ownership. Took a while, but he literally removed and checked (and cleaned) everything. I was part right, the regulator was bunged up, but he found crud everywhere. Plus exchanging the c/h pump for one I had here ready - old one was knackered.

I am now sitting in shorts and T shirt and the fire is burning perfick. Radiators hot, even the calorifier water is lukewarm which is an unexpected bonus, will hopefully get hotter through the day. Sun is now shining and it is now quite warm outside - don't care, the stove is lit till I go to bed!

Cannot fault DaysAfloat although a tad expensive - but first thing this morning I had a u/s lump of iron acting as ballast - I now have a working efficient fire so would recommend them to anybody who can't fix their diesel stove.

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