Made sure I had vinegar and distilled water on hand. Dropped the cat down and as I was sweeping off the light ash with a soft paint brush got a bad spot, crumbled area. I think I only have 3 years on this one but I already have a new one on hand so it will be swapped. I could probably get another year or 2 out of it but with my stove it is not just a simple lift out cat so I will just go with new.
It doesn't look that bad yet for sure but probably could go bad quite fast. I would not throw it out; keep it as a spare.
Yes I will keep it around at least for awhile but pretty doubtful I would ever put it back in. As I said it not that easy to swap out.
New cat with holder all bolted back in and the shield is back in place. Also got on the roof to sweep the liner. Absolutely not one bit of anything in the liner other than cob webs. Can you say "dry wood". I still want to unbolt the insert surround panels and take a look in there. If all is well as it should be I will be ready for the season.
Us old guys need an assist on that heavy cat housing..I used an old scissors jack with a board to lighten the load.
I made a couple pieces of 2x4 to hold the back of the frame up until I could start the front bolts. It is not that heavy but very awkward to hold up and start the bolts while making sure you don't push on the cat and push it out.
