In loving memory of Kenis D. Keathley 6/4/81 - 3/27/22 Loving father, husband, brother, friend and firewood hoarder Rest in peace, Dexterday

Time for replacing the ceramics in the Wood Gun gasification boiler.

Discussion in 'OWB's and Gasification Boilers' started by Gasifier, Sep 26, 2019.

  1. campinspecter

    campinspecter

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    Those bubbles help moisture escape as the refractory cures. ( looks like green or uncured refractory)
     
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  2. Eric VW

    Eric VW Moderator

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    That may be so, but in my experience of pouring refractory parts, it also shows a lack of sufficient vibratory action.
     
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  3. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    Alan. Do you think it should be warmed with several small fires. Then increasing the size of fires slowly to help the curing?
     
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  4. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    Are you speaking of ceramic refractory or concrete? Same?
     
  5. brenndatomu

    brenndatomu

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    I used to work at a steel mill and they would reline the huge ladles that the molten metal was poured into kinda often...they used a very dense firebrick in those...but I was told that the curing process on those is very detailed and needs to be carried out precisely...I think "aeriated" refractory offers a little more fudge factor for the "retail public"...
     
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  6. Eric VW

    Eric VW Moderator

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    No. Refractory.
    Defined as not concrete(Portland cement).
     
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  7. nsmaple

    nsmaple

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    That's what I would do.

    My first couple of fires had water dripping out the front. Scared me a little bit. But it didn't last long, and the originals are still in there. Cracked in a couple spots, but starting onto season 8 with them with no (well, not much) worries.
     
  8. campinspecter

    campinspecter

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    It won't hurt . Going from room temp , to 2000 F in several minutes can have a very large expansion factor .
    100_2497.JPG
    I make my own nozzles ( each is about 40 lbs) very dense 3000 degree refractory . Before they are installed each get cooked in the kitchen range oven going from a 170 degrees to 550 degrees in 50 degree increments allowing for a half hour for every 50 degrees ,this process really stinks .Then when placed in the boiler I do five burns using 3lbs of fir kindling and 2 hours for each cycle . My home nozzles far out last the factory ones .
     
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  9. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    New blanket piece here and everything installed.
    A7538DDE-57BB-4566-AB4B-8F13E4B4F3A6.jpeg 06D90ACE-605A-4940-9783-BE8072B08BE6.jpeg 3FB3FBFE-C47B-4667-95B2-58FACA5E614C.jpeg 65AFCC2E-CFB4-4194-8AE3-568C812255D0.jpeg
    Everything seems to fit okay. Not perfect, but fairly close. Now to decide what I need to use the trowel-ease on. But first a short break for a little caffeine and breafas!
     
  10. campinspecter

    campinspecter

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  11. Heat550

    Heat550

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    So every 9 years they need to be replaced ? How much did new set cost ?

    Sent from my LGL84VL using Tapatalk
     
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  12. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    New full set of ceramics with new blanket and new nozzle bricks were $1300! :doh::picard:Oh well. In eight seasons I’ll save about $24,000-$28,000 in fuel oil cost. My boiler heats my large house, attached garage, and domestic hot water.
     
  13. brenndatomu

    brenndatomu

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    Holy moley! :eek: :faint:
    I would have been making a cast of those puppy's so I can make my own next time!
     
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  14. campinspecter

    campinspecter

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    Sounds like a good price!

    The complete refractory for a Jetstream in 2011 was $ 1600 fob Turo, Nova Scotia
    IMGP3368.JPG

    It weighed around five hundred lbs.
    IMGP3371.JPG

    High density refractory is heavy and quite expensive and Gasifiers' would be very complicated to form. IMGP3372.JPG
     
  15. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    I know a guy who spent a LOT of time researching and making his own replacements. They didn’t work out very well.
     
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  16. Canadian border VT

    Canadian border VT

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    Gasifier, yes its hard to swallow that big maintenance expense. I find it odd that we complain about maintenance on our heating devices. But furnaces that use oil or Nat. Gas have similar maintenance costs.
     
  17. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    It is time.... 0B86BCB8-2299-4320-A961-B4D2644B335D.jpeg
    slowly warming the boiler up. :fire:
     
  18. Gasifier

    Gasifier

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    Wood Gun Gasifier is running smoothly. The colder it gets the smoother it seems to run.:thumbs:
     
  19. lukem

    lukem

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    My boiler runs way better in the cold too.
     
  20. Locust Post

    Locust Post

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    I have never experienced a gasifier but I know my stove burns extreme!y well when it is really cold outside. This was an interesting thread.
     
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