Leak in the OWB,,

[greendohn]

Started losing water from the old 4400 Woodmaster.
Removed the metal and insulation from the drum and discovered a pinhole on the OUTER drum, NOT the firebox, about 4" up from the bottom. NOT LOOKING FOR WARRANTY, the stove is too old to worry about warranty.
Woodmaster is sending me a free 16" x 22" might be 24" plate which is precurved and the local welder says give him a call when I get the plate. (a "patch plate")
Have any of you guys had to repair a leak? How'd you do the repair?
Anyone use Liquid Boiler Repair? the stuff you pour into the water?

 

[les-or-more]

Started losing water from the old 4400 Woodmaster.
Removed the metal and insulation from the drum and discovered a pinhole on the OUTER drum, NOT the firebox, about 4" up from the bottom. NOT LOOKING FOR WARRANTY, the stove is too old to worry about warranty.
Woodmaster is sending me a free 16" x 22" might be 24" plate which is precurved and the local welder says give him a call when I get the plate. (a "patch plate")
Have any of you guys had to repair a leak? How'd you do the repair?
Anyone use Liquid Boiler Repair? the stuff you pour into the water?

I have fixed a lot of them, none of the "easy fixes" the owners have tried have worked so far.

Here is a wood master 434 I put a new chimney on three years ago.

 

[greendohn]

I have fixed a lot of them, none of the "easy fixes" the owners have tried have worked so far.
View attachment 467955
Here is a wood master 434 I put a new chimney on three years ago.

Yep, the chimney, vent and lift point seem to be common areas of rot on these stoves. I have kept an eyeball on the sealant around those areas and always kept it water tight,,those areas look great on my unit.
Looks like some good work you have done there, big job!!
The thought of some "pour in dope" to get me running until the patch plate and welder show up is what I have running thru my thick skull,,not making any sudden moves,,it's breaking my heart when I hear the L.P. furnace fire up!! It's the **** nightmares are of!!LOL
The drum sounds good and solid when "pinging" it with a hammer. It appears the insulation has been wet in the area of the pinhole for quite some time.
les-or-more, thanks for the reply.

 

[dave_dj1]

Put some JB weld on it to tide you over. I would think a 24" patch plate is a little overkill for a pinhole. I'm sure a good welder could put a small patch on there for you unless the material is compromised in a larger area around the pinhole.

 

[les-or-more]

Here is the almost done, after a couple of days use to be certain there were no leaks. I put a 6" chimney on this one like the newer models instead of the 8" it had, owner claims he never saw any difference at all. We were hoping for less wood consumption, but little to no change, he has a small house that is well insulated, so maybe it is at the minimum it can burn and stay going?

 

[les-or-more]

Yep, the chimney, vent and lift point seem to be common areas of rot on these stoves. I have kept an eyeball on the sealant around those areas and always kept it water tight,,those areas look great on my unit.
Looks like some good work you have done there, big job!!
The thought of some "pour in dope" to get me running until the patch plate and welder show up is what I have running thru my thick skull,,not making any sudden moves,,it's breaking my heart when I hear the L.P. furnace fire up!! It's the **** nightmares are of!!LOL
The drum sounds good and solid when "pinging" it with a hammer. It appears the insulation has been wet in the area of the pinhole for quite some time.
les-or-more, thanks for the reply.

Yes the sealant shrinks away from the chimney and lets water into the insulation then rots the top out of them from the outside in. They need a drip ring installed to move the water out onto the roof instead of under it when not running. This one has a bucket on the chimney when there is no fire in the box but it still got water in the insulation.

 

[greendohn]

Put some JB weld on it to tide you over. I would think a 24" patch plate is a little overkill for a pinhole. I'm sure a good welder could put a small patch on there for you unless the material is compromised in a larger area around the pinhole.

The "patch plate" is the size Woodmaster is sending me,,being pre-curved is the ticket imho.
Decided against the "pour in" stop leak,,have read where it has worked,,but the poster/op of the threads I have looked at provided no follow up.
3 days off from the workhouse, gonna' clean it up with some lite grinding, asses things, JB Weld or their Water Weld, might get me a fire going until the plate shows up..temps are mild enough I might hold off,,
Going to the city, tomorrow, to find some insulation,,about 1/4 maybe 1/3 of the stuff I pulled is wet.
Thankful for the mild weather!! I must be living rite!

 

[greendohn]

Spent the last couple days buffing the drum with a scothbright deal in my grinder. Rinsed well with acetone and fresh coat of primer.
Have flushed the tank a few times, gobbed some "Water Weld" made by J.B. Weld on the hole and filled him up, added the chemicals and built a fire in the beast. It was holding last nite at midnite when I last took a look at it.
Gonna' put it back together and wait for the patch plate.
Between work and rain on the schedule, I'm hoping the water weld putty holds...it's rated for 900 psi and 300 degrees.

 

[BWS-LLC]

Spent the last couple days buffing the drum with a scothbright deal in my grinder. Rinsed well with acetone and fresh coat of primer.
Have flushed the tank a few times, gobbed some "Water Weld" made by J.B. Weld on the hole and filled him up, added the chemicals and built a fire in the beast. It was holding last nite at midnite when I last took a look at it.
Gonna' put it back together and wait for the patch plate.
Between work and rain on the schedule, I'm hoping the water weld putty holds...it's rated for 900 psi and 300 degrees.

All that work, I bet you're ready for a nap.

You better pace yourself

 

[greendohn]

All that work, I bet you're ready for a nap.

You better pace yourself

"Pacing" is required for one who is so very very busy with lots of impotent business..and a nap is also good for the soul.
So, Friday afternoon I put the stove back together, added a full roll of new r30 insulation and hadn't been finished with my chore for maybe an hour when UPS pulls up and delivered the patch plate,,the workhouse and rain is gonna' decide when I dis-assemble the metal and call the welder..it could be July!!

 

[tawilson]

"Pacing" is required for one who is so very very busy with lots of impotent business..and a nap is also good for the soul.
So, Friday afternoon I put the stove back together, added a full roll of new r30 insulation and hadn't been finished with my chore for maybe an hour when UPS pulls up and delivered the patch plate,,the workhouse and rain is gonna' decide when I dis-assemble the metal and call the welder..it could be July!!

I repaired my boilers on the outside of the water jacket leaks with some stainless embedded epoxy. They were at the bottom . Its been running for over a month now with no problems. You should be good for the winter.

 

[Oxford]

My experience in heating boiler repair tells me that, in the words of old William: "'T'were it to be done, 'tis well that it be done quickly." It will fail on the coldest night of the year, when the roads are iced over and then you'll be in a trick bag.

Or maybe you're lucky. That fairy dust isn't anything I'd rely on.

 

[greendohn]

I repaired my boilers on the outside of the water jacket leaks with some stainless embedded epoxy. They were at the bottom . Its been running for over a month now with no problems. You should be good for the winter.

Glad to hear of your success, hoping it holds up for you.
The vote of confidence gives me hope!!

 

[tawilson]

My experience in heating boiler repair tells me that, in the words of old William: "'T'were it to be done, 'tis well that it be done quickly." It will fail on the coldest night of the year, when the roads are iced over and then you'll be in a trick bag.

Or maybe you're lucky. That fairy dust isn't anything I'd rely on.

I'm prepared. My fuel tanks are full so if it blows I'll flip a switch and worry about it then. Fuel oil is so cheap this year I plan on using it to supplement the wood anyways.