Sealing Joints in Stoves
Here's what worked over the years with many kinds of cast iron stoves. Few manufacturers build them right.
1. Morso (Danish) uses gaskets between the cast plates for sealing. Best solution if there are channels cast in the plates for gasketing, usually fibreglass "rope". You can try to push the gasket into larger seams for other cast stoves with a tool that fits: knife, screwdriver, awl.
2. Find a high temperature cement used for boilers that comes in tubes. The head of the tube (like caulking) can be cut to fit the seam, BUT will not always be able to be used in a tight space like the inside of the stove. You then use the finger tool. Try to look for a hi temp caulk that is flexible, rather than stove cements like Rutland that dry hard and fall out.
3. Bite the bullet and use the hard drying stove cements. Use plenty of plastic gloves to 'finger' the cement into BOTH sides of the seams if possible.
Give it time to dry before firing.
The best solution to seam sealing is to do a full stove rebuild by breaking the whole stove down into the parts and plates. NOT for the faint of heart here. The plates have moved and warped over time with burning. Bolts will break off where the sun will not shine :deadhorse: The plates never go back together the way they disassembled. Get an auto body grinder.
OK ? I tried. Best if you got the $$$$: get a newer EPA rated stove like Woodstock, Jotul, Hearthstone, Morso, Pacific Energy. Stay away from the so-called Vermont Castings products made by a company in Canada, until they can offer more quality stoves and back them up with a real warranty and service.
JMHO:monkey:
