bolt together stoves

[SPDRMNKY]

I inherited a bolt together cast iron stove with the house when we bought it...Vermont Castings Sequoia 455C (20-ish years old I think)

I've been "tuning her up" for a while, and she's been a gem for the last few years...but is giving me fits this year...all the stove cement used to seal the seams when she was assembled is giving way...and I get random smoke puffs

not too hard to deal with during the day, but at night when we load her up before bed, it gets annoying...overcoming the puffs with draft leaves the stove ice cold in the AM, but having a house full of smoke to sleep in isn't my idea of fun...or real safe

today I sealed everything I could get to (and the problems I think) with a tub of goop and a frosting bag

so next spring I'm thinking about tearing her totally apart and re-gooping all the seams...I'm also thinking about the inevitable broken something, the PITA, and the newer technology that's available

anyone had any luck re-gooping?

 

[Streblerm]

I "regoup" my VC Defiant every couple of years from the inside and the outside. It works well. I have a pretty strong draft anyway so I never experience any smoke leakage, but it makes a huge difference in the longevity of the fire. I spritz the joints with a little water before gouping. I think I read on one of the tubes of goo that it would help and it seems to.

I had ambitions of rebuilding the old Defiant. It has a slightly warped and cracked fireback. I think for the cost of the parts I will probably just replace it with an EPA stove. Eventually.

 

[Henry and Wanda]

Hello,
That's exactly why I would never own and use a cast iron stove that needs the joints sealed !!!!! If I were you, I'd buy a new steel stove and be rid of the problems !!!!!!!



Henry and Wanda

 

[logbutcher]

The two suggestions: get an EPA wood stove, or avoid problems with cast stoves by buying a steel stove, make sense IF you're heating with wood. Any of the EPA stoves are more efficient than any of the pre-EPA stoves anyhow.

The VC Sequoia was a cheaper version of the higher quality VC models: not much QC, or care in the forging, ass'y, or design. It's long past its time unlike the VC Defiant.
Furnace cement is only reliable when there are tight joints; otherwise it can't seal well. High end makers like Morso have designed cast joints' seals with gasketing. Jotul also seals part of their stoves, such as the top plate, with gasketing. You could try to use gaskets on the joints.

Why cast iron ? Opinionated: there's no steel stove that's as classic and nice looking as any of the cast iron or soapstone models. Steel does solve the cast joint problem!
All the steel stoves look like a plain box on steroids. Offense taken. :angry2:

JMNSHO