Had a 434 Woodmaster with a manufacturing defect. Assembler etched drum with his plasma cutter. I tried welding it myself and proved I was not that knowledgeable about different steel and rods needed. Even made welder return to his shop, two different steel types between back plate and drum. If you do try welding it yourself, make sure you ventilate it well. First thing he did was, drilled several holes in different areas to make sure he knew extent of damage, then cut out damaged area and I had local steel supplier roll 1/4 inch plate and cut back plate to his drawings. After stick welding in place, he let it cool for a day and returned to check for leaks. No leaks. I used that owb for a year and replaced with a smaller Woodmaster unit. Neighbor bought my 434 and has been using it for 3 years without trouble. Steel was cheap, welder not so much, but well worth having a pro do it. Cost of repair was just under $1000. Have your repair person do inspection and ask if they have repaired owb's before. I used a person that had done several repairs and had comments on various brands.I guess that leads into the next question how can you tell if I it is fixable. Or you are not just buying a something that is gona be worth scrap
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Is that Federick, MI?
I will skin my ignorance here, since I have never looked in a OWB. Isnt the tank replaceable. I would think that if the tank started leaking it would either be because of a defect, or corrosion. A defect would be a crack at a seam or joint and should be easy to repair with a good welder. Corrosion would be a whole different issue. If there has been enough corrosion to work thru the tank, I would tend to believe the entire tank would be corroded and not just one little spot where it is leaking. Are the tanks not glass lined like a hot water heater tank? If so, any welding will destroy the glass lining. Fixing a rusted spot might give you a few more years of use, but sooner or later a new leak would appear in a different location. Also any welded spot will rust really fast and a new leak could start at the weld seam. Is the tank exposed to the fire in the stove. I would think not, most likely there are boiler tubes getting the bulk of the heat and hot water flows thru the tubes to the tank. Like I said, I am ignorant as to how a OWB heats water, but I would think any corrrosion issues in the tank would also be found in the boiler tubes that feed the tank. What kind of steel is used in making the boiler tank. If it is stainless, a gas purge would need to be used to prevent the welding procedure from burning off the chrome and nickle in the stainless on the backside of the weld. For a big size tank, this would be difficult and expensive. If your welder isnt using a purge, he isnt as good a welder as you think he is. If the tank is not stainless, then the purge would not be necessary. Simply running a bead on the outside of the tank is not a fix, and only a patch at best. Also, cutting out and replacing the rusted metal probably isnt the best option. Welding a patch covering the leak would seem to be a better, not to mention easier, fix. At ay rate, if the tank is replaceable, I would think a new tank should cost less that the $1000 mentioned repair cost.
Well, that would sure suck, but you never know until you askMost 'conventional' OWBs are just a combustion chamber inside a water jacket. No tubes. Or 'tank'.
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