Metal finishing Q&As since 1989
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Wood Stove smokes from the joints
I have an old South Bend cookstove that seems to have seen better days but it still in good condition. I want to use it in my hunting cabin. How do I seal the cast iron plates that make up the top? It seems when I fire the stove it smokes from all the joints. I KNOW "JUST REPLACE IT" but it is an economic issue. I only need it to be usable. I love to spend time in my cabin so it is important to me. Any experts out there that could help? I wonder what the AMISH would do? They are the worlds best cheapskates next to me.
Gary Van Scyocretired - Ashland, Ohio
2005
"Stove and
Fireplace Mortar"
on
eBay
or
Amazon
(affil links)
A. I don't know what the Amish would do, Gary, but I'd spend about $10 for a sealant made for the purpose :-)
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
2005
I'd be interested in an answer, too. We have a cabin with a dual-fuel South Bend stove (LP and wood) and it smokes, too. I wonder if it's a drafting/clogged flue problem. I can't believe filling it with silicone seal would be a good solution.
- Macomb, Illinois, USA
June 15, 2009
Hi Jim.
I'm not a woodstove expert, but I had a welded steel stove and now I have a cast iron one. The welded steel one was inherently airtight because everyplace where the plates met, they were continuously welded. The cast iron stove is not welded; rather each joint line is filled with a black mortar or sealant to make it airtight. I can't say that it's the exact same sealant shown in the ad, but it does seem to have some good reviews on Amazon from people who used it for that purpose.
I don't know whether you have a clogged flue or not, but I think an airtight stove needs to be sealed at the cast iron joints and unable to smoke from them regardless.
Best of luck.
Regards,
Ted Mooney, P.E.
Striving to live Aloha
finishing.com - Pine Beach, New Jersey
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