Fire Cement etc

High all,

The threads are shot in my Bialaddin bowlfires burner, what do you use to seal and repair it, Fire Cement, Gun Gum etc?

Thanks.

 

Auto exhaust sealer/cement maybe. That will probably stand the heat OK. Fire cement might be too coarse. Really better to replace the burner though. If that is not an option then drill it out, re thread it and fit a bush. ::Neil::

 

Thanks Neil,

It had already been repaired with Fire cement but not very well and the mantle support tube wasn't straight, i will give the Gun-Gum a go once i've cleaned it all out but will keep my eyes open for a secondhand replacement which are not as common as the Tilley burners, at present i don't think i am in the position to have a go at the repair although i wish i was,

Cheers.

 

I do think they come up from time to time - you may be lucky...

 

You never know, Base camp sell them but they are not that cheap if i remember correctly.

 

Well i cleaned all the Fire Cement out of the threads with the Dremel and it didn't screw back together to badly so i used some copper grease on the threads and so far after twenty minutes running its still got a nice regular blue flame and producing plenty of heat so hopefully its sorted.

 

A quick way to fix up a loose thread is with aluminum foil, cut a thin strip of it and wrap it around the thread like you would pipe sealant. It may take a couple tries to get the right thickness and make sure you press it into the threads before you reinstall it. By no means is it structural but it will do in a pinch.

 

Not a bad idea if you're stuck, thanks

 

Aluminium melts at the temperatures Tilley burners operate at. ::Neil::

 

Would a few layers of Teflon Gas pipe tape work?

 

Not in a burner. PTFE will stand a fair amount of heat but does melt at 327C which is a lot lower than aluminium at about 660c. ::Neil::

 

How about graphite tape. It'll hold up to the heat. It's what we use on the picker shaft when they leak and we don't have the correct replacement on Coleman lanterns.

 

On coarser thread, very thin brass foil or shim stock could also work, especially if you anneal it first. I've has some success sealing burner parts with Holts Firegum which looks just like tooth paste.

 

PTFE can cause polymer fume fever (similar to metal fume fever that welders are prone to if proper fume control is not undertaken) if taken up to a temperature range between 300-450 degrees Celsius and the outgassing inhaled. I can recall in the late 60's or early 70's machining PTFE and the material carried a warning not to smoke when machining. PTFE on cooking utensils should not get much above 280 degrees Celsius unless you are a poor cook.