The thermowell

[lindaw2]

If you look through the storage door at the thermowell, can you see space around the opening where the burner comes through? Is it supposed to be a tight seal? It just seems that heat would be escaping from that space into the storage chamber and not keep the heat as high as it should be.
Also, I read an article on line about a man who had a Chambers that he restored. He was talking about it having an oven and a warming oven to the right of the oven. Warming? I thought it was made for storage.
Just asking.

[ha_asfan]

i think a lot of people, me included, were "just absolutely certain" the little storage compartment was really a warming oven but, it ain't. it's just a storage compartment. i've even tried using it as a warm space to raise doughs and it doens't work....

[lindaw2]

My old stove had no pilot light and I used the oven to have bread rise. I would heat it up a bit and put the dough in there. However, it had no insulation and did a miserable job of it.
I made bread last week and let it rise in the oven and it worked great. I was really happy with the results.
Yet another use for the well insulated Chambers oven.
I am in awe over people who have these stoves and literally junk them for a tinny, way-too-common "modern" stove.

Linda

[ha_asfan]

the fellow whom i purchased our stove from, in nearly perfect condition, replaced it with a home depot general electric on sale for $435.00. he thought he was trading up.

[lindaw2]

That cracks me up. I never knew I was such a snob but I think I am when it comes to stoves now. I just don't want to educate the ignorant masses until I am equipped with all the goodies-
the baker, double pots, etc. If they are willing to pay 1200.00 and more for their stoves, they would pay even more than we are seeing now on e-bay for all the accessories.

[treatmaker]

When I need my dough to rise I put it in a bowl cover with saran and set it on top of an inverted bowl thats resting on the thermowell cover. My dough rises beautifully.

Treatmaker

[Joe Pieweed]

lindaw2:

To answer the first question: yes, there is lots of space around the burner as it enters the side of the thermowell. That is not a design flaw.

Since hot air rises, there is very little heat lost from that port. The pot or thermobaker inside the thermowell is a few inches above the port, inside the bubble of hot air.

Curious, isn't it?

Joe

[lindaw2]

Thank you Joe. I thought I had a problem with the thermowell. I have the little window to the left of where the burner enters the well and it made no sense to me that I could just as easily see the flame through the big hole (easier, actually) than by looking through the window.

If you don't have the pilot light lit, do you think the heat retention would be there or does it really only work properly if the pilot is lit?

[Joe Pieweed]

Hmmm, interesting that you say you can see the flame easier throught the burner port than the flame viewing port.

You've got a BZ or C, while I've got a B. My B does not have the flame viewing port on the T-Well, so I can't check mine to compare to what you describe. The B has a sheet metal baffle that makes viewing of the flame rather difficult. I'm not certain that the BZ and C's have a similar thing. Better ask this of a BZ or C owner out there.

Anyway, the pilot light contributes lots of heat while you "Cook with the gas turned off." As you may have read in other threads, some folks have measured 200 degrees on thermometers set inside the thermowell with the just the pilot on.

Without the pilot, it is my opinion that you will have to make adjustments in the recipe, perhaps even relight the burner some time into retained heat time.

Good luck!

Joe