Kenyon Butane Stove Service

W

Will-C

New member
We just sent our 2008 Kenyon stove back to Kenyon International in Connecticut. We noticed when installing the butane canister it was not sealing properly and leaking gas. I called Kenyon spoke with a guy named Frank in service and sent it in for service. They replaced all the orings and sent it back no charge even for the outbound freight. Our stove has worked well for the last four years they did recommend removing the butane canister after every use as the cold butane has a detrimental effect on the orings. Also a drop of thirty weight motor oil in the tip of the butane canister as that gets blown through the system and sort of lubes the orings, etc. I know some have had issues with these stoves ours without this latest exception has been great. I looked at other options and did not like the alcohol or electric routes. Wallas was not considered crazy cost :) , as we have a Espar D-2 diesel heater which so far has worked like a champ. Kenyon gave great service and seemed to be very nice people.
D.D.
 
That is excellent service and a good company.

Start a new thread and others will add.

I contacted Attwood for replacement 1994 red and green navigation lights lens and they sent them for free!

My father was a salesman and I always beleved he was so successful was due to excellent communication and service to his customers and selling high quality products.
 
Problems can turn into real opportunities if they are handled right. I preach customer service all the time at work. What better time to shine than when the economy is a little slow things and you can make something right without giving away farm. Companies earn great reputations by providing good customer service beyond the time borders of a written warranty. That kind of customer testimonial advertising beats all others. IMHO
D.D.
 
Anybody know about Princess stoves? (they come standard on Stingray boats) Mine worked fine the first year, this year it started going out after you released the start knob. Our last few days on the Trent this year I had to cook by jambing my pocket knife beside the knob to hold it. Stays lit but on high all the time.

I read something about a butane battery?? could it be this or something to do with the flame failure devise??

Regards, Rob
 
Robert H. Wilkinson":133jvlem said:
Anybody know about Princess stoves? (they come standard on Stingray boats) Mine worked fine the first year, this year it started going out after you released the start knob. Our last few days on the Trent this year I had to cook by jambing my pocket knife beside the knob to hold it. Stays lit but on high all the time.

I read something about a butane battery?? could it be this or something to do with the flame failure devise??

Regards, Rob
Click to expand...

Does the stove have a thermocouple?

Butane stoves usually have a thermocouple that senses whether the flame is burning. The bi-metal probe on the end of the thermocouple generates a small electric current when heated by the flame. The electric current generated operates a valve that controls the butane flow. If the flame goes out, the current stops, and the valve closes, shutting off the butane. This prevents explosions and fires.

To start the stove, the "On/Heat" control valve is designed to be held pressed in or some other way to allow the butane to flow until the new flame can heat the thermocouple enough to hold the valve open, then you can release the valve and set it to the desired heat level.

If the thermocouple is "burned out" (doesn't produce current), the stove won't operate when the over-ride starting feature is released, but will instead shut off. Thus to operate such a stove with a defective thermocouple, you'd have to continue to hold the over-ride feature in place.

Some of these stoves have a pilot light, with the thermocouple placed in it's flame. The operation is similar to that above, but they are designed to light the pilot light before the main burner. You can often still get the main burner to light, but it won't stay on if the thermocouple is defective. Again, you'd have to hold the control knob in the pressed in or "Start" position.

MORE on thermocouple operation.

Hope this helps!

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
Joe - thanks for the info and links. Not sure if its worth looking for a new thermocouple, or how much they would be. A new stove is around $80-$100. Some people on that link mentioned they don't trust the butane cannisters. I havn't had any problem with them leaking, but when cruising I do keep them stored in my propane locker on the swim platform.

Regards, Rob
 
Part of the good service I got from Kenyon was hints about the butane canisters, i.e. always remove them when finished using the stove; put a tiny drop of oil around the connector to keep the O rings in the stove from drying and cracking. Our Kenyon is seven years old and still going strong.
 
When looking for help on my Kenyon stove Dr. Bob responded that he had just come from visiting his friend in intensive care who was severely burned by one of those stoves blowing up in his face,
Bob suggested that I remove my stove and use a better product.
15 min. after reading his reply my stove was in the garbage can. Thanks Dr. Bob.
 
Kenyon no longer makes the drop-in marine s/s stove. The portable Galley Express II is still available though. We have one for emergencies and the boat.
 
On my Princess stove the cartridge must be disconnected before you can put the stove away in its case.

Any heating or cooking devise , their fuel and the effects/by products of their combustion must be treated with respect on a boat. Accidents have happened with butane, propane, alcohol and solid fuels. None of them are entirely safe or totally unsafe.

If anybody knows of a devise in particular that has a problem making its use on a boat unsafe could they post it here.

Thanks, Rob
 
Jack in Alaska,
What did you replace you Kenyon stove with? I looked at propane,alcohol and electric none seemed to fit what I was looking for. I didn't really want to drop 3000 dollars Wallas. I wondered what you decided was a good replacement?
D.D.
 
TheAsian markets all carry table top butane stoves, usually for about $15.
They seem to work well and are cheap enough to toss when they do not.
Also they have the cannisters for about $1.50, better price than I can find anywhere else.
these stoves are used for catered events and etc. so they must be pretty safe.
Jerry
 
Jerry, could you give me a name and address in portland where I can buy the cannisters for that price. I go to portland occasionally and would buy some cannisters. Thanks
 
Dr. Bob - paging Dr. Bob - if your out there I was wondering if your friend ever pinpointed the cause of his stove explosion? I havn't had 1 of the drop in units to study it but I am wondering if they have a solid (enclosed) bottom where - if the butane cyl. seal was leaking the gasses could collect untill they reached the level of the flame. Was a safety issue why they no longer sell them?

The cases on the portable units like the Princess are well vented especially on the end where the butane cyl. is. When operated in "open air" I would think it would take more than a slow seal leak for the gas to concentrate enough to be ignited by the burner flame.???

Regards, Rob
 
Known problem. I agree, watch these stoves very carefully. I am semi forced to use a portable propane stove on the "new" 22, and keep the stove and propane cly outside of the cabin, unless it is being used--cooking outdoors when possible. As some of you know my very close friend was badly burned with a propane stove which leaked the fuel and then exploded. He made it, but not after over a million dollars worth of medical care--and about 4 months in a burn unit, dialysis coma for 3 months etc..
see
http://www.c-brats.com/viewtopic.php?t=18329
 
Our problem was readily apparent when we inserted the canister and pushed on the end cap and twisted it. The canister hissed and instantly there was the gas odor. I suppose if you ignored all that and gave the gas valve a twist to the piezo igniter postion things could go downhill pretty quick. But we said this isn't right and did not use it until we sent it in for check out. Letting any kind of gas build up and then providing a source of ignition is a recipe for disaster. Gasoline vapors, natural gas, butane, propane all blow up given the right conditions. You just have to be aware of the potential danger and keep your wits about you and be on the look out for possible problems. No disrespect to anyone with different opinions. In my opinion a Wallas is probably the safest stove. Call me cheap but I don't want to drop 2 or 3k for stove. I have read enough about the some of the previous Wallas owners that I opted to stay with butane stove and install an Espar diesel heater. Some Wallas owners have said they are a little slow to warm up and tend to warm up the cabin in the summer months. No disrespect to Wallas if I hit the lottery I might buy one.We don't cook a lot but we do use it our butane stove. I also use a Dickinson propane grill for grilling on the water or at a marina's picnic area. I got our Kenyon back yesterday and reinstalled in the boat and it works like a champ. The Kenyon stoves came as the standard stove included at no extra charge with Ventures and the 22' cruiser C-Dory boats for quite a while I think. Can't be all bad.
D.D.
 
Will-C,

I did not replace the Kenyon stove with another brand as we decided that a stove in our boat was not necessary. We do not cook in our boat.
For a heater I purchased a Mr.Buddy and it works great. I feel real confident with it as far as safety is concerned. One day I would like to install an aluminum propane tank on the outside of our boat and hook it to the heater. Those alum. tanks are pretty pricey for this old retired guy. I can buy a lot of those green canisters.
I filled in the hole in the counter top where the Kenyon stove was.

Jack
 
Someone who is smart and careful can be fairly safe with any kind of stove, especially if they know about the possible issues and act accordingly (like Will). The problem as I see it is that we can't guarantee that everyone on our boat (now and in the future) will be smart and careful. Proper use of propane or butane in a boat requires some thought and possible training and these days hardly anyone reads the manual. They just expect things to work right all the time. Also, many of the simple butane or propane stoves were not designed for many years of use in a corrosive environment (near the ocean) and in a very small enclosed volume. While using a propane or butane stove in the cockpit, resolves the small volume issue, a flareup do to a gas leak near the stove could potentially catch other things on fire (and fiberglass is pretty flammable once it gets going).

So while the Wallas (or other diesel stoves) are expensive, they also add a considerable safety factor due to the low volatility and low flammability of diesel. The $'s spent on the one burn victim that Brent mentions above, would buy a Wallas stove for all the active users of the C-Brats site and most of the inactive ones.
 
I bought my canisters at Lily Market. 11001 NE Halsey St Portland OR.
I got a sleeve of four, could have gotten a bit better by buying a case, "24 I think".
I do not think that this is a special price as my kid bought some at an other market for about the same price. I suspect any Asian market will have them pretty cheap.
Hope this helps.
Jerry
 
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