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New guy here. Wanted to jump in and thank all for saving me lots of grief with info toward keeping Our old 442 happy. We still use capsule tanks after 12 yrs. !!! Habit I guess, or maybe laziness. We struggled thru a lot of fuel issues with keep it clean and dry enough to run without a lot of maintenance to the little filter at the bottom of the float bowl. We all but solved this by cutting a coffee filter to fit UNDER the inlet screen that the capsule tank fits into. I used a large o ring that fits around the outside of the screen to retain the coffee filter in place. It catches a lot of tiny crud that the filter screen would otherwise pass, and end up clogging the float bowl filter. ( which is messy and a hassle to clean). Another beauty of the coffee filter application is that it won't pass water, should some condensation or other moisture find it's way into the capsule tank. We all know the 442 don't like to drink water, no ?? When that happens, it seems everything has to be purged before the heater feels better again.
I think the manual said these flashing indicators pointed to overheat issues, but in my experience they have been the result of fuel restriction problems . (dirt or water in the system )
Anyway, We ran the heater for 2 yrs like this, and no service to internal filters, but this winter the heater started shutting off (flashing burner and time indicator) if the burners were run on high for very long. It got worse and worse until it wouldn't maintain flame even on low. During service, I found that even though the float bowl filter was not very dirty, the blockage was behind the tiny float valve. A little compressed air cleared the passage and the heater was happy again. This is the second or third time with this same restriction problem at that point so .......even my trusty coffee filter didn't solve / catch everything.
When we first got this heater, it was to supplement our wood stove, and kerosene was $1.25/ gal. Aside from the coffee filter, it is still 100% original parts. I'm told out fuel is actually jet aviation kerosene, and last 100 gal. was about $3/gal here in far northern coastal CA.
Again, Much thanks for who took time to generously share their knowledge and experience so folks like us can stay cozy. Happy Holidays
I think the manual said these flashing indicators pointed to overheat issues, but in my experience they have been the result of fuel restriction problems . (dirt or water in the system )
Anyway, We ran the heater for 2 yrs like this, and no service to internal filters, but this winter the heater started shutting off (flashing burner and time indicator) if the burners were run on high for very long. It got worse and worse until it wouldn't maintain flame even on low. During service, I found that even though the float bowl filter was not very dirty, the blockage was behind the tiny float valve. A little compressed air cleared the passage and the heater was happy again. This is the second or third time with this same restriction problem at that point so .......even my trusty coffee filter didn't solve / catch everything.
When we first got this heater, it was to supplement our wood stove, and kerosene was $1.25/ gal. Aside from the coffee filter, it is still 100% original parts. I'm told out fuel is actually jet aviation kerosene, and last 100 gal. was about $3/gal here in far northern coastal CA.
Again, Much thanks for who took time to generously share their knowledge and experience so folks like us can stay cozy. Happy Holidays
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