Heating Help

It is a concern

@ December 11, 2010 1:28 AM in Check out this advice for steam system maintenance

It scares me that some homeowners will see that page, and think that they should follow that advice because it is from a "professional".

If some one flushes theri LWCO once a month with the boiler off, they could be the next fire we see on the 6:00 news.

Ans so much more,,,,,,

Steamhead, I agree

@ December 7, 2010 7:15 PM in Check out this advice for steam system maintenance

Steamhead,
When I finished that article, I could not believe what I read.
You were smart in that you stopped reading when you did  ,,,,,  :-) 
Ed Carey

Check out this advice for steam system maintenance

@ December 7, 2010 1:04 PM in Check out this advice for steam system maintenance

This link was sent to me, through Facebook, by a realtor.

[u][color=#800080]http://rismedia.com/2010-12-06/5-steam-heating-maintenance-tips-to-keep-your-system-in-good-shape/?utm_source=feedburner[/color][/u]

The information appears to be from a home inspector. 

See if you can spot how many mistakes the home inspector has in only a few paragraphs regarding steam system maintenance.

Some of those mistakes could be dangerous.
 
Regards,

Ed Carey

Best wishes to you Tim

@ November 28, 2010 1:08 AM in I want to let everyone know I am recovering

Hope you are back 100% soon. Best wishes.

Ed Carey

Hard decision

@ August 24, 2010 10:36 PM in Job quotes on tough jobs where do u stand ?

Clammy,

One of the hardest things to do when work is scarce, is know when it is better not to do the work.

There is always the temptation to get the job, then try to "make it work".

There is something about a job that is bid for short money. They seem to have a way of having everything little thing go wrong. Not just the price & the profits, but all types of goofy little things that eat away at the job.

Sometimes, you are better to spend your time and money trying to get good jobs at a fair price, where you and the customer both end up happy.

Just my $0.02

Ed Carey

Al, Sorry for your loss

@ August 24, 2010 10:26 PM in MOM

I lost my mom several years ago. I agree with the others, you will never get over it, but I can tell you, you will get past it.

I think of my mom often.  

She will never be gone as long as you have her in your memories.

Ed Carey

A question for cek

@ January 3, 2010 6:27 PM in condensation on windows

Just a thought,

Do you have any unvented gas appliances in the home. Gas fireplace, gas heater, etc?

Ed Carey

Is this a two on one line system?

@ January 3, 2010 6:21 PM in oil line sizing

Are both of the appliances operating with a one line system?
If so, what are the firing rates of the respective appliances?
Ed Carey

Happy Birthday

@ December 9, 2009 8:55 PM in Happy Birthday Steve “Wheels” Wieland

So how many "39s" has it been

Best wishes.

Ed Carey

You might be a red neck When,,,,,

@ December 9, 2009 8:50 PM in What is funnier than the witch on a broom plowed into a tree....

That Santa reminds me of something Jeff Foxworty would say,

"If Santa flys around the world but waits to get on your roof to releave himself in front of your neighbors, 

YOU JUST MIGHT BE A REDNECK"

:0
Ed Carey

Another Christmas cheer

@ December 9, 2009 4:45 PM in What is funnier than the witch on a broom plowed into a tree....

A friend sent me this one.
He also sent me the one with the guy hanging and the ladder.
Who thinks up this stuff.
Merry Christmas,

Ed Carey

Question

@ December 6, 2009 6:40 PM in negative pressure burner shut off

Ed,
What is the manufacturer of the waste Oil heater that you have problems with?

Ed Carey

One more for Luc

@ October 31, 2009 8:31 PM in Problems with CF1400 Beckett burners tripping

Luc,
A manual damper at the breach of the boiler to generate positive draft over the fire, and a barometric draft damper such as a Field RC, are completely different items, and are used for different purposes.

Do not try to control the negative draft in the chimney only with the manual draft damper in the breach.
And do not try to generate positive pressure over the fire in the boiler only my manipulating a barometric draft damper in the chimney connector pipe.  

One more thing, at this point if you do not clearly understand what I am talking about, you should hire a professional to review your installation and correct any problems.

It may be a lot cheaper in the long run, as you can cause damage to a boiler quickly if you mis-adjust it relative to these issues.

Good luck,

Ed Carey

Follow up to Ed N.Y.C. post

@ October 31, 2009 7:42 PM in Problems with CF1400 Beckett burners tripping

Luc,

Ed may be correct in that your boilers are positive pressure.

However please be absolutely sure that your boilers AND your burners are designed and listed for positive pressure applications, before you try to operate them as such.

If they are designed and listed for positive pressure, then set up combustion,  venting, draft over fire & chimney draft  EXACTLY as the manufacturer recommends.

Many positive pressure boilers are positive to the manual damper at the breach, and thereafter require negative draft and draft stabilization like any negative draft boiler.

The chimney connector and chimney are usually never positive pressure. You normally would never have positive pressure past the breach of the boiler unless you have a direct vent appliance that is listed as such. 

I think that it is highly unlikely that you have a direct vent appliance of that size.  

Good luck,
Ed Carey

Multiple boilers and draft

@ October 31, 2009 7:29 PM in Problems with CF1400 Beckett burners tripping

Luc,
Please see the link below that shows the proper draft stabilization of multiple boiler installations.

[url=http://www.fieldcontrols.com/draftcontrol.php]http://www.fieldcontrols.com/draftcontrol.php

Ed carey

Follow up

@ October 31, 2009 5:21 PM in Rust in five year old boiler

Bruce,
 
First of all I really want to commend you for your detailed and analytical approach to finding the actual origin & cause of the problem.  That is the sign of a true professional.

You said "Yes I did install the unit about five years ago and it has performed well until now".  Did you personally perform annual service on the boiler after the install and therefore have a definitive time as to when you can say that the condition definitely did not exist? If so, then obviously something has occurred or changed since that time.  

If you do not, and your comment was based on the absence of a homeowner complaint, then also based on the obvious non thorough service that the oil company has been doing, the problem may have been there and just not noticed and/or addressed by others.  

If you do have a definitive baseline when the problem definitely did not exist, then that steam leak causing a very moist environment in the basement combined with a partially blocked OA intake could be the combination of events to cause or contribute to just such a problem.  

That partial blockage of the OA hood will cause the relief damper on the OA intake pipe to be pulled open to ingest basement air for combustion. That basement air and the entire basement environment would have been abnormally moist.

After the burner shuts off and the flame is out, that moisture caused by the released steam would be drawn in though the relief damper on the OA intake pipe and through the boiler by the natural chimney draft. 

Once the boiler cools, the moisture would condense on the surfaces in the combustion chamber and in the flu passages. This condition surely could be a cause, or at least be a contributing factor to the problem.

Additionally, that steam leak during the heating season would have made the basement environment exceptionally and abnormally moist. Usually the basement would be much dryer in the winter, and cool & moist in the summer.

During the off season, the elevated moisture level in the basement combined with inactivity of the boiler, could be the icing on the cake.

Please let us know what else you find on this one.

Keep up the good work

Regards
 
Ed Carey
 
 

Rust in Boiler

@ October 30, 2009 6:53 AM in Rust in five year old boiler

Bruce,
Is this your first service of this boiler, or is it your previous install?

Since it is steam, I do not believe that low return water temp is issue.   
I also will presume that you have checked the casting thoroughly, and have eliminated a gasket leak between the sections. If not, make sure you check that out first. Based on the photos, and the uniformity of the corrosion, I doubt it is a leak, but don't assume anything, otherwise ASSUME becomes ASS U ME. 

If you have a gas HWH in the same chimney I also presume you do not operate this boiler for DHW in summer. Does the boiler go to cold start, or do you maintain minimum low temp in summer?

With boilers that are off in the summer you usually find a mucky mess of moist soot in the boiler. However, if the boiler is running with an exceptionally clean flame, (which is a good thing), then there is no soot to get moist. You will just have the moisture which will cause corrosion.  

Actually, there is another thread about a very similar issue, however it is not about rust in the boiler, it is about very moist soot found during end of summer cleanings with a cold start boiler. Remember, if the boiler is sooty, that soot is unburned oil, that will essentially lubricate the casting and prevent the rust for forming as you have. If there is no soot in the boiler, then the moisture directly contacts the uncoated cast iron. However the root cause of the problem would essentially be similar.     

A suggestion. Clean the boiler thoroughly now. Restart it and let it run now. Be sure to adjust to a 0 smoke to prevent soot from forming so the casting condition is the same as you found it. Keep the temps on the T stat up so you are sure this boiler runs daily, preferably several times a day. Come back and check it in a few weeks. If no rust, it is obviously not an internal leak. If there is no rust now it is likely to be an off cycle temp issue in the summer.

I assure you that the HO will not care to hear this, however your solution to the problem would be to install an aquastat and maintain low temp in the boiler over the summer. In the long run, It will be much better for both the boiler and the chimney.

Please keep us posted

Thanks,
Ed Carey

None that I am aware of

@ October 21, 2009 10:24 PM in Pellet stove for garage workshop?

Jason,
The information in quotation was verbatim from the NFPA 211.
NFPA 211 is a Standard, not a Code. However it is unquestionably accepted as a "Standard of Care" in the industry, and it may be codified in many areas.
The only way you could obtain a variance from any NFPA publication would be to get it directly from NFPA, IN WRITING.
If you find a stove that, (in writing)  is "Listed and approved for installations in garages" you may be able to present that information to NFPA, and they could potentially recognize that specific equipment manufacturer's "listing" as an exception. However, that would be up to NFPA alone to make such a decision. 
A caution, information from an installer such as: "I've been doing this for a gazillion years and have installed many in garages with no problems" is NOT an acceptable exception to the NFPA 211 Standard.  

Ed Carey

 

Not allowed in a garage

@ October 18, 2009 9:13 PM in Pellet stove for garage workshop?

Not an approved installation.
NFPA 211, (National Fire Protection Association) Standards for Chimneys, Fireplaces, Vents, and Solid Fuel-Burning Appliances states: 
"Solid fuel-burning appliances shall not be installed in any garage"

Ed Carey

Paul is correct

@ September 24, 2009 7:31 PM in soot problem

Paul is correct.
 
When I was still in the field, (now retired to be one of those old consultants), I used to mail cards out to my clients, (about 5000 of them) almost begging with early season discounts to get them to do annual tune ups on oil boilers and oil heating equipment early in the season.
 
Amazing how many of them simply would not do it. They played into human nature, and would not respond to the needs of their heating system until the weather got cold and they HAD to.
 
Any cold start or heating only boiler should be operated for several days before it is opened and cleaned, or you will clean the muck out now, and be back a week or two later removing the remaining soot that has swelled and has partially blocked the flu passages.
 
I like Jim's "popcorn" analogy. It is very descriptive and absolutely correct.
 
Ed Carey  

To all, Question regarding church boiler

@ August 21, 2009 4:05 PM in Aluminum heat exchangers

To all,
 The post regarding questions for the church boiler is by an old friend of mine.  His Name is Paul.
He was a professional HVAC contractor for many years. He did a lot of larger commercial work. He has since retired from the field to work at a college. He therefore is somewhat outside of the loop of the most current innovations.
He asked my opinion re the aluminum heat exchangers and I gave him mine. I will reserve that so as not to sway anyone else pro or con. 
I recommended to Paul that he post here for a good variety of well informed opinions from other pros who work on them. 
If you have an opinion, I would really appreciate if you would please respond.
Also, don’t forget to welcome Paul to the wall.
Thank you my friends,
Edward A. (Ed) Carey
E.A. Carey HVAC

Im made it in !!!!

@ August 16, 2009 2:58 PM in Welcome!

I made it over the Wall.

"Now I know were not in Kansas anymore Toto"

Thanks for all of your work Dan

Ed Carey