Brand new boiler problems


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Old 12-28-04, 03:29 PM
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Brand new boiler problems

Hello My mom has had a new heating system installed exactly 1 year ago this month...now the problem..oil heat, owt boiler model #3 series 1

It keeps cycleing on and off...not because of the 160 to 180 degree thing..but just because it feels like it. she hits the reset button and it will go on but then it shuts off...sometimes it goes back on other times she is cold.

She is 80 years old needs 2 knees replaced and here I am across town trying to help...It has been serviced so many times it can make your head spin...now the guy that put it in won't come out anymore. Any suggestions as to what part on a boiler needs to be replaced. He did put on a new reset button part the last time. He changes the nossel all the time and then keeps telling my mom that she has an old outside oil tank that she needs it replaced because it is old and probably has sludge at the bottom...Now A) that is probably true but I keep putting in the conditoner/antigel stuff every single time she gets an oil delivery...so I don't exactly buy what he is saying..

I know long winded but any info I can try to get for you...if you could help me help her...I would Love..

Thank you all for your help in advance..
 
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Old 12-28-04, 06:51 PM
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If it is a Beckett burner on the boiler, it has a pretty good warranty. I would recommend replacing the ignitor and the burner motor. It could be one or the other but in your situation, both would be a smart move. They can both be intermittent and can both be tough to pinpoint. Tell whoever services it next to put on a Garber 10 micron filter at the burner and forget the outside tank sludge thing. Be sure to use the anti-gel in the correct proportion or that will haunt you. I hope the filter is not outside. If it is, get it indoors too. There are host of tests that can be done to nail down anything other than an intermittent part and I have no way of knowing if your tech did any or all of them. You may end up with $200 in parts and 2 hours labor but I would be willing to bet that the motor and transformer could be gotten under warranty by almost any reputable installer. All it takes is a little cooperation from their wholesaler. Call Beckett at 1-800-oil-burn and ask some questions.

Ken
 
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Old 12-29-04, 04:53 AM
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Hi Ken...Thank you for responding...

Now bear with me Here are all the things I had my mom read to me over the phone that she saw for brand names... Honeywell, Carlin

Something tells me it is a williamson boiler...it is green

I don't understand about screen on the outside..could you please explain that further to me. oh and as for his testing...he did none he is the installer.. I watched him do everthing and he showed me how to take the oil gun thing out and change the brass tip... I have 2 of them that he keeps wanting to trash but if you clean them good with alcohol they seems as good as new.

Thank you again for your help.

I need all the help I can get. He keeps wanting to rip off my mom. Oh and I forgot to tell you..she has a hydroair system...if that makes a difference.
 
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Old 12-29-04, 07:34 AM
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Well, I went by symptoms and past experience with intermittent parts. So I may have sent you down the wrong path...but I don't think so. The parts inside the nozzle that need to be cleaned (if it ever is a nozzle problem) are the tiny slots on the piece just inside of the orifice. I would not advise cleaning them. Any nozzle 1.00gph or under is so tiny that you could plug it with a speck of dirt from anywhere. The lint from a Q-tip will clog it up. Have you ever seen this mysterious dirt? I suspect that it is not a sludge problem. If it is, usually the pump screen and the whole nozzle strainer is covered with it. There is no maybe about it. If the strainer in the pump is replaced, nozzle line flushed with solvent, and a Garber 10 micron filter is installed, you will have a vacuum gauge to look at right there at the burner to monitor the vacuum. When the filter is clogged, you will see by the gauge. It will also stop the burner before it lets dirt through that will clog the nozzle. Sometimes installers are just that. Out of the box thinking is not part of their mentality. Find a troubleshooter. Find someone with an Onwatch monitor. You can put a few sensors on the burner and it records exactly what happens for several burner cycles. When he comes back, he can replay the sequence and see what caused the lockout. It is one of the only ways to nail down an intermittent burner problem without bringing a sleeping bag to the job.

Ken
 
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Old 12-29-04, 08:24 AM
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Hi Ken...
A new fellow is coming out to her house sometime today..I hope to be there when he comes... but since I have MS and we got so much snow I'm kinda waiting till I can whip my car through all the snow since I can't shovel it myself.

She is like a frozen popsicle today..and hasn't slept a wink..Thank you I will see how this guy does today...All those monitors and things I will suggest over the phone to this new man if I can't get my car out today when he comes and hopefully he has one of those monitors that he can leave on it.

Also everytime he changed the nozzel no I did not see stuff on it...except oil..he said it was there...but oil is what is suppose to shoot out that thing..so I think he doesn't have a clue.

Is there a place online where I could see a picture of this thing your talking about that I could see a monitor???

I realize I'm real new at this but if people show me or tell me I can be pretty handy.

Again... THANK YOU!!!! You have been a life saver to me.

Kayleigh
 
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Old 12-29-04, 01:55 PM
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Update

Hello

Well problem solved by the new fellow...the flame was not high enough and he took all the soot stuff off the inside and cleaned it up...now acording to my mom it is so quiet in comparison to what it was. It is working better than it had even when it was first put in.

SO thank you to you Ken for all the help and if anything weird happens again..I am going to refer to what you said it might be.

Thanks and have a great new year.
 
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Old 12-29-04, 02:15 PM
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I hope you don't feel like I was suggesting that you throw parts at the problem without checking the basics. As I re-read my post, it does look that way. The one thing that goes without saying is start at the beginning and work through in sequence. Unfortunately, there are few states and municipalities that require any kind of certification for service technicians. Therefore, anyone who can hang out a shingle can be an installer. Most of all, I feel bad for your mother who lived with a problem that probably should have never existed. If the tech felt bothered by an 80 year old woman with no heat, maybe he should contact a local community college and spend a few nights learning about the equipment he sells.

Ken
 
 

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