I have a Riello burner installed in Jan. 2002. I had no problems until a few months ago when the burner stopped working. I called a service tech from the yellow pages.

To make that long story short he did a half-butt service and charged for a cleaning that was never performed. He also did not retighten the nozzle and I had to make a warranty call to have the burner cleaned and nozzle tightened...oil was all over the floor.

I will not go there again.

So, here is my new problem. My burner has recently been cutting out. I press the reset button and prime the line and the burner starts right up. It runs well and heats the house just fine.

When the thermostat reaches temp the burner shuts down. While the house cools down and the temp drops the burner will not turn back on by itself. Pushing the reset button alone doesn't do it. I have to prime the oil line again, each time, then it fires right up.

I am literally setting an alarm to wake up twice every three hours each night to prime the burner and start the heat back up to keep the kids warm. During the day I prime the burner once or twice for heat, dishes, and showers.

My oil line isn't holding oil at the burner once it has shut down and sat for a period. If I turn up the thermostat within a half-hour or so of the burner shutting down it will fire up on its own. Longer than that, and the burner needs to be primed again.

I would greatly appreciate any input as to why the line won't hold oil to the burner.

Thanks in advance for any help. I have read many posts here and value the quality of info provided by the moderators.

 

First check that any oil shutoff valves are fully open. Usually there is at least one at the tank.

After that it may be a clogged line, filter, or pump strainer. I always start with the easy stuff, which would be to change the filter. Can also blow out the line while the filter is off. Then move on to the pump strainer.

Al.

 

Was the boiler serviced annually between 2002 and now?

 

Air leak in the oil line from the tank. to the pump.

 

If this burner has to lift the oil, Riello specifies a two pipe system. A single pipe should not be used unless there is gravity flow of oil from the tank to the pump. If you have a gravity system & don't see an oil leak anywhere, I'm stumped.

If you have to lift the oil, you need a two pipe system. Instead of running a return line to the tank, I strongly suggest a Tiger Loop.

 

OldBoiler:
Both oil shutoff valves are fully open. My filter was supposed to be changed a few months ago when the service tech worked on the burner. It would not surprise me one bit to find out that the guy never even changed the filter.
Who:
The burner was serviced four out of last six years. The two years in between I cleaned the burner and flu but did not change the filter those years.
Ed Imeduc:
I was thinking air leak in the line but I am not sure why it would start all of a sudden and how and where?? I wonder what is the main cause of air in the line? and how to troubleshoot and solve it.
Grady:
I think I have a Tiger Loop at the shutoff valve by the pump. Is it a series of loops in the flex copper at the valve? How would a two pipe system be set up and how does it stop air in the line?

Movieriter:
Thank you all for the help. I will try to get a filter as soon as I can and blow out the line. If anyone has any ideas on HOW the air might be getting into the line over and over again I would love to hear them.

 

That coil of copper is just that. A coil of copper. Here's a link to information about a Tiger Loop.
http://www.westwoodproducts.com/tigerloop.htm

A two pipe (with or without [preferably with] a Tigerloop) makes the pump "self priming". It will allow an air bubble to pass & not get hung up in the pump.

 

Grady,

Thanks a lot for the link to Tigerloop. I have checked all of the info on the page and am going to install one ASAP. I will also be changing or installing a new filter and blowing out the line.

I have to wait 'til later to look into ordering these parts so I will check this forum before I make these final.

Thanks for taking the time to help out.

 

Loose fittings. The oil will barely seep out, but will easily allow air in. Just snug up the fittings on the copper feed line. And if any are compression style they should be changed out for flares.

Al.

 

OldBoiler,

Thanks. My lines are flared and I will recheck to make sure all are snug. We'll see what happens.

 

Check all fittings for any signs of oil, even a film. Snug them than clean with your favorite household spray cleaner & a rag or paper towel. After doing so you can go back whenever you wish & check for any oil residue. If you find any, there's your leak.

When you get ready to order your Tigerloop, I suggest you also order a Riello by-pass plug unless by some chance the one which came with the burner was left with you. You will need to install the bypass plug in the fuel pump to convert it for use with a two pipe system. Both the Tigerloop & bypass plug are available thru www.patriot-supply.com.

 

Grady:
Thanks for the tips on checking and cleaning the lines and fittings. I noticed earlier that the hydraulic piston has some oil on it and the underside has some drops of oil. When I go back down I will recheck the lines and clean them as well.

Thanks for the Patriot link. I am going to order the Tigerloop with the spin on filter.

I will check the oil lines and hydraulic piston assy later when I have to restart the burner.

Thanks,
Movieriter

 

That burner should be an 'F' series burner. Patriot also has the pistons. Replacement takes about 5 minutes.

 

Grady: Right on. It's an F40 Series. I looked up the piston and found a bulletin about the Hydraulic Jack Assembly. My very first thought was that there would be a bad seal or some other symptom causing loss of oil and vacuum.

The bulletin supports the oil dripping out from the jack assy.

I tracked down my installation paper work and found a Tech Sheet with a capillary port plug attached. I am just going to install the port plug and remove the hydraulic jack altogether.

I will also still be ordering and installing a Tigerloop with Filter Assembly.

Thanks for all of your help. I will post tomorrow my results. I think this will do it.

 

Don't forget to order the bypass plug. It is not the same as the capillary port plug. Without the bypass plug in place the Tigerloop will not work. If you do not have the fitting which goes in the pump & the adaptor to go from metric to 1/4" pipe thread you will need them too.

Metric/NPT adaptor:
http://patriot-supply.com/products/showitem.cfm/75338

I THINK this is the pump fitting:
http://patriot-supply.com/products/showitem.cfm/75387

Here is the bypass plug:
http://patriot-supply.com/products/showitem.cfm/75316

You will also need a small metric allen wrench (size?) to install the bypass plug. If it is not with the burner instructions (along with the plug, pump fitting, & adaptor) you can get one at the local hardware store.

 

Hey Grady,

I took out the hydraulic jack assy and the air gate assy then installed the capillary port plug. The burner is running fine and the oil seems to have stopped leaking.

Thanks for the links for the bypass plug info. When I did the cap plug I checked the pump for the plug that I would install the Tigerloop into and noticed it was larger than the capillary plug.

You have saved me the hassle of having to try and figure this out so I can order it all at the same time when I order from Patriot. Thanks for the help.

 

You're welcome. If you don't know just what you will need, wading thru all of the parts is tough. Good luck & let us know how things go.

 

To Grady and any others reading in,

My burner is running great without the hydraulic jack assembly and the air gate assembly. There is no longer any oil leakage and the lines are holding oil.

I have been very busy lately and haven't been able to install a Tigerloop yet, but plan to do that soon.

Thanks again for all the help Grady.

 

It seems you've discovered the cause of loss of prime. Air must have been drawn in thru the bad seal in the jack. I've never thought about it before but it makes sense because the jack line comes off the pump ahead of the solenoid.

 

Hi
I am new to this forum.
I have a riello burner on my hot water heater and my heating system. I had run out of oil today. I got a delivery, and tried to restart both units. I had some problems and replaced all the oil filters, one on the tank, one on each of the units. This is a single line fuel system, the tank is in the cellar, the fuel line in the floor. I made sure there was fuel in each of the filters, I opened up the small screw and left it open until some oil came out. The hot water heater started with 2 presses of the reset button, the hot water heater is at the end of the fuel line. I tried to do the same with heating system. There is fuel to the filter, the line from the filter to the pump is clear. The unit tries to start, I hear the 'click' in the pump, but no fuel comes out, and the air valve does not open. I removed the line from the pump to the nozzle, no fuel came out. I took the unit out, removed the cover to the pump, cleaned the screen and put it back together, It still does not work.

I have had to restart the unit a few times over the years and usually all I had to do was to make sure there was oil in the filter, and press the reset button 2-3 times.

Does the oil pump have to be primed in some way? if it does, how is that done.

thanks for any advice.

 

I found that there is a nut on the pump, open it up and reset the unit. that bleeds it. Weird - I never had to do that before..

Now can anyone do something about the price of oil, $3.79 a gallon...