Honeywell Aquastat issue


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Old 03-29-08, 09:06 PM
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Honeywell Aquastat issue

I have a 2 zone utica gas boiler. When I turn the thermostat it does not turn on the burners. When I opened the Honeywell Aquastat Relay L8148e 1257 and push in one of the relays with my finger it starts the boiler and heats up. When I Let my finger off of the relay it shuts off the burners. Please help me in figuring out my problem. I'm not sure if I could just replace the relay or if I have to replace the Honeywell Aquastat Relay L8148e 1257. Excuse me if I'm not making much sense But I'm new to this. I'm Learning as I go.
Thanks
Frank
 
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Old 03-30-08, 08:16 AM
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L8148e

Does the circulator(s) run when either thermostat calls for heat? Do you have a circulator for each zone or two zone valves with one circulator? If zone valves, do they open?
Pictures of the boiler & nearby piping, including any controls, would be helpful. You can post them on photobucket.com or similar photo sharing site & provide a link here.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 09:49 AM
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L8148e

Hi Grady
I have 2 zones with one curculater and it does open when I call for heat. I will look into posting pictures on that website Thanks.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 10:04 AM
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Circulator

If the circulator comes on with a call for heat from either zone, any components upstream of the aquastat can be eliminated as a source of trouble.
Is there an electrically operated vent damper & if so, does it open?
 
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Old 03-30-08, 10:30 AM
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L8148e

Yes the vent damper does open and close properly.
I posted some pictures on photobucket.com
http://s300.photobucket.com/albums/nn26/techman69/
 

Last edited by techman69; 03-30-08 at 11:00 AM.
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Old 03-30-08, 12:28 PM
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It this worked OK in the past and nothing has been changed I would guess the 24v transformer in the control whent bad. If you know how to use a meter disconnect the wires from the control and check for 24vac on t-T terminals. If no 24vac replace the aquastat. If you have 24vac it is a zone valve or wiring problem.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 01:55 PM
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L8148e

I believe if the transformer in the 8148 were bad, the circulator would not come on either. I'm suspecting either no power thru the proving switch on the damper or a bad burner circuit in the 8148.

I just re-read the original post & it seems to say the relay is not pulling in. This relay provides power to the circulator. If the relay is not pulling in on a call for heat, the circulator would not be running. Something isn't making sense.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 02:41 PM
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It works

It seems to be working now.
I set the switch to automatic on the vent damper motor and put it back to manual mode. As soon as I did that the burners kicked on and the temp went up to 180 and the air handlers turned on. So now I have heat but I feel their is still something wrong. Is that normal for it to go out like that?. What should I do so that this won't happen to me again. Other than get a service plan with someone.
P.S.
Thank you all for helping me out in a time in need.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 04:06 PM
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Working now

Obviously this can be nothing more than speculation but I suspect the problem to be in the damper, specifically the end switch.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 04:55 PM
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Question

So do you think I should change it. If so Does anyone know where I can buy it online.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 05:58 PM
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cunfussed

O.K now i'm confussed it had stopped working again. So what I did was set the damper switch to auto the back to manual but that did not fix the problem. I pressed down on the side of the relay then the damper opened and the burners turned on. Something is broken but I don't know what part is broken. Any suggestions.
 
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Old 03-30-08, 07:53 PM
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question

Sorry for all the questions but thanks for your support. It seems once it's on and it reaches the 180 degrees it stops the burners but it should turn on when the temp reaches 150 degrees but it doesn't that's when I have to touch the relay and then it fires up again. What could that be.
 
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Old 03-31-08, 05:18 PM
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Relay

When you say "relay" I presume you mean the relay in the 8148. I believe the 8148E to have only one relay & it's function is to turn on the circulator & burner. This relay is the device at the top-center of your first picture. If the circulator runs without having to manually engage the relay, it would seem the relay is good.
When the temp drops to 150º after reaching 180º, is the circulator still running?
 
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Old 04-02-08, 11:23 AM
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relay

I mean the one right below that one in my pictures. What I also found out from the EFFIKAL vent damper support. Is that the automatic operation should manual open the vent damper and close when the burners turn on/off. When I switch the position on the damper to the open damper positon it closes the damper. So does that mean I have a bad damper. So what I do then is put the damper switch back to the auto position then puch in that relay it will then open the damper and fire up the burners. once it reaches the 180 degree mark the burners turn off but the damper stays open, the manual reads that the vent should close so that the heat can stay in and not escape.
P.S.
Sorry for the late respone.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 02:58 PM
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techman, for clarification, the brown colored thing at the lower center of the first pic has two terminals on top, and a temp dial below. That's the HIGH LIMIT switch.

The relay is above that in the pic, almost black in color.

To the left of the relay is the transformer.

Are you pushing on the HIGH LIMIT switch in order to get the burners to fire ?
 
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Old 04-02-08, 04:15 PM
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relay

Hi NJ Trooper, No I am pushing in the relay. I'm not doing that anymore it seems not to be doing the trick anymore I don't want to ruin it more than what it is. I'm pushing in the side of the relay not the top of it. I'm probably going to replace the vent damper and the aquastat because I can't figure out with one is broken. Please help
 
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Old 04-02-08, 05:18 PM
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Aquastat

On the end of the aquastat there are two wires in a brown jacket. Those wires should go to the zone valve. Try installing a jumper across the terminals in the aquastat to which those wires attach. Let us know what happens.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 05:30 PM
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aquastat

The boiler made a noise and the burners didn't turn on. Is that what supposed to happen.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:00 PM
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Jumped terminals

No. The damper should have opened & if it did the burners should have fired. Did the damper open?
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:03 PM
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aquastat

No the damper stays open all the time it never opens and close unless I flip the switch on the damper motor. So does that mean it's a bad aquastat.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:21 PM
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Volt Meter

Do you have a volt meter & know how to use it?
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:25 PM
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volt meter

yes I tested the vent damper motor,aquastat. It was good.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:34 PM
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I'm Stuck

Without being completely familiar with your set up & not being able to get my hands on it, I'm afraid I'm stumped. Based totally on past experiences with dampers, I would be more inclined to suspect it than the aquastat.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 06:43 PM
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aquastat

I thank you for being honest with me. With your experience with dampers motors shouldn't it open and close in the automatic position and open completely it the hold open position it's actually closing in the hold open damper position.
That's odd to me.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 07:19 PM
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Damper operation

It should operate as you said. There is the possibility it is getting the wrong orders from either the ignition control or aquastat whichever is sending power to the damper.
About the only thing I could suggest at this point is to do a visual inspection of the back side of the aquastat board. Make sure all power is turned off, remove & label all of the wires as to which terminal they go to. There are 4 tabs which hold the board in place. Use a pair of needle nose pliers to bend the tabs flush with the sides of the metal box. Lift the aquastat board straight out. There is a probe on the back so be careful not to kink the capillairy. Flip the board over & look for any burnt spots or anything which doesn't look right. If you find anything, chances are you've found the problem.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 07:39 PM
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I try it

Yes I will try that tomorrow but tell me one thing what is the ignition control? is that on the aquastat or a different device.
 
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Old 04-02-08, 07:58 PM
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Ignition control

Usually it is a separate device. It would be the control which lights the pilot.
 
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Old 04-03-08, 07:23 AM
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aquastat

I did what you have suggested. I removed the circuit board
And I didn’t see any signs of damage. So I guess it’s back
To square one for me. Thanks
 
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Old 04-03-08, 02:59 PM
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Talking I Have Heat

Yes I have heat guys. It was the aquastat. I want to thank you guys for your assistance. You all are doing a wonderful thing in helping all of us that are not in the trade. I'm so glad I found this site. Thanks to all.
 
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Old 04-03-08, 08:56 PM
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Thumbs up Heat

Glad you got it fixed. Don't know how much help we've been but thanks for the vote of confidence anyway. How did you determine it was the aquastat?
 
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Old 04-04-08, 09:49 AM
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Aquastat

I just went with the most obvious solution. Pretty much my gut feeling and of course
With your assitance. I was able to resolve my headache. Thank God for this forum
And good people like yourself and others that participate in this forum.
Thanks
 
 

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