Doityourself community
We need some advice - my family recently installed a Burnham V8 boiler. The boiler is constantly shutting down. The maintenance tech came out 24 hours ago and changed the filter. They claim that there is sludge/water being pulled into the system from the oil tank. This was never a problem with the old furnace and we have not touched the tank or the lines to the tank. We have been able to ignite the boiler with the manual button, but now my mother pushed it so hard that it is broken! Is this a common problem with the V8 Series or does this sound like an problem with the installation?

I would appreciate some advice on this matter. Of course this happens over the holiday! Thank you

SW

 

Since I can't see the filter, I can't dispute the tech on that point. Your problem has nothing to do with the boiler. It is the victim of either a dirty fuel system or bad install.

 

Thank you for your response. My concern is a bad install. All other evaluations have been made by the tech sover the their last three visits and they claim all other systems are working properly. Would the new pump be stronger the the old one and that would cause sediment/sludge to come into the system?

 

Do you buy your oil consistently from the same dealer, or shop around? You could have gotten a bad batch. Especially if the last delivery coincides with the problems...

Do you have a single or dual line oil system? If dual, you might want to ask the tech about going to a single line system. Dual lines recirculate a lot of crud between the tank and filter needlessly. You might ask the guy about adding tank treatment, like Fuel Right. Sludge and water will contribute to premature tank failure.

 

Thanks RadioConnection
I pulled off the cover of the beckett oil burner and got the manual ignite button fixed. I pressed it and got the burner running again. That is what seems weird to me. Then it will shut down in a few hours before the correct tempature is reached as set on the thermostat. Can the techs check pull oild through the pipes and check its content. I am used to working with outboard motors and it is easy to see when you have water in the fuel line, but this seems hard to fix.


It seems to be a single line systems but I will have to confirm.

 

He probably immediately knew what the problem was when he pulled the filter and looked at it.

 

How about self cleaning solutions to put directly into the oil tank? I saw a oil truck at my neighbors and talked to the guy he mentioned there was a chemical you can purchase to break down the sludge so it will go through the filter and burn off. Any thought on the burner itself? What I am finding to be weird is you can manually fire the burner and it will go on for a few hours then it won't go back on through the thermostat. They told us that it is not a thremostat issue.

Could there be an arch problem in the burner? I have heard that can be an issue with this type of burner.

 

How are you starting the burner??? Are you hitting the reset button on the primary control on the oil burner? That is NOT the same as a heat call from a thermostat. I'd suggest getting a pro back to fix the problem or to at least evaluate it. If the primary is going off on alarm it means a flame loss, and that could be related to the dirty fuel issues or to an ignition problem. Your filter could be clogged, your oil lines could be clogged, your pump strainer could be clogged, you could have an ignition issue. You really need professional on site at this point. I mentioned a product that can be added to prevent the problem you have now. You never answered whether this is two or single line oil supply.... Going to a single oil line MIGHT alleviate the problem, but you need a pro to advise whether that would help in your case, and to do the work. If the primary is locking out it means you need service! Don't continually hit the reset for heat.

 

One other note:

They do sell a product that you paste onto an oil tank measuring stick or tape measure called water finding paste. Once applied to the stick, just insert into the tank and pull it right out. The color of the paste will tell you if there is water in the tank. It will do no good for sludge though. A good service tech/installer would have recognized a really bad filter and should have offered a good replacement, like a Garber, or a dual filter system at an additional cost to you.
He should have replaced the existing filter at minimum.

There could also be an air leak in the line, but you have not mentioned one or two pipe system from the tank to the burner.

It is never advisable to start an oil burner by pushing the red reset button more than ONCE. After that call your service tech. If you are not happy with that one, call another and fight it out later.

 

thanks RadioConnection I appreciate your help.

It is a single line oil supply - I missed your line about the Fuel Right in you earlier post. Yes, I have been pushing the reset button on the burner. A heat call from the thermostate will not work.

I will get the pro back out here again. Thanks for you help. I appreciate it.

SW

 

Maybe more than one problem ... since it's a new install, it's possible that in addition to a minor sludge problem, you could have an air leak at one of the new connections to the fuel line. Especially since you say it runs for a while and then won't re-start... the line loses 'prime' ... and the burner locks out before the pump runs long enough to re-establish fuel flow. Add a mucked up filter to that scene, and it just makes it worse.

 

NJ Trooper - thank you for your help so far. I am new to understanding how these boilers work and I am the last one on the scene because my parents have been making the service calls.

We are going to have a tech come out tomorrow and I am going to observe them check the filter and show me what they claim is dirty oil and how it is clogging the filter and causing the burner to shut down.

What I find strange is that less than 24 hours after their last visit the burner shut down again and was not responding to the calls from the thermostat. Can a filter get clogged that fast? It is a single line system. We may have had a two line system before because there are two copper wires that are now unhooked and unused.

As I indicated before I hit the reset button and the burner fired for a few hours and the furnace ran up to the temperature on the thermostat and then it shut down again (I have not pushed the reset button again - and won't until the tech comes tomorrow). Trouble is we are with out heat and it is 30 degrees outside!

We never had a problem with our old furnace.

What other trouble shooting should I be aware of to ask the tech about?

What about a larger filter?

Thanks for your advice.

 

Where is the oil tank located? indoors, outdoors, underground ...

How far from the boiler?

Is the tank above, the same, or below the level of the burner?

Does the line come off the top of the tank, or the bottom?

When they installed the new boiler, how did they go about connecting the new burner to the old fuel lines? i.e. did they re-use the existing oil lines and use a FLARE FITTING coupler to attach to the old?

Since you say there are two lines showing unused, it sounds as though they may have run a new single line back to the tank. If it's a 'top feed', I wonder if they pushed the pickup line too far down and it's sitting in, or very close to, the sludge in the bottom...

I have to assume that they did this--> There is a small 'bypass plug' that needs to be installed in the oil pump on the burner when using a single line.

 

Is there a little 5/16" hole in the vent pipe just above the boiler? It may not have adjusted properly and going off on safety.
When the burner is running, if you pull the cover press & release the red reset button and count the flashes it may assist in the resolution. It should be two flashes or less. The green light will be on and when the button is pressed it will go off. The green light will come back on and go off. A flash is an on and off cycle. When the light comes on and stays on that is not a flash. Here is a sequence. Light on, press button light off, light on and off, light on and off, light on and stays on is two flashes
You should have a maximum of 2 flashes.

 

Hi Trooper, I think you are mis led on this quote.
When installing a 2 pipe system is when the bypass plug is installed, unless you know something I don't.

 

Well looks like it was two issues going on that was causing the sensor to shut down the burner:

1) Air in the oil line - we opened the filter to check the filter and the oil level in the filter. The filter was clean and the oil level low. We purged the line to get the air out and now the oil is flowing through the filter with no problems. We also checked the quality of the oil when we purged and the oil appears to be fine with no particulate/sludge.

They system was installed in 2007 and last year one of the tech's identified that there was possibly air in the oil line. I wonder if this is related to the switch from a two line system to a single line. Our old system was two line system. For some reason they hooked it up to be a single line system now. They did not run a new line from/to the tank they just cut one of the existing lines and attached a new copper run to the filter and then to the burner.

2) The air intake (don't know correct term) was open so much that it is possible that when the fan turned on it was blowing out the flame. They adjusted that and checked the exhaust quality to determine that it is at 83% efficiency.

If we continue to get air in the line we are going to see about turning it back to a two line system.

Thank you all very much for you help. I learned a lot.

Sincerely

Oldhouse21204

 

Don't do it. If air continues to be a problem run a new line, install a new filter, etc. to do all you can to eliminate the air leak. If that doesn't cure the problem install a Tiger loop. If your tank is outdoors or at all dirty, you don't even want to think of a two pipe.