help 30 days of problems

clammy

I have in the past used the weil burner and have had no promblems that's if the pump pressure was set right and the correct nozzle was installed for the pump pressure and the burner set up correctly when done right it burner as good as a reillo JMO your promblem is probalby just oil lines clogged and i would agree if it was a earlier qb without a solniod and pre post relay ,i will admit that they can be a little hard to set up but in all fairness i still have some out there and when i go to do yearly cleaning they are usually spot less and just a little white ash in the chamber ,unless the usually promblems like lack of combustion air ,bad draft ,improper barametric placement or lack of damper and high vacume it's sounds like the tech was suffering from a bad case of the lazyies or lack of knoweledge or hates his job peace and god luck clammy

Butch_4

30 days of problems

I have a Weil-Mclain boiler. Installed about 6 years ago. On 2/7/07 got an oil delivery. On 2/11/07 in the afternoon I noticed hot water ran out. We had no heat. Called service tech. and they bled the pump and it started right up. On 2/15/07 no heat again. Called service tech again. Was told it may be the transformer. They closed the electrodes alittle and it got a spark. Was told they'd be back tomorrow to test transformer. 2/16/07. Transformer tested and it was ok. Seen a little leak from a fitting. They tightened it and it broke. They replaced the fitting and new electrodes, etc. Got heat. They called the following day to make sure all was ok. On 2/18/07 no heat again. Hit the reset button and flames shot from the burner. Shut it down. Called service tech. Was told it had been set to rich and they cleaned the whole boiler. Got heat. 2/19/07. They returned in the a.m. and cleaned and reset parts. Started and we had heat. 8 p.m. we had no heat. Hit the reset and it started up. 2/21/07 the heat went out in the afternoon. Called service tech. Hit reset and it came back on. Was told maybe something electrical. 2/22/07 talked to service tech and told him it was running fine. 2/23/07 4:30 we had no heat again. It had made a few bangs and a puff of smoke came from the flue on the pipe. Hit reset and it came back on. 11:50 we have no heat. Hit reset and it came back on. 2/26/07 spoke to service tech and they said they'd be back in the a.m. 2/27/07 they arrived. They cleaned and reset some things. Boiler was running but not smooth. Sounded like it was windy insted of a smooth sound. Called them so they would know there was still a problem. 3/5/07 we have no heat again. Hit the reset twice and got heat. Called them. They came right over. They readjusred the flue, took apart the burner and cleaned and readjusted everything. Did some tests. 3/9/07 at 10:45 p.m. the whole house shook with a rumble and the smoke detector went off. Went downstairs and the furnace was running. On 3/10/07 boiler kickedon and it ran about a minute and than just heard the motor running with no fuel. Ran about 10 seconds like that and than the oil kicked in as it roared. It's been running since. It is a Weil-Mclain burner. Any ideas on what we should do. Should we get a new burner? Would that solve the problem? The flue right now stays open a little. The service techs haven't been charging me as they just want to get it done right. I know they're not trying to rip me off. They are great guys always here right away. If anyone has any ideas please let me know. I asked if I could have gotten a bad batch of oil and they said noone else complained and I was close to the middle of the tanker. Thanks.

Norm Harvey

Get a professional service company, period.

The techs press the reset and leave? Nice does not equall professional.

It sounds like you need a proper technician there. Ignition issues are about the easiest thing in the world to diagnose.

Have they combustion tested your system with digital instruments,.. or any instruments?

Try this http://www.heatinghelp.com/getlisted.cfm



To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"

Unknown

It's a Weil Mclain oil burner ?

Does the sticker on the oil burner say " QB 180 " ? If it is , they discontinued that burner .

We had nothing but troubles with the QB 180 . Mostly boiler sootups within a few months of install . We changed each and every one of them to a Riello oil burner and the problems vanished .

Also , how old is the oil tank ? Is it buried ?

Weezbo

i am inclined to agree with Ron jr.

i would like to add that a tiger loop combo after the general would be another step in the right direction.

if you have a burner in the basement the oil tank flooding the pump,...an osv is another great idea. shut off valves and a cap for the unused line is another good thing ...

i also changed out some electrodes(one piece set) last week on the same burner same manufacturer... i left a Riello and a Tiger loop combo to live beside the boiler.... i am thinking that is where it is the homeowner is knowing that it is there...*~/:) he is keeping an eye on it for me:)

Butch_4

Hi
Don't know what a tiger loop is. It is a QB180 burner. We have a raised ranch with no basement.

Butch_4

It is a QB10. Oil tank is not buried. In the garage, Age? Was here when we moved in.

lee_7

Did they clear oil lines with either a pump or co2 charge into bucket, not tank. Could be clogged oil line. Unit will run itself in vacumm and go off on reset. Oil will slowly refill lines and will run when reset hit after time.

myles_2

butch, please have your service tech change the ignitor
block they will know it better as elctrodes. this is a common problem with qb180 i change them every 3 years or sooner when needed. just had a customer with a similar
problem last week.
good luck myles

dana_3

resetting boiler

you could have two things happening. first is cold fuel from an unconditioned space (garage).downfire the nozzle size and up the pump pressure to match the maximum firing rate of the boiler. second- sounds like too much excess air for combustion. both symptoms will need to be addressed by an experienced tech

mtfallsmikey

Just helped out a friend yesterday

With a QB180..sooted up the boiler real good (can you say junk?)

Robert O'Brien

I

agree with Norm,troubleshooting must be approached in a methodical manner.Guessing is not diagnosis.

To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"

Bruce Marshall

A couple of things came to mind on this. I notice the oil tank is outside in garage. Is it a 2-pipe system feeding the pump? In a cold environment (like February) a 2 pipe system with cold oil moving at 17gph will gel and ice up on the pump strainer and cause high vacuum. The burner will lock out. During the time the burner is locked out, the ice will thaw and the burner will seem to start normally. If it is a 2 pipe system, convert it to single pipe since the entire oil supply is above the pump.
Hope this helps.

Bruce M

mike@BORO

weil qb180

i truly believe that weil put that burner out there as an experimental.wanted to see what the techs thought. [you dont want to hear my thoughts]. however weil made good .i believe they offer an "upgrade kit"if you will. set pump at 140 install solenoid valve and change nozzle to 70 solid i believe.solved many jobs. mike@BORO

Joe@buderus_2

Contact Weil McLain tech support

Suggest to the technician that they contact Weil Mclain tech support directly (would be more productive to call from your home with their test instruments). Tech support number is 219-879-6561.

Darrell

Got tons of QB burners out in this area working like crazy...they are too tight...and a very common problem is a high ohm reading from the cad cell. It will run for a while at 1580 bouncing over 1600 occasionally, and then finally go over 1600 for 45 seconds and lock out. But it sounds to me like you're not getting ignition...the hard start means that a bunch of oil got pumped in that didn't light. Bad transformer, bad ignitor block, bad wires from transformer to ignitor block, restricted oil train, bad nozzle, did a moose step on your oil lines while eating your lilac bushes? Hey, it happened twice last week here!

To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"

Butch_4

Replaced ignition block, leads, electrodes, nozzle and transformer. Yesterday they found a bunch of air bubbles in the line. Bled out at the fuel pump. Also found some loose fittings where air may have gotten in. Hoping this was the problem. Will know in a few days.

Kevin__Flynn

be careful

symptons of a high vaccum can closely resemble air. The difference is that "bleeding" the pump will only solve a high vaccum very temporarily.

Make sure the tech is using a vaccum gauge. It's the most important tool in the box when it comes to trouble-shooting oil issues.

kf

allenleo

i think kf hit the nail on the head

this sounds like a high vacuum problem; and it does closely resemble a suction leak. it may be that they should use a vacuum guage to test the line. this is a two pipe system, so the pump can handle at a maximum 12" hg if it is a single stage pump. the high vacuum was probably caused by the oil run out. have them clear the line. if there is a osv or check valve, have them replace them at their expense. make sure that there is a gravity flow from the oil tank. after they do this, the oil should be pulled through the line with a hand pump, if the oil line is run overhead. try that and see what happens.