Steam heat with oil, down firing question...

stevenyc_2

Just wondering if someone could clarify what down firing is exactly.

I have a Peerless oil boiler which is about 10-15 years old and I think I have short cycling issues. Burner shuts off after short cycles of 2-3 minutes on unless I pump up the pressure. I removed two radiators in the basement when I finished it so I am wondering if that has contributed to the short cycling and whether down firing will help bring things back into line. Thanks for any help and info!

Ted_4

Down-firing

Down-firing of a boiler is pretty much exactly what it says: reducing the size of the fire. This reduces the btu/hour input to the boiler, which also reduces its output.

It is practical, and perhaps desirable to reduce the firing rate of a boiler to more closely match its output to the connected load. But the there are practical limts to how much a unit can be down-fired.

The very first thing you want to do is determine the size of your connected load by "counting the radiation." There are tools elsewhere on this site that will help you do that, and figure the load (including connnecting piping) in btu per hour.

Once you have that figure, an appropriate down-firing plan can be executed. However, this is a job for a professional! After a new nozzle of an appropriate type and size has been installed, the burner must be re-tuned with a combustion analyzer.

When properly done, the boiler should operate more quietly ,with higher efficiency and longer cycles.

EBEBRATT-Ed

Ted nailed it . What he said.

ED