which steam boiler brand will you recommend

AJ1

I m in the process of replacing my old steam boiler.

I have estimates for Crown Bermuda boiler,Utica and williamson.

I would like to know which ones the pros here prefer..any other brand recommendation..and how does the three above compare..

Does brand name means a lot..I am assuming that the heat exchangers in all of them may be made by one company..isnt it.

Anyways please reply by adding your recommendation.

This is for heating a 1600 SQ FT house using GAS as fuel and Steam boiler..

Charlie from wmass

of the three I prefer Utica

Why because I can get Utica service parts near me. The installer means more to a system than the boiler brand. The square footage of your home means little for steam boiler sizing. It is the square footage of the radiators that decides the boiler size needed. Weil McLain seems to be the most universally availible boiler. I like Smith boilers since they were until this year a Massachusetts boiler, yes I am biased. I like those who live near me to get jobs from the money I spend. 

JohnNY

For some reason, you've got 3 low end boilers listed there.

Why not go for a proper Burnham or Peerless?

clammy

have to agree w/johnny

I know guys are throwing in williamson mainly cause they are very inexpensive and they are able to put more in there pockets ,i think they are older weil blocks with smaller tappings .The uticas are ok i have in the past used them with no issues make sure they use both tappings at a mimiun ,but i have to agree i usually use peerless .They have nice 3 inch tappings and a skim port on the side.More important then the boiler is are they piping it in steel pipe and following or excedding the manafatures suggested near boiler piping using both supply tappings and the proper size header if not over sized.Make sure that who ever is installing the boiler is well versed in steam boiler installs every body thinks it just pipes and it is untrue installing a steam boiler properly is a art and when correctly it will be able to be flushed (water side) and skimmed .Ask who ever is installing which ever boiler for pictures of there installs  and refernces .I say this beacuse i see alot of mis piped badly installed steam boiler and being the HO paided alot ot have it done wrong they usually have no money to have it corrected and they end up living with a terriblly installed under performing steam system.As some very wise advise educate yourself before you have the boiler installed check out all the free info on this web site and maybe buy one or two of dans books so you an fiqure out which contrator to chose and what question to ask it would be far better then ending up with a badly installed  steam boiler and any and all the issues that ome with it .Peae and good luck clammt

bob eck

steam boiler

check into burnham and new yorker

Steamhead

Go for the best efficiency

with gas-fired steam, that's either a Smith G8 or Slant/Fin Intrepid, fitted with a powered gas burner. These two manufacturers, I believe, are the only ones who have approved this configuration. I wish Burnham would do this for their excellent MegaSteam!

Rod

Megasteam

Burnham really stands to lose a lot of business by not coming out with a power gas option for the Megasteam. With rising oil prices due to the falling U.S. dollar being a fact of life for long range future, even hard core oil people like me are going to consider switching to gas when they replace their boilers.

- Rod

Al Letellier_21

best steam boiler

Can't let this one go by without a plug for Weil McLain. I  have installed several hundred steam boilers and every one was a Weil. For gas we used the Riello gas burner for great efficiencies and miminal service. Of those several hundred, only one failed because someone left the cellar door open and it froze, and we had one Riello control failure.....pretty good track record in my book.

Steamhead

Unfortunately

W-M doesn't officially support gas burners in their Gold boilers. Never been able to get a straight answer as to why. Smith and S/F do, which is why we choose them. 

Al Letellier_21

W/M on gas

Steamhead: in our survey of boiler manufacturers about installing gas burners in their boilers, the answer we got was that Weil will not void the warranty on a UL listed oil boiler if a gas burner is properly installed in the unit, but they will  not accept any liability for doing so. Kind of leaves it wide open as we have the liability anyway 'cause we install it that way, but they did not say "Don't do it". Burnham is the only manufacturer that said it would void any warranty. We got the same limited "OK" from all the other major players.

This is not to be considered an official OK from any manufacturer. You should check with your manufacturer of choice for an official OK. It is just the results of an unofficial survey I did last year when our State Fuel Board balked at converting oil boilers to gas when the unit was not UL listed as a gas boiler, but the gas utility here has been doing it forever on any old boiler the customer wanted converted......

Steamhead

Several people from W-M have told me

they don't support this at all. Think of all the potential sales they're throwing away.....

Robert O'Brien

I have no idea

about HB Smith,but I called Slant/Fin Tech support about a Intrepid/ Heat Wise combo last year,it is NOT a factory approved application and no specs or AFUE available

o311sta

Utica

Another vote for Utica

Jamie Hall

Installer...

Installer, installer, installer.  You are buying a service.  Who is going to give you the best job for your project?  Who is going to give you the best service down the line?



Second, as others have noted, don't nickel and dime this one.  Price is only one aspect of the choice of hardware, and it is, in my opinion, to get the best equipment, not necessarily the cheapest (which is rarely, in the long run, the least expensive).

Charlie from wmass

I like the push nipples in the Utica

But as Jamie said Installer is what matters most. I never heard of Utica being called low end. In my area Peerless is considered low end actually. Only saw gas company installations of Peerless. I am not saying they are low end but each area has their favorites.

JohnNY

I get no love...

...from Weil-McLain.

I'll install about 75 boilers this year, maybe more, but 95% of them will be Burnham products.

I think an installer's relationship with the company is an important factor to consider.



As for Utica, isn't that the company that uses those triple-duty aqustats, mounted externally, on their water boilers? It's just my opinion, but I consider that a cost-cutting configuration.

Mark Eatherton

What Jamie said....

Don't purchase a "boiler", rather purchase the COMPANY. That is the key to customer satisfaction.



You are about to embark upon an interesting journey, and unfortunately it doesn't sound like you have a lot of spare time to do due diligence.



First off, if you have time, I'd recommend you click on the SHOP button above and review the books that Dan offers to steam system owners. Written in a language that Joe and Jane Sixpack can understand and relate to. If your system had existing "issues", most of those issues and possibly some new ones will still remain AFTER the new boiler has been installed. Make certain that the installing contractor understands these existing problems, and make certain that they will address them in the replacement boiler.



Ask them for references. Follow up on the references, and ask the reference if they'd mind if you come to their home and look at the installation. Ask them if they are happy with the installing contractor. Its not a matter of IF the system will experience problems, it s a matter of WHEN, and then it becomes a matter of HOW the service company reacts and the net results, which are consumer satisfaction and comfort and efficiency.



Remember, you are marrying the COMPANY that will be installing the boiler for the warranty period. If you are not happy with the COMPANY, then it doesn't matter if they installed the BEST boiler in the world. Your life will still be miserable. The boiler is just the baggage that they are bringing to the party. Make sure you are happy with the company as a whole, and the boiler is secondary.



If you want to read the good and bad things about any boiler, just enter the name brand of the boiler in the Site Search engine on this web and you can see it all. I've been installing boilers for over 35 years, and I have yet to have a boiler that DIDN'T have issues of one sort or another, and for the most part, the manufacturer and their reps have handled the situation well. Those that didn't do right by me and my customer don't get used by me again. I vote silently, with my dollars...



ME