Boiler section issue

Rob Krawic

I am a manager at a large HVAC company in Connecticut. We have a customer who is having an issue with his 2 Burnham B911 Boilers that have had multiple sections replaced due to cracks. The customer has come unglued recently when we discovered yet again another section. His issue is that Burnham is good at sending out new sections but he is upset at continued labor fees. I am asking if any other contractor has had any luck in getting relief for the labor costs from Burnham for their customers. 

Andyk

Cracked Sections

What's causing the sections to crack ? There is usually an underlying issue. Dry fire~water conditions~over heating~flow etc.

lchmb

curious

Is it possible to get any pictures of the piping and sections that are leaking? Have you contacted Burnham to come out to the site and look thing's over/make suggestions to correct the issue's?

Al Letellier_21

burnham boilers

Ditto on looking for the cause. Just replacing the sections is treating the symptoms and not looking for the cause. As mentioned, flow, thermal shock, piping issues are usually the culprit. Get the Burnham rep in there ASAP...that's what they are paid for.

Mark Eatherton

Saw this once...

Boiler(s) was doing space heat and DHW for a large apartment complex.



During the day, when it would fire for minimal DHW loads and or space heat loads, even though it was a modulating burner, the intense heat being dumped into the combustion chamber was causing the sections to stress crack.



The factory supplied 3 sets of end sections in 10 years before we got called into the project. It was pretty obvious to me what was going on, but I guess the basic thought process was, "It's cast iron. It's made to be fired without ANY flow..."



The factory would have just kept supplying sections had we not gotten involved.



Sometimes, it's good to get a second set of qualified eyes, and opinion to help find the cause and solution. Our recommendation was to replace the boiler with a modular set of mod cons.



Live and learn, or not....



ME

icesailor

Boiler sections:

Gees Mark, That is an astounding observation. I know of a place I do work at where they had a big blue boiler noted for cracking that was always cracking.

A bypass line from the supply to the return with a circulator, wired to run when the burner was running would do a lot to keep the water mixed.

As you know, oil fired water heaters "stack" like crazy and no matter how low you set the temp, short draws will stack them. I add a recirc line to the system and it ends the "stacking" of the water.

Mark Eatherton

It had a turbulator pump on it Chris....

Still cracked once every three years.



This is what happens when you drive a tack with a sledge hammer. SOMETHING has to give...



ME