Buderus vs Biasi vs Slant Fin Eutectic EC-10... Quiet?

kortorsmk

First of all, want the thank all for the valuable information that has been assembled in this forum as it has been information. Looking to replace a aging Weil McClain 486V (131,000 BTU) boiler in a 2850 sq ft ranch located in the Philadelphia, Pa. Just completed a heat loss calculation using the Slant Fin 4.0 program and came up with a little under 77,000 btu for the house. Going to continue to add insulation and fill gaps so would expect this to be maximum that we will see. Also, after doing some research, it is my understanding that the Slant Fin program is somewhat conservative so the 77k may be 15 - 20% high. Just did a complete rezone of the house from 1 zone for baseboard to 4 zones with additional zone for a indirect Weil McClain 40 gallon.



Looking for the following in the boiler....

Triple Pass - Efficiency

Low Mass

Quiet operation... Current W/M boiler with Becket Burner sounds like a blast furnace starting up.



With the above known the boilers that am considering are...



1 - Buderus 115ws/3 with Logimatic controls

2 - Biasi B-3 with either Tekmar or Honeywell ODR

3 - Slant Fin Eutectic EC-10 with either Tekmar or Honeywell ODR



Seems that both the Buderus and Biasi are reliable and have a good rep. Biasi has the lower mass of the two which is one of my considerations. Been reading and reaching a lot on the Slant Fin and the EC-10 has sparked my interest from the boiler being cast in France (De Dietrich) to the extremely quiet operation.



Thanks for taking the time to reading. Any input or direction would be appreciated.

earl burnermann

I installed a

Biasi B-10 four section boiler with a riello burner and phase III indirect about six years ago and I love it. Very little service. Only changed the nozzle once (out of habit). And am burning about 500 gallons a year in a 3 bedroom ranch.

Alan Welch

Other options

System 2000 by energy kinetics is another option, I'm sure there are many others. Most important is who does the installation.,ask around. A good boiler improperly installed  might not be the most efficient in the long run.

R Mannino

System 2000

Would be the quietest of them all. The Buderus with an NX would be quieter than the Biasi. The Buderus with a Reillo would be about the same as the Biasi. I have no experience with the Slant Fin.



http://www.technicalheating.com/sites/default/files//styles/large/public/DSCF0010.JPG

ChasMan

Slant-Fin EC10

Homeowner review.

I have the Slant Fin EC13A. I bought it because it was the smallest boiler available. The reason it is smaller is because it uses a short air tube as opposed to the long air tube used by every other manufacturer. The combustion chamber is similar in size to other manufacturers however everything else speced out by Slant Fin is different. Nozzle size, pump pressure air gate etc. I was not able to get the boiler to run properly anywhere near the settings suggested by Slant Fin. After mucking about with the draft and air settings for three years, it will still blow big piles of soot when it cold starts once in a while. The settings suggested by Dedetrich are vastly different than Slant Fin's, I was unable to get an answer as to why that is. Also, nobody here seems to have had much experience with them. And finally, the boiler has recently developed a sizzling sound. I had my water tested and while it is a bit on the hard side (7.2) There is no iron or manganese or chlorides in it. A call out to Slant Fin for advice went unanswered. I have been running boiler cleaner through it and it has quieted it down somewhat, I am beginning to suspect a casting defect. There were casting defects visible when it arrived from the wholesaler but they were minor and around the breach. I'm not sure I would let Dedetrich's marketing influence your decision.

As for noise, I heard it mentioned that it makes so little noise you can put it in a Kitchen. Thats just not true at all. It sounds the same as any other boiler. It is loud. The chimney roar is a bit louder than the blower fan in the burner. Its a lot quieter than my old pinner and after messing with it a lot it starts fairly smoothly most of the time.

Also, other boiler makes have issues too so I'm not dumping on Slant-Fin here, just telling it like it is. 3 pass boilers burn cleaner than pinners and are easier to maintain but they don't turn oil into nat gas.

Whatever boiler you choose, I would spend a lot of time investigating the control and piping strategy. Think about how you, as the owner, would like to operate the boiler when it is 20 below out on New Years eve and the ODR gives out or the high limit goes out or the electronic airgate starts spinning around or worse, locks the burner on. Also, think about your pump sizes and zoning strategy. Instead of check valves, perhaps your zone valves should close when it goes into DHW priority. Also look into a low loss header or primary secondary piping. A n oversized dual air tank setup etc.  The boiler is just a piece of cast iron with a flame shot into it. It is the star of the show but the supporting cast will make it or break it.

And above all, make sure that your boiler guy is familiar with the unit. Make sure it is vented properly. Don’t just throw in a 5” liner just because…

And put two spin on filters and a tigerloop… Sure, it will work without it but it makes a big difference when your fuel oil truck shows up with another load of sludge or whatever passes for fuel oil in your area.

kortorsmk

Thanks for your Slant Fin Experience

Thanks for the blunt but good personal experience on the Slant Fin especially around the noise as this was the main reason for my interest. Great insight on the system outside of the boiler as this can make or break a good install and system efficiency. Current header is 1 1/4" black pipe coming off of boiler feeding (4) pumps. Currently using a Taco (4) zone control with the DHW on priority. Biasi has the lowest mass of the three and reviews look good so may be leaning that way.



Thanks again for the advice..

kortorsmk

Biasi Feedback

Thanks for the review on the Biasi....

ChasMan

Could be a plan

They are the only mfg that ships with a rug. Lots of rug debates on here. My choice would be the Buderus although I would not expect any kind of miracles with it. I would expect the casting to be well made. From what I can SEE which is not much, they appear to have larger water passages than others. Not sold on that 2107 though. It just costs too much. I made that mistake with the Slant Fin. While I like the Thermatic control, I dread that a day will come when it fails and I'll have to rewire half the basement to hook in Slant Fin's new updated stuff.  

R Mannino

I Have

the G115/3 with the 2107 in my house and I can say ODR works (with baseboard no less). Going into winter number five with it and only 4000 hours on the run timer.