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Mod/Con Boiler flame sensor

Jason_13
Jason_13 Member Posts: 304
I have a stainless steel mod/con boiler that keeps getting red deposits on the flame sensor and will shut down. This is fired with natural gas.

Clean the flame sensor and it works about two weeks.

Here is what I have done so far

1. Checked 02 = 6.0% within spec's Co 41 ppm. Tried a different combustion analyzer to double check numbers. Tried different 02 settings this is where it is now.

2. Slowed fan speed for less input - avoid over heating

3. Disconnected air intake pipe to try indoor air to eliminate cross contamination

4. Replaced flame sensor 2 times.



Please help and thanks in advance

Comments

  • Zman
    Zman Member Posts: 7,561
    exchanger?

    Jason,

    What model is it?

    What is the condition of the exchanger? Have you cleaned it?

    Carl
    "If you can't explain it simply, you don't understand it well enough"
    Albert Einstein
  • Jason_13
    Jason_13 Member Posts: 304
    flame sensor

    New installation boiler not dirty.

    ALP080 boiler model number
  • Ironman
    Ironman Member Posts: 7,366
    Tech Support

    Have you contacted Burnham tech support?



    Anything unusual in the content from the gas supplier?
    Bob Boan
    You can choose to do what you want, but you cannot choose the consequences.
  • Jason_13
    Jason_13 Member Posts: 304
    flame sensor

    Yes and no

    Yes did contact tech support and no on gas supply. The only thing different with this boiler is it is on a new gas main.
  • Tim McElwain
    Tim McElwain Member Posts: 4,612
    Jason what is your location?

    Contact me and I will connect you up with someone from Burnham (US Boiler) here is what may be wrong it depends on location.



    This is a question that has popped up out of nowhere in the past three weeks and all of the other jobsites seem to be in the same area of Western PA. I have seen this in the past in an area of South Boston where the gas utility had just replace the street main. On two jobsites we were able to change out the gas valve and found fine reddish-orange powdery residue inside the valve. In speaking to the gas utility we were informed that it was probably residue from the machining processes involved in installing the plastic main. They said they would purge the main out and there have been no reoccurrences since. That was about three years ago.

     

    If this jobsite is in Western PA, I was informed today that our engineering department is in the process of trying to have a couple of gas valves replaced and returned for testing in the lab. We have not had any other areas in the US and Canada having this problem and want to try and pinpoint the cause. Please have the person verify their geographic location and let us know.
  • Steve Whitbeck
    Steve Whitbeck Member Posts: 669
    Red

    Red sensor means water or steam inside the combustion chamber.

    Your boiler is holding water...

    If there is water under the heat exchanger when the boiler fires up it will flash to steam.
  • Jason_13
    Jason_13 Member Posts: 304
    edited November 2012
    Sensor

    There are actually 6 - 8 doing this in Windber PA.

    Does not seem to be affecting the cast iron boilers.

    Gas line went plastic about 10 - 12 years ago.
This discussion has been closed.