boiler skimming

zepfan

does a residential steam boiler need to be skimmed every year regardless of the water condition,and the gauge glass showing no signs of oil droplets or bouncing? i know this is ever important to do at the time of installation,and monitored to see if more skimming is needed.i did not know if this is something that should be done every year as a pm.thanks to all

BobC

Only if it needs it

If it was done after the install or any new piping you should be all set as long as the gauge glass is reasonably steady (1/2" bounce or less) and the water looks reasonably clean.



If you have a float type LWCO that should be blown down a couple of times a month and I would drain a little water from the base of the boiler once a month in the heating season to keep the base of the boiler free of debris. Make sure the gauge glass goes down a bit also to make sure it is "seeing" the true water level. Always fire up the boiler to make steam after adding fresh water to drive off any oxygen in the added water.



A probe type LWCO should be removed once a year to be cleaned, you cold have this done during the yearly burner cleaning and combustion test.



Bob