Chief Bottlewasher

Wastl

I have a Burhnam ES2 boiler for domestic hot water and hot water baseboard heating.  Installed in 2010, and seem to be working just fine - 3 zones, three interior air temp thermostat.  Has an outdoor air temp sensor, and set up to use it. 

However, the touch features of the LCD IQ Display stopped working some time within the last couple of months.  I have never used it to reset things (the installer set things up), but have checked the outside temperature, or looked at the number of hours the furnace has run, from the display from time to time.

The display home screen shows things are OK, no fault codes, and so on.  158 degrees F, energy on, heat on, and the three options for screens (status is the one I mostly used).  Not red.  But the touch doesn't do anything. 

It appears those screens cost about $450, which isn't chicken feed.

The only thing which has been at all disturbed recently is the outside temp sensor.  It was pulled out about 6" from the wall so the exterior of the house could receive stucco.  There was plenty of slack in the wiring to do this, and recently I screwed the sensor back onto the wall and caulked the wall penetration.  But this problem started before I did the reinstall, and the sensor had been doing its job all along, even though it was sitting away from the house supported by its wires (it is pretty light).  I don't think it missed a beat or was shorted or had voltage applied to it or otherwise was disturbed at all, much less in a way that might affect a switching function of the display screen..

Any ideas on what might have caused the touch feature to fail?  I don't think decreasing peripheral circulation in my extremities has caused my fingers to be too cold, if heat sensing is involved.

And any workaround?  Some pushbuttons I could install which would give the signal to the microprocessor (or other brains) that the touch screen gives?  I can dope things out pretty well, but this display isn't like my wrist watches, which tend to be replaced when the batteries or wrist bands fail.

SWEI

Touchscreen won't respond

Any chance the boiler got wet from above at some point?  A teaspoon or less of pretty much any liquid can fry certain touchscreens.



If Burnham is unwilling to warranty it, you could try component-level repair.  I've never looked under the covers of an ES2, but the LCD touchscreen probably costs less than $20.   Any competent electronics tech can replace it. 

Wastl

Touchscreen won't respond

SWEI

Thank you for thinking about my problem.

I don't think anything got spilled here.  It is in a laundry room, but no roof leaks or plumbing disasters.  Wife doesn't lay clothes on the furnace to dry.

A disaster would more likely fry more of the system, I'd think.  Water and electronics don't mix well, with water acting as an electrolyte.

But you are right that the LCD display should not be that expensive - if I can purchase one separately.  It is not very big.  I guess I should contact the manufacturer to get its specifications, and then look into how difficult it would be to replace it.  It might have its own edge contacts, so not very difficult.  If it is wave soldered onto a PC board, that might be different (not likely, to be sure, as they are kind of heat sensitive).