Well, I received all my equipment and did some tests yesterday.

RobertL

This is on my 25 year old Peerless WBV-150 with the Beckett AFG.

I started with changing out the almost frozen black damper with a Field Controls 6RC Draft Control.

Then with the smoke test on new new Bacharach spot tester. A number 3. I did it again to verify, again a number 3. OMG, really? This is the precise reason I dumped my oil/service company last week. This was supposed tuned and vacuumed last month. I removed the stack and pulled the top off. Out of the 4 nuts holding the top on, one was missing. Looks like the tech did indeed vacuum the boiler, looks OK I guess. Put it back to together and added the missing nut.

Opened the transformer just for fun. Hmmm. no wrench needed. No screws holding the lid down.
Looked at the oil pump. Easy to adjust, no wrench needed. The acorn nut is missing.

I read and followed procedures to obtain a barely noticeable smoke spot. Couldn't tell if the spot was there or not, other than the round indent that the tester made. My wife also said the color is the same as the paper.

I put the analyzer on the boiler and adjusted the shutter/band the following results after adjusting the over fire draft to -.015 and the breech draft to -.035

O2 - 5.1%
CO - 2 ppm
EFF - 79.5%
Co2 - 11.8%
T-Stk - 645°
T-AIR - 66.1°
EA - 30.1%
CO(0) - 3 ppm

Any comments on these readings? I have not put a gauge on the pump just yet and wish to put a smaller nozzle with a F4 head in tomorrow to keep the burner roar down possible get better efficiency, considering this is a well insulated 2000 sqft home in lower NY. The tech put in a 1.25 80° W nozzle, not sure why, but he did. But the "roar" is very noticeable in the house. Not sure what was in there prior.

Regards

lchmb

AFG burner in that unit calls for the Hago 125/80B (file:///C:/Users/Tom/Downloads/WBV-WV_IOM_web.pdf) page 16. which is the maximum firing rate. I wouldnt change the f head as it is spec'd with the F6 head. Pump pressure should be 140psi. I wouldn't have an issue down firing the boiler but like to only drop them 10% myself.
your stack is higher than expected. May be an indicator that more brushing/cleaning is needed. Is the chamber area clean and the target wall in place where it belongs?

RobertL

The target wall look OK, as the best I can determine it. This is where experience would come in handy. As far as clean, looks like minimum soot is built up on the nipples, just a light coat easily scraped by my fingernail. I see nothing blocked as I shine a light downward.

Regards

STEVEusaPA

Lowering the nozzle size wont really help with the noise. I've also never seen a burner run with no screws on the transformer. You left the screws off, not the oil company. In your other post you said...

Then he tells me he did not change the nozzle to a higher GPH.
I pulled it out after he left, and he did put in a larger size....
Indicating YOU were the last one to touch that transformer not the oil company. YOU also left the acorn nut off. Now the best thing you can do is check you z dimension to make sure it hasn't changed.

I get it. You're unhappy with your oil service provider and you want to do it yourself...and people will help you. But don't inflate how bad the situation was. Just tell it like it really happened.
On your combustion, run the unit a good 10 minutes. Then adjust draft. Then smoke test, adjusting smoke to true zero smoke. Then whatever the analyzer reads is where you are at. At true zero smoke, I add air to drop the CO2 down 1/2 percent.
Make sure you tighten all your screws, air shutter, air band, etc.
Overall your numbers aren't bad. Maybe your draft went up if you didnt wait until you got to steady state, causing a higher stack temperature.

RobertL

I'm not sure why you are questioning the order of events. Perhaps the order was slightly skewed. I'm unable to determine why you want me to defend myself when all I'm asking for for assistance.

I won't do that and give you the satisfaction.

By the way, using a smaller nozzle WILL lower the roar, just for your information, according to my research.

776v63

Burners make noise. Especially older units with large nozzle sizes (relatively speaking).

Sure, you could go against manufacturer's spec and downsize it. Maybe your combustion chamber won't effectively reflect heat back into the smaller flame, disrupting its ability to aid the combustion process. Maybe it'll be fine. What has your research told you?

There is a lot of nuance to properly adjusting an oil burner. It's easy to do, but difficult to do properly. The guys here know what they are talking about because they've been doing it for years.

You can certainly find information online that supports whatever views you have, even if they may be false. These guys are giving you advice based on actual experience.

I'm glad your finding some success with your equipment, but just keep in mind that they are just tools. You have to know how to properly operate them.

unclejohn

@1.25 gph that's 180,000 btu. Much more then what he needs from the sound of it. The burner has a minimum and a maximum rate, It seems reasonable that the oil supplier wants the max whether it's needed or not. Also there is a product call soot spray you might want to try. Works well.

RobertL

It sure is. We were not the home owners when this system was installed. Referencing my BTU loss calculations, its 266% OVERSIZED. Unreal.
I would have loved to see the credentials of the person who sold this hunk to the previous owner. What a racket!
In any case, changed the head to a F4 and downgraded the nozzle to a 1.0 80° B @ 140psi
Working well and much quieter. Efficiency went up almost 2 points. All other numbers remain within the brackets. Stack temperature down 59°

If all remains well, I'll drop it to a .85 80° B @ 140psi and see how this does

Regards

unclejohn said:

@1.25 gph that's 180,000 btu. Much more then what he needs from the sound of it. The burner has a minimum and a maximum rate, It seems reasonable that the oil supplier wants the max whether it's needed or not. Also there is a product call soot spray you might want to try. Works well.

RobertL

OK thanks for input. I'll order a brush and brush it well. I'll put a fine mesh around my Shopvac's filter and vacuum the soot.
I'll post my temperatures after this.

RobertL

I didn't get a brush just yet, but I did put in a smaller nozzle at @140psi, a .75 80° B
Here are my new reading after 12 minutes of run time:
O2 - 5.6%
CO - 5 ppm
EFF - 83.9%
Co2 - 11.4%
T-Stk - 460°
T-AIR - 67.4°
EA - 34.0%
CO(0) - 6 ppm

Draft over fire and in stack good.

This is with the F4 head. I'll let this go and see how it performs for a few days. Let's see how my other half does in the shower, as this has the internal coil...

I'm not sure if I needed the F3 and the Low Fire Rate Baffle, so I didn't order them.

Also, the transformer closes and seems flat, even though the gasket is missing, along with the two hold down screws. I wondering if I should locate a gasket and screws for the Sid Harvey transformer, or leave it as is.

Regards

ChrisJ

If it was mine, I'd want the gasket and everything to be correct, but some on here claim I'm overly anal. No idea where they got that impression.......

Robert O'Brien

You need the gasket.

RobertL

Is my Sid Harvey ignition transformer a re-manufactured Allanson?
Their model number is 192 with a serial of 10 86

I don't have a Sid Harvey account to order

Thank you

Robert O'Brien said:

You need the gasket.

RobertL

Thanks Hatterasguy

Not sure about the stack temperature. The target wall is there, fully in tacked, though the "floor" is broken up...

I ordered the F3 head and the Low Fire Rate Baffle. I'll give the current configuration a week or so, then install them and do a comparison.

I also have a .85 80° B (up .10gph) on order too, to play with soon.

Regards

Hatterasguy said:

RobertL said:

I didn't get a brush just yet, but I did put in a smaller nozzle at @140psi, a .75 80° B
Here are my new reading after 12 minutes of run time:
O2 - 5.6%
CO - 5 ppm
EFF - 83.9%
Co2 - 11.4%
T-Stk - 460°
T-AIR - 67.4°
EA - 34.0%
CO(0) - 6 ppm

Draft over fire and in stack good.

This is with the F4 head. I'll let this go and see how it performs for a few days. Let's see how my other half does in the shower, as this has the internal coil...

I'm not sure if I needed the F3 and the Low Fire Rate Baffle, so I didn't order them.

Also, the transformer closes and seems flat, even though the gasket is missing, along with the two hold down screws. I wondering if I should locate a gasket and screws for the Sid Harvey transformer, or leave it as is.

Regards

Those numbers are excellent. Stack still seems a bit high but you've definitely got the efficiency.

The gasket is preferable, but, you already have the combustion numbers with whatever leakage occurs across the sealing face so, personally, I wouldn't lose sleep over it. If you have the flange secured well, there isn't much air that can pass.

If you need a gasket from Sids, let me know.

RobertL

This reason I mentioned the low fire baffle is due to the literature from Peerless that came with the unit, installation was in 1988.
There they mentioned using a .85gph nozzle, with the requirement of the baffle, but for the WBV-085 model. I have the WBV-150.

Yes, I can close the air more, I have more leeway. I'll get the CO2 closer to 12.

Thank you for your assistance

Rob