Energy Kinetics System 2000

SuperTech

I work for a company called Comfort Master and we service and install a lot of gas and oil fired EK1 Frontier boilers. I really like these boilers. Energy efficient and if tuned correctly there will be nothing to clean inside the oil burner boilers. If they are set up correctly and properly maintained they last forever.

But....one thing I. I'm try to figure out. On nine out of ten of the oil fired boilers when I go to change the nozzle and clean the electrode the nozzle and the end of the electrodes are completely covered with a black coating. Sometimes i find them clean. All of our techs are using Testo analyzers and the boilers are tuned correctly and clean.

It's not causing any problems. When I called Energy Kinetics the answer I got was "hmm. That's a good question".


Any ideas guys?

Ironman

Hmm. That's a good question.

SuperTech

It's annoying. My draft overfire and at the breach is perfect. Very low CO ppm if any. CO2 is usually 10.5% and O2 is 5.5 to 6.5.

SuperTech

I'm open to any ideas. I always keep the pump pressure at 140 or 130 PSI depending on the firing rate. The head is a fixed design. I know not everyone has seen these boilers. The all have a regular Beckett AFG pump with and external oil solenoid valve on the nozzle line.

I did notice one of the clean ones I saw had a clean cut pump on it.....

Ironman

Is the nozzle coked or just discolored?

SuperTech

It's just discolored. On the inside its usually clean. We always run two filters, a general filter at the tank and a spin on filter at the boiler

EBEBRATT-Ed

Anything can change combustion:
1. Temperature and density of the air
2. Draft
3. Temperature of the fuel
4. Chemical make-up of the fuel
5. Temperature of the boiler or furnace in the combustion zone

All fuel oil is not the same. It has to fall within a range of standards, it doesn't all come out of the same well.

Combustion testing is not an exact science. Your looking to keep combustion within a safe range not fixed #s that do not change

If it isn't causing a problem don't worry about it

SuperTech

That's what EK told me. I just keep thinking of all the things that could cause it and the technician part of me wants to make it perfect.

Another thing I noticed on the Clea one it had the new Honeywell primary that reads the cad cell ohms. It was set up for quite a bit of pre purge. I wonder if that or the clean cut pump made a difference.

lchmb

I've seen that happen with delivery companies who have cleaning agents in their fuel oil...

SuperTech

That's quite possible that it's the oil. But it definitely seems like I only see this on the System 2000. We see them all over the place. They can't all be getting the same oil .

The clean one was chimney vent and we do see a lot of them with the combustion air piping hooked up but that really clean one didn't have it. We see some that are sidewall power vented but most are vented through a lined chimney. Draft is always where Energy Kinetics wants it.


Had anyone else ever seen this!

brnrman1

Thank you SuperTech and all for your comments!

The combustion chamber provides a super-efficient and clean burning environment with a very wide range of fuel conditions. Heat from the chamber may sometimes cause slight discoloration of the nozzle surface without detrimental effects, and we accept that as a way to keep the more important heat exchange surface clean. You must agree that when you see our boiler in the basement you know your annual tune up will be a little easier than other boilers with pins and other things in the flue passages.

We apologize for the “hmmm” response you mentioned, your feedback helps us and we’ll work hard to make sure we do better next time

Roger Mitchell
Technical Services
Energy Kinetics
rmitchell@energykinetics.com
1.800.323.2066

DanHolohan

I love the responsiveness of E.K. Thanks, Roger!

STEVEusaPA

Would some more post purge from the primary control help this?

brnrman1

Thank you for your question, Steve. In some site specific cases, primary control post purge may help. In cases where the discoloration is not causing any problems, natural draft from chimneys is adequate to keep the burner head cool and operating reliably so there’s no need to worry about it.

Roger Mitchell
Tech Services
Energy Kinetics
rmitchell@energykinetics.com
1.800.323.2066

billtwocase

I have added post-purge to most of my units, and it does make a difference. Have been through the cracked retention heads, odors on borderline draft situations on shut down, etc. It is easy to do on it also

billtwocase

A lot of residual heat that has nowhere to go is no good

SuperTech

Thank you guys so much, especially Roger! I never expected to get a response from EK on here!

SuperTech

The next time I'm working on a System 2000 and I find the nozzle and electrodes looking like that I'll have to talk to the customer on the benefits of the new Honeywell primary.
I'll probably see a couple this week.

Roger

Thank you, Bill and SuperTech.

To clarify Roger's comment, if there were excessive heat on the nozzle, you would most likely see signs of coking, after drip, etc. It those cases, outside combustion air should be connected to prevent back drafting over the burner head; primary control post purge is good, but not a complete solution. Outside combustion air alone can resolve these conditions. The discoloration on the nozzle discussed in this thread is well within the operating range and is likely not occurring after shutdown and does not pose a problem.

SuperTech, if you'd like to visit this further, please give us a call and we can arrange to visit some sites with you.

Best,
Roger

DanHolohan

It's nice to hear from the owner! Thanks, Roger.

Roger

You're welcome, and thank you for your great forum, Dan!

Erin Holohan Haskell

DanHolohan said:

It's nice to hear from the owner! Thanks, Roger.

Absolutely! Thanks, Roger.

TheOssMan

Do I turn my system off or leave it on? My EK-1 System 2000 needed a reset on the burner because nothing was running and no heat or hot water were being produced. The temperature read out was blinking on 140 degrees and a variety of lights on the digital panel were on, no blinking. I reset the burner and it started working but after about 30 minutes it quit again. So, do I leave it on until service arrives on Monday or turn it off? I don't need the heat and I can wait on the hot water.

STEVEusaPA

If you don't need it, turn it off.

Roger

Thank you for your question TheOssMan. A flashing 140 light will occur when the burner locks out - the manager will open heating zones and keep the circulator on to prevent heating piping from freezing. In your case, it sounds like there is a recurring burner lockout, which should be diagnosed and serviced as any burner lockout. As STEVEusaPA noted, it's fine to turn the boiler power off if you don't need it. It is OK to leave it in the 140 flashing light mode, although of course it will not provide heat or hot water with a burner lockout.

If you'd like to see more diagnostic information on the digital manager, you can find it here including a video and pdf file that describes other types of diagnostic codes and testing:
http://energykinetics.com/digitalmanagerheatingprofessional/

Best,
Roger

DanHolohan

Thanks, Roger. It’s always great to get advice from the guy who owns the company. Superb customer service!

Robert O'Brien

On a Saturday night, no less!

Erin Holohan Haskell

Robert O'Brien said:

On a Saturday night, no less!

Yes! Thanks, Roger.

Roger

Glad to help! Have a great weekend!