Rust smell

usreyjo

I have a very old system. Moved in the house in July and had it tested. Worked fine. No issues. Just turned it on for the first time since then yesterday. Horrible rusty smell filled the basement. It seemed to dry off as the evening went on and the boiler got hot. Turned down the thermostat for the night. This morning smell is back strong again after turning the temp back up.
There seemed to have been a small leak of water when the system was not in use through the summer. I noticed white crystals on the blocks that the boiler is set on. I vacuumed the cristalization off but you can still see some in pic and on floor.
System works fine and warms up the radiators well. I am just concerned about the rust smell.

BobC

It looks like the gauge glass and the boiler drain both need to be serviced / replaced. You probably just have to replace the gauge glass and gaskets but the drain looks like it has to be replaced. Getting the drain cock out might be a pain but it's doable with patience.

Keep an eye on it to see if it's using water, disable any water feeder so it doesn't mask a problem BUT make sure the low water cutoff is working. You might try spreading newspaper around the edges of the boiler base to make sure there aren't other leaks.

EBEBRATT-Ed

Possibly the gage glass bottom connection which is leaking is dripping down on the hot drain valve causing the smell. As @BobC mentioned you should have the gage glass and drain valve fixed before further trouble starts

MilanD

Also, your pressure is set was way high. The brown box by the pressure gauge is called pressuretrol and it needs to be down to 0.5. Get the set screw off and open the lid to reveal what wheel inside. It needs to be set to 1. You are wasting a lot of fuel by raising the pressure that high. Once you get the op psi down, if your boiler cycles on and off a lot, you'll need to replace and improve your main vents.

kcopp

I am wondering if there is a leak between sections. Sitting in a damp basement all summer unheated does not help.
I also wonder if that relief valve is the proper one.... looks like a Watts 100xl

JUGHNE

If would open at 210 degrees, right? That would be noticed perhaps.

Fred

I'm guessing it is leaking mostly around that drain valve. I'm concerned about if all that corrosion is a nipple or if it extends into the end section of the boiler block. Only one way to find out, I guess. Hope for the best, plan for the worst but do so before it gets really cold.

usreyjo

Thank you all for your input. I’m going to have a professional come and look at it tomorrow. Hope that they will know what they are doing and fix what is needed.