on a 'Round Oak' oil furnace

mcfall

homeowner said he had to keep pushing the 'reset button' which is 'field controls' mounted in vent. i removed the burner assy. and googled the model # so i could find some tech. info about the proper alignment of the igniters....zero info because round oak was bought out by peerless and there's no info out there. i normally work on gas furnaces and this is my first oil sys. i read where if u push the reset too many times it will flood the combustion chamber and it will eventually need replaced. how do you find out if it needs replaced? and does anyone know the gap specs on this round oak FOL - 90 - 2 pump = Marathon mod 45 field controls calibrated draft control. the cdc is doing it's job because it puts it in lockout

newagedawn

got a pic of the nozzle assembly?

EBEBRATT-Ed

What kind of burner is it?

If the reset is pushed many times the combustion chamber can become oil soaked making for nasty situation when the burner does light. The chamber can absorb oil like a sponge so you may not see much oil

The technically correct answer is to replace the chamber if soaked but usually you just let it burn out carefully and with a fire extinguisher handy, taking precautions and using common sense. I have herd of spraying the chamber with a fire extinguisher before starting the burner

mcfall

im on a 1950's laptop and cant do the pic thing. chamber is ok i lit a piece of paper and slid it in there with no effect. did it several times really. no idea what burner it is. its mounted to a 'marathon' pump. old school stuff. looks like your typical 'gun'

mcfall

lemme try a pic

mcfall

mcfall

before i cleaned it....homeowner DIYer had one of the tips like 1-1/2 back from the nozzle. i had to rig this up because the new igniters were not big enough to get them tight. so i made me 2 sleeves out of aluminum to fill the gap

mcfall

it worked for about 4 hours and shut down ...im about to bleed the sys

STEVEusaPA

I think you need to find a buddy who does oil and have him come over and guide you.

mcfall

just need the gap info

STEVEusaPA

You're not going to like this answer, but you don't know what you're doing. You don't have the skills, and tools to properly diagnose and fix you're problem. I don't know if your an hvac tech or the homeowner.
You didn't diagnose and find the problem. You have a stack relay, pushed multiply times, locking out and you haven't figured out why. Now you can't get it to run right and you're going to bleed the pump?
You threw a lit piece of paper in the chamber-you're really lucky it didn't light off.
You haven't mentioned properly checking the motor, vac/pressure check of fuel pump or any electrical diagnosis.

I wouldn't go to a foot doctor for a heart issue just because they are both doctors-different skills, different diagnostic tools, different experiences.
Please get someone qualified out there. If you are an hvac tech, you're doing your customer/friend/family member a huge disservice.

Steamhead

Marathon is the name of the motor that runs the oil burner, not the name of the burner itself.

@STEVEusaPA is right. This could go sideways way too easily. You need a pro. Where are you located? Do post a pic of the burner, so we'll know what we're getting into.

HVACNUT

Looks like a Wayne M assembly, but everything @STEVEusaPA said and a bag o chips.
Do you diagnose gas leaks with a flame?
Where is the house? Should i get my family in the basement?

EBEBRATT-Ed

@mcfall, nobody is trying to pick on you but this stuff can be dangerous.

Sometimes you need a professional

mcfall

my one and only post is not enough for anyone to know what tools or experience i have. i lived in 2 different parts of the US where there were no oil systems. worked on commercial rack systems at ft hood, both residential and commercial hvac for several years. i'm 50+ yrs old....not some freakin kid fresh out of high school. my OP was for anyone who just happens to have the gap data. not interested in bashing. if you don't know the gap info i asked for.....kindly butt out and stop making this a "you" thing

unclejohn

Start with a nickle's width and fiddle from there. I think your to far out in front of the nozzle pull back a bit.

Grallert

Your set up will have to do with the nozzle firing rate and pattern. There are no good rule of thumb set ups really. You could start with unclejohns set up but keep in mind with every false start or delay you'll be adding oil or partially burned oil, as evidenced by the condition of your insulators. Start with what unclejohn said.

HVACNUT

Sorry, but you shouldn't be throwing flaming paper into a combustion chamber.
That said, that's definitely a Wayne assembly. Either an MSR or a OE. The OE is NOT a retension head.
The gap can be a hair closer, above the center of the nozzle, the electrodes should be parallel with each other, basically 180 degrees left to right. And they're way too far out in front. Bring them back to within about 3/16" in front of the face of the nozzle. Try a 70 degree nozzle.
Is the igniter good?

mcfall

mcfall

changed nozzle and used the 1/8 1/8 1/2 and she's hell fire hot. i know all too well the dangers of the industry. watched a boss of mine in biloxi blow half his face off when his nitrogen guage failed and blew up a mini compressor. guy even lived thru it

CapeCodOilGuy

For electrode gap, there are several dimensions you need to be aware of. Just the gap isn't enough. Gap should be 1/8"-5/32". Electrode ends should be at least 5/16" above the centerline of the nozzle, and about 1/16" in front of the nozzle. (Beckett makes a "T"-guage which makes these settings pretty easy). The idea is that the air from the combustion fan blows the spark out in a "bow" shape to contact the oil spray and vaporize the droplets of oil so they can be ignited. If the electrodes are themselves in the spray, they will quickly become carbon-fouled and you will have ignition failure. By the way-no one on here is accusing you of "being some freaking kid fresh out of high school." However, by your own statement in your original post, you never worked on an oil burner before. There is a steep learning curve, and you can get yourself and your customer into hell's own trouble by not knowing the score before you get into something like this. You've got gas experience-just imagine someone working on a gas appliance with no prior experience-shouldn't take much imagination to guess what could happen to him! There's no need to be offended just because one of us pointed this out-no one is trying to offend you, just trying to keep you and your customer healthy and happy.