Over-fired 3-Pass Boiler

Steamhead

We installed this Solaia eleven years ago. The house has gone through several owners since then, who did not use us for maintenance. The current owner was tired of the high fuel oil bills, so she got in touch and asked about switching to gas. The switch is easy on these boilers since Boyertown Furnace offers a Carlin EZ-Gas already configured for them.

Last week the boiler went down, so I responded and diagnosed a bad nozzle which had not been changed in quite a while. On inspection, I saw that whoever "serviced" the boiler last had used the wrong nozzle. This boiler, with the Beckett AFG, uses a 0.60x70B nozzle at 160 PSI for a firing rate of 0.75 GPH.

Someone had used a 0.75x70B nozzle, still at 160 PSI, which resulted in a firing rate of about 0.95 GPH- a significant over-firing. I put the right one in and fired it up.

The conversion was scheduled for this week, and this is what we found when we opened it up:







Pathetic. I won't mention the name of the oil company, but it's one of the ones now owned by Star Gas Partners.

Steamhead

Here's the boiler with the EZ-Gas installed, all clean inside and ready for more years of service.



With proper maintenance, the oil company might still have this account. But they couldn't even bother to read the label on the boiler which tells exactly what nozzle to use.

Like taking candy from a baby.

Harvey Ramer

I did a service call on a New Yorker (steamer) today that required a 4gph nozzle. Instead, it had a 2.25gph installed.
Flue gasses were under 350 going into an unlined exterior masonry chimney. And it took an eternity for steam to reach the rads.
We will do a little rad research, some math and get him fixed up.

Steamhead

How dirty was it?

Harvey Ramer

Not too bad, actually. A few kibbles and bits in the boiler flues. The whole inside was covered in a light film of soot though. That was due to a malfunctioning Barometric Damper and the resulting loss of draft to the boiler.

newagedawn

its sad when companies hire kids for cheap and dont train them, when they could pay a competent tech a good wage and make a family a happier life

STEVEusaPA

Yeah but I bet even over fired, if set up with an analyzer and smoke gun, wouldn't have made that mess.
What's sad, as Frank alluded to, is these large companies are buying up everyone they can to 'get the gallons'. But aren't servicing them properly, continuing the conversation that oil is 'dirty, etc.'
So they will continue to lose customers market share to gas and propane.
Sad

EBEBRATT-Ed

@Steamhead they probably did look at the rating plate and assumed the nozzle they took out was too small so he put a .75 to match the firing rate.

Too bad. Must have been an old timer like me. Don't all oil burners run their pumps at 100psi?? Nope!!

LOL

lchmb

when they expect 4 tuneups in 8 hours what do you expect? And people dont want to pay to get it done right..they just want it done fast...