When the water in a boiler is surging, and bounces below the sight glass, is there still

jovo37

Water in the boiler, and the surging is giving a bad representation

Fred

Not sure what you are asking BUT, when the water in a steam boiler is bouncing, more than about 3/4" and surging, it typically means the water is really dirty and that the boiler needs to be skimmed, to get the oils off of the surface of the water. Flushing the dirt out of the boiler and Skimming the boiler are two different processes. Posting pictures on the boiler and near boiler piping will also let us determine if the piping is contributing to the problem. Does the header have an equalizer on the end of it?

jovo37

@Fred this was just a hypothetical question. I’ve had surging in the past due to oil/dirt. The water in the sight glass would be at a normal level and then it would get really high and then really low, when low, is that an accurate depiction of the water level

Fred

jovo37 said:

@Fred this was just a hypothetical question. I’ve had surging in the past due to oil/dirt. The water in the sight glass would be at a normal level and then it would get really high and then really low, when low, is that an accurate depiction of the water level

It most likely is an accurate depiction of the water level. When there are oils on the surface of the water, steam bubbles can't break through and the water gets pushed out into the wet returns. As soon as the boiler shuts down, most likely on a Low Water condition, the water in the wet return rushes back into the boiler.

JUGHNE

Is that your boiler pictured in your other post?
If so there are severe piping issues.