steam heat boiler,pressuretroll,control unit,oil burning rate,and thermostat..did I leave anything

LS123

Happy new year all @ heating help community!
I have few questions... really old steam heat, oil fired boiler...
Yesterday, I took air compressor and use it with a air spay gun to clean the pressuertroll, control unit, and electric thing with springs... why you might ask...
Well for some reason before cleaning burner would not send a signal to the control unit and fire it up... so I figured I clean up the dust.. was alot of dust... burner still would not respond to the thermostat. It is a very simple thermostat with two wires going to the burners control unit. I checked the wiring all is fine. I no longer hear the clicking sound from the thermostat when I increase the temp ( and oil burner would not run. But if I open the metal box, lift the little metal piece with a spring attached to, burner runs...)

Q1) I was going to replace the wire from thermostat, thermostat itself, and the control unit ( i hope I could fine one... it looks so old) do you think that might fix the problem, or are there any other troubleshooting steps I can take?

Q2) Pressuretroll is so old, I don;t think it works (meaning shut and start as designed based on settings), it has a mercury tube inside? should I replace that too?

Q3) Why would steam would start heating the radiators about 15 or 20 minutes sooner than the PSI meter on the boiler reach .5 or 1 PSI (side note... pressure gauge attached to the pig tail indicate 1 PSI and water is bouncing up and down with in 15 minutes from start of the boiler, so to be clear it takes about 30 to 40 minutes for the PSI gauge to indicate 1 PSI while pigtail pressure gauge, sight glass and heaters are supper hot... I may be trying to explain Q#3 backwards..)
pictures are attached.

Q4) How do I know the burner is set to use min possible oil?

Thank you!
\-LS123

Jamie Hall

On the thermostat. Try jumping the two terminals the thermostat wires are attached to. If the boiler starts, it's the wires or the thermostat. If it's not, it's something at the boiler. We'll get back there. If the boiler starts, then go to the thermostat and find the two wires going into the wall -- they will be attached to the backplate, so you may have to take the thermostat itself off. Jumper the two wires. if the boiler starts, it's the thermostat. If not, it's the wires.

Now. if that is the old mercury T87, make sure that it is mounted level. Turn the temperature dial until the mercury bulb tips so the mercury covers the contacts. The boiler should start. It's rare, but not unheard of, for the wires in the thermostat itself to be damaged. Is the thermostat level?

Now back to the boiler. If it didn't start way back up there, it's either the burner control or it's off on a safety (or, just possibly, it simply has no power... you did check that? Emergency switches on? Good fuse or circuit breaker?). The mercury pressuretrol is just about bulletproof. There's no need to replace it unless you are sure -- from a low pressure gauge -- that it's not working properly and not just out of level. They are very sensitive to being levelled properly.

Check the low water cutoff. You do have water?

On your question 3. Steam will happily heat the radiators on only a few ounces of pressure. If you are using a 0 to 30 psi gauge, you won't see it at all. You may not even see it on a 0 to 3 psi gauge. your timing of 30 to 40 minutes to reach 1 psi is quite normal and expected for most systems.

LS123

@Jamie Hall ....OMG!!! thank you so much!!! ...
Problem SOLVED...!!! I just pulled the thermostat off the wall and connected the two wires and burner is running like it was in the past...

Thank you again @Jamie Hall ... I was planning to replace all the things now I only have to possibly replace the thermostat...

Just Fyi below for other heating help steam boiler fans...

* Although the thermostat look like a old one with mercury, I replace it the current one about 1.5 years ago.. internal components are digital...
* I really didnt have to do too much to take the thermostat off, its simple pull to take it out and simple push to put it back...
* * pressuretroll device itself is level...but the mercury tube is on leaning to the electricity conductive side. ..
* All the electrical wiring to thermostat and burner works... although presuretrol and thermostat wires could be replace at some point future

Jamie Hall

"* Although the thermostat look like a old one with mercury, I replace it the current one about 1.5 years ago.. internal components are digital...
* I really didnt have to do too much to take the thermostat off, its simple pull to take it out and simple push to put it back...
* * pressuretroll device itself is level...but the mercury tube is on leaning to the electricity conductive side. ..
* All the electrical wiring to thermostat and burner works... although presuretrol and thermostat wires could be replace at some point future"

Ah. A pity. The mercury ones were, as I said, just about bulletproof (I have one in one application which is close to 70 years old -- and still working flawlessly). The new lookalike digital ones are no better -- and no worse -- than other digital thermostats. Sometimes they last. Sometimes they don't.
The pressuretrol bulb should be leaning to the conductive side. As the pressure rises, it will gradually tilt level and then plunk! will tip to the off side. Then as the pressure drops, it will tilt back and off you go again.

LS123

I agree... the older thermostats with mercury probably would have lasted lot longer, this would be my second digital thermostat that need to be replaced in 5 years...

By the way my steam boiler is 70+ years old and works so well... I have found an energy efficient, unused, less loud oil burner last owner who lived here had left it in the garage cabinet... he had built the house and house is also 70+ years old.
Burner I found has a sticker that says it can burn as less as .50 GPH... I hope I can get that connected .... project for this weekend... thanks again @Jamie Hall

Steamhead

LS123 said:

By the way my steam boiler is 70+ years old and works so well... I have found an energy efficient, unused, less loud oil burner last owner who lived here had left it in the garage cabinet... he had built the house and house is also 70+ years old.
Burner I found has a sticker that says it can burn as less as .50 GPH... I hope I can get that connected .... project for this weekend... thanks again @Jamie Hall

This is NOT a DIY job- you need to have a pro replace that burner. DIYing it is unsafe. Where are you located?

EBEBRATT-Ed

I have had the digital T87s fail as well.

@LS123

What @Steamhead said is correct, if you don't have a combustion test kit or the training replacing the oil burner yourself is not a good idea.

try 'find a contractor" on this site or call your oil dealer

LS123

thank you at @Steamhead and @EBEBRATT-Ed ... I do not have combustion test kit etc... I will consult a steam oil heat pro under find a contractor section.... I am live in Litchfield county CT

Jamie Hall

Try either @Charlie from wmass or @dobro23 .

And a caution: there are a couple of local outfits, which I will not name, who claim to be steam pros -- and aren't even close. It's almost impossible to botch the install of a Weil-McClain 80 series... but it can be done.

LS123

thanks @Jamie Hall ! I probably will wait just a little bit longer.. I have had communications in the past with Charls From Wmass... he is totally knowledgeable, has lots of experience with steam heat.