Golden Rod Water Block showing air in system

James_Santino

Recently removed my buried oil line and ran an overhead line. Having a problem where the water separator keeps drawing low on oil. I'll go down to the basement and see the water separator has 3/4 cup oil. A day later 1/2 cup etc.

Here's the details
•golden rod water block

•garber spin on

•tigerloop

•3/8" overhead line, 40' total length, 6' up and down from bottom feed of indoor tank (same elevation as boiler)
•vac gauge holds steady at 4hg while running and after. 
•no bubbles in tigerloop

I recently installed this peerless I pulled out of an oil to gas conversion to replace my old crown and this little issue is driving me nuts. I figured I had a leaking joint /flare/ gasket pulling air but couldn't find one. Am I wrong to assume under a non leaking vacuum any oil pulled by the burner should be equally replaced with no added air?

Here's what I've done
• disconnected feed and return at burner and capped
•capped at tank

•hooked a Beckett push pull up and charged everything to 15psi - filters and all. 
•bubble tested with leak detector for over an hour, inspecting every single nook... packing nuts on valves, any possibile pin holes in casting, flare joints, bleeder on golden Rod, gasket on golden Rod..

I could NOT find a leak. If I cannot find anything under 15psi how is air getting in on a 5hg vacuum? 

Hope someone can stear me in the right direction. Hoping the answer isn't to just remove the water separator..but it might be foreseeable. Don't worry the floors stains are from bubble tester! Thanks so much

EBEBRATT-Ed

Don't know. I have never seen a water separator on an oil burner before. Did you put the bypass plug in the oil pump?

Vacuum leaks can be difficult to find. 15 psi may not be enough to find them. 5" of vac is = to about -10 psi

James_Santino

Thanks for your response Ed. The bypass plug is in. I have not seen one of these installed on an oil burner myself, usually on outdoor or truck tanks for machinery. Figured I'd give it a try as I've been getting second hand oil from gas conversions. 

It seems to be 100% air tight after last nights test despite being my initial suspect.

Wondering if there was something I was overlooking at the burner itself, or some train of thought I wasn't quite following trying to locate the issue.

Thanks again