Thermostat bypass for testing & skimming

Hap_Hazzard

I used to just grab a clip lead and jumper out the thermostat wires when I had to skim my boiler, but it was a little hard to keep the water temperature at the boiling point that way, so I decided to put in a bypass switch. As I was rummaging through my switch bin, I found this timer, and decided that might be a better thing to use because I could use it for testing scenarios, and it would also be safer, because I couldn't forget to turn it off if I got distracted.

While I was at it, I moved the transformer from the breaker box to the boiler and added an on/off switch so I can kill the power to the boiler without having to run to the breaker box.

SteamingatMohawk

Nice idea. Isn't there a master switch required somewhere near the boiler (red metal cover plate)?

I wired up a second thermostat near the boiler so I didn't have to go from the basement to a second floor front apartment, through 3 locked doors.

I connected each thermostat to terminals on a SPDT (ON-OFF-ON) switch in a junction box and mounted it in the overhead near the boiler.

Some time later, I changed to a Honeywell wireless thermostat (battery powered) with a wifi gateway and now I can monitor and control the thermostat from anywhere I have wifi. No more going up and down stairs. One of the tenants let me connect the gateway to her router.

Hap_Hazzard

SteamingatMohawk said:

Isn't there a master switch required somewhere near the boiler (red metal cover plate)?

I'm not sure what the code says, but there was no such switch when I moved in. It did seem like a good idea to add one. If I still have this boiler when I sell the house I'll have to see what the code says and bring everything up to code as much as possible.