3rd failed heat exchanger in Burnham Series 3

Jamie Hall

I still say that in focusing on the boiler you are making a mistake. You have had three boilers installed and, so it is claimed, they have all developed leaks in much the same time frame, much too short for any normal condition. There are two old sayings which are relevant here: first, a usable definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. The second, fool me once, shame on you. fool me twice, shame on me.

You have NOT identified, nor so far as I can make out no one has really tried, the root cause of the problem. It is possible that the boilers are leaking -- I'll not deny that. But three of them? In a similar time frame? Sorry. The leaking is being caused by something else, and you need to figure out what.

bmc321

Agreed! My husband reminded me that we witnessed the removal/replacement of the first heat exchanger and the small visible crack. We didn’t see the 2nd one because they hauled The whole unit away. 

Tim_D

That heat exchanger/boiler sections are not as thick as you think. At the thinnest point they are only 1/4" thick. Acidic water will not crack a boiler section but it will cause pin holes and eventually larger failures. Cracks are typically a result of thermal shock or overheating/dry firing. Cracks usually leak a lot. If there is just the small amount of water on the floor as shown in your picture I would suspect a pin hole or leaking between the sections. As mentioned above, pull the jacket off and find out what is really going on and post some pictures so that we can better help you.

bmc321

We pulled off the front cover to share the view. Removing any more of the jacket or sides is beyond our skill set. Does this provide any meaningful information to anyone about what the problem might actually be?

mattmia2

Is that rusty spot wet? Has the boiler been off for a few hours or days and is cold?

pedmec

definitely leaking into the second from the left burner.

bmc321

That spot is not currently wet, nor has there been any leaking. I'd estimate the boiler hasn't run for 6+ days now. Minnesota had about 3 minutes of true spring, and then we had some 90+ degree weather last week. It is moderating now, though, and cooler weather is ahead for the next couple weeks.

Jersey2

Watch this video, for entertainment purposes only. Burnhams have had leaking cast iron issues but I think it was for a different series. In the video the hvac guy identifies where it is leaking.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=sczT54-3eT4

bucksnort

Jersey2 said:

Watch this video, for entertainment purposes only. Burnhams have had leaking cast iron issues but I think it was for a different series. In the video the hvac guy identifies where it is leaking.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=sczT54-3eT4

"It's a leaker".

mattmia2

you or a good tech should really disable the circulator and run it up to high limit and see if without flow from the system if you see water dripping. my bet is on it won't.

I strongly suspect your issue is condensation from your very large even for a gravity system piping and little being done to prevent sustained low return water temps.

Good hydronic techs are hard to find.

It is possible to have a leak that only opens up when it is hot but that is the very much less likely possibility than condensation.

bmc321

Contractor opened it up yesterday- here’s a picture of our heat exchanger and the hole. 

109A_5

That's nasty looking. Assuming it rotted from the inside to the outside and that is the top of the boiler's heat exchanger, could the near boiler piping be trapping air with a high oxygen content in the top of the boiler causing premature failure ? A boiler with the water exiting out the top may not have that problem, even though the near boiler piping is not optimum.

pedmec

isn't that the side? i don't see the flue passageway. can you back that pic up

109A_5

I am guessing they removed the smoke box to inspect the damage, but honestly not sure, more pictures would help and help our curiosity. Also I'm curious about the water exit near boiler piping, not a good view of the Left side ? Of the piping near that tridicator gauge.

EdTheHeaterMan

Ceramic fiber on the right side and the bottom of the photo looks to me like the camera is looking up from the floor at the bottom of the CI heat exchanger. That is definitely a failed HX. Since this is obviously going to continue, I would contact a lawyer to see if there is any way to get this resolved at no additional cost to you. Someone is not doing something correctly for this to happen over and over again.

Time for this to be done right once and for all! Get a Lochinvar, or a Buderus, or other brand by a different contractor. File for damages and refunds of your costs from the original contractor and Burnham. That is why they have insurance!

mattmia2

It is the low return water temp not being handled properly from the very massive converted gravity system.