Burnham Oil Burner creating tons of soot

EBEBRATT-Ed

Give the tech some credit. He tried different pump pressures and talked with Beckett or Burnham (maybe both)

and the last line says it all "with either pump pressure burner not operating properly"

He might have spent more time on this I probably would have tried some different things.

Factory settings ain.t the bible. They have been proven wrong many times. But you have to start someplace.

This is what makes combustion difficult and with oil more so than gas, Combustion air temp, fuel temp & pressure, draft and boiler water temp and oil quality all change combustion.

Staring at an analyzer screen doesn't do a dam thing. If it isn't working, you need to change something.

So many techs are locked into the analyzer screen and the mfg. settings that they give up when it doesn't work. In their mind it's supposed to work and does not work so they quit on it.

SlamDunk

A combustion analysis would look something like this.   It would tell:  you, future technicians, us, how the boiler was left.    On the rare occasions that I do one, I print out  “as found” &  “as left” numbers.      

Steamhead

From the Beckett OEM Spec Guide:

Model Burner Nozzle Alt. Nozzle Pressure Air settings Head

MPO115 AFG 0.65 X 45°B 0.65 X 45°B* (H) 150 S-6 / B-0 L2
MPO115 AFG 0.60 X 45°W 0.60 X 45°B 180 S-5 / B-0 L2

Note that they use a smaller nozzle with the higher pressure.

Jamie Hall

And a W pattern rather than a B

STEVEusaPA

Jamie Hall said:

And a W pattern rather than a B

Why? Mine runs perfect with a B. I run the factory spec in mine and I actually add more air than true zero smoke + because it was reading 90% and my analyzer was freaking out...lol

Grallert

I'm curious, Has anyone been able to get this running properly while they are standing there? In other words does it run for a period of time only to act up shortly after the crew has left? Or has it never run properly at any time? This sounds so much like a loose or cracked nozzle adaptor.

irishrosepotter

@Grallert "I'm curious, Has anyone been able to get this running properly while they are standing there? In other words does it run for a period of time only to act up shortly after the crew has left? Or has it never run properly at any time? This sounds so much like a loose or cracked nozzle adaptor.

Yes each time it seems to be running fine and then it starts sooting up. Twice after the crew left and the system shutdown and then this last time while the tech was still here.

Grallert

I worked with a guy years ago who insisted on really wrenching down on the nozzle when servicing the burner. He would back one wrench and really lean on the other stretching's the threads in the adapter and causing a leak through the threads especially at an elevated pressure. It would show up only after enough oil has dripped into the burner tube and out into the chamber. If the burner tube was cleaned with every attempt to solve the issue it would take a day or so to declare it's self. This is something I've seen a number of time since. What you are describing rings that bell for me. An indicator for me was a nozzle that turned out normally for a few threads and then started to bind or gaul the rest of the way.
Just a thought and something I'd look at.
Good luck.

EBEBRATT-Ed

You can still make soot with the right amount of fuel and air if the burner is not doing it's job which is to mix fuel and air.

No one is going to know until MR Beckett gets their