Old Boiler Cleanout vs. Leaving Alone?

Wcurtis

Heard a time or two if it’s working or not broke dont fix it.

If the boiler is old, working properly and no leaks is it ok to clean the interior if it noticeably has what appears to be accumulated sludge below drain.

Cannot speak of the previous owners upkeep but I discovered this in the fall .

Some have said leave it alone because it may not be leaking now but uncover the boiler floor and a leak may have be masked and now it could leak.

Would the experts here believe it should be left alone or clean it out after the heating season because I believe a clean boiler is best but????

LRCCBJ

Photos would be really beneficial!!

Wcurtis

I didnt take photos I ran a borescope and noticed it or least it appeared to be sludge or mud

Big Ed_4

Leave it alone , unless you see , hear or smell something …….

Wcurtis

I believe in being proactive knowing attention may be needed but have hung myself as well with this approach.

LRCCBJ

You cannot hang yourself with this approach. You look at the places that need attention and make a decision to attend or leave alone. You only hang yourself by ignorance…………which is typical of most homeowners.

Wcurtis

I have an analytical approach to what I consider and I try to reason the good and bad of many things which brought me success in my managerial life, it is this process that brought me to this site, weighing the opinions of others with more experience.

I appreciate feedback of any type.

LRCCBJ

If you have an analytical approach you would realize that the written word is generally useless when considering a complex mechanical problem. Did you get any useful information from others when simply conveying the issue to them via verbal responses?

I am sure you realize that 95% of the population will not be able to come to a correct conclusion on a complicated system via the verbal. There is way too much capability to misinterpret the statements generated.

Wcurtis

FOR EXAMPLE

Finding evidence of neglected maintenance, one decides to open the LWCO (although working fine) to examine the internal condition and finding massive buildup, without addressing will likely lead to future issues, cost, downtime, family uncomfort, time pressure and stress.

LRCCBJ

This is a proper analytical approach by a technician on site. He observes the situation with his own two eyes and makes a decision on how to alleviate the situation to the best of his ability.

This is woefully different from attempting to convey a technical problem to the internet via words alone.

The folks here have the experience of solving 95% of all issues if provided with all the relevant data, including what you have observed with your own two eyes, but without proper visibility, it's next to impossible in most cases.

Wcurtis

Totally understand, I wasn’t planning on capturing photos during the borescope inspection only a quick visual and come back later and wanted others opinion on leaving it or cleaning it.

clammy

How old is the boiler ? Personally when servicing a steam boiler that i have installed i know there are provision for flushing the accumulated crud out of the boiler i would wand and flush the bottom out and refill w demineralized water but this is me .That being said in the case of a 20 or 30 year old boiler w zero maintenance unless i see extremely slow steaming and the boiler drains are clogged i will notify the home owner before proceeding to flush . Usually on a steam maintenance the sight glass ,probes or mech lwco, safety valve pipe piping are removed and cleaned and reassembled ,the drains are checked to be sure there not clogged and if they are there backflushed and removed and cleaned at which point the block gets wanded out . There are those who say this is not necessary and i say to each his own . Knowing that mud and rust build up on the bottom of the boiler lowers the heat transfer and increases stack temp and makes the boier run longer to satisfy the thermostat or pressure troll . As other have stated if it aint been done you may be opening a can of worms and be in to more work or expense then you expect . Not every heating contractor will flush out boiler or wet returns most see it as unnecessary especially since they don't pay your fuel bill and the less you do maintenance wise the sooner you may need a new boiler and to some thats where the money is in replacing not maintenance . i will contact owner of boiler i ve installed but after the 2 or 3 year i feel that i should not have to remind them being i just installed it after some passes on reminders , i really find no need to hassle them over maintenance being its there choice to divert maintenance and go with the ole standard which is break and react at which point there is usually more then one issue that needs attention $ .

peace and good luck clammy

Lance

If its steam and the base has never been flushed, or even have drain valves on both sides to be flushed, depending on design you could be losing energy as sludge prevents fast heat flow from burner to water. I had a small commercial unit with three risers, left middle and right. Right got hot in 20 seconds, middle in 60 and left in over two minutes. A clear indicator of sludge. Had to repipe left side to install a boiler drain. Took over four hours of constant hose flushing to clean it out. When done all three heated in seconds. A single boiler drain is never enough. The cheaper the install the more the problems.

Wcurtis

These type of responses was my hope, your input has me thinking about points I had not considered.

Thanks for the input.