High water feeder numbers no leaks that we can detect

hjw09

We have a one pipe steam heat system w/ an oil fired boiler. On December 16 when arriving home we noticed what appeared to be steam or smoke coming out of our chimney which prompted us to check the boiler to make sure there was nothing weird going on. I noticed the water feeder number looked high so I took a picture of it. We kind of forgot about it and fast-forward to today we noticed the same steam/smoke coming out of the chimney so I we went downstairs to check the boiler the number on the water feeder is even higher. There are no leaks that we can detect we checked every pipe/valve/radiator & all around the boiler. our steam heat seems to be running fine. We do not hear any weird noises or notice anything unusual.

Water feeder was 153 on 12/16 and is now 243 on 1/6

What could the problem be?

What could be the issue?

Jamie Hall

A leak in the boiler above the water line.

Long Beach Ed

As Jamie suggests,a leak high in the boiler is allowing steam to escape up the chimney.

jesmed1

You may be in the same boat as this boiler owner:

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/199558/how-to-avoid-this-again-rust-hole-above-water-line-burnham-in4/p2

skimmer

how old is it??

hjw09

It is from 2004 and I finally got someone to come out and look at it. It’s cracked inside so that explains it !