Oil leaking from Burner

Tyk1509

Happened to recently notice the burner pump on our boiler is leaking.
we live in an apartment, have only been here going on 3 months. We’ve have to fill the oil tank twice already, $600 later. Could the pump leaking be the main cause of burning through oil so quickly or could there be another cause ?
the heating in the home is VERY INEFFICIENT. If the heat is lower than 73-75 the house is freezing. But the insulation here is crap on top of drafty windows. Just trying to get an idea of what the issue is before brining it to the landlords attention.
It’s getting frustrating looking at the reality that we will have to fill the oil tank THAT often in such a short amount of time. I know others that have oil boilers and it does not seem like they have to fill as often.

Jamie Hall

If it cheers you up (it won't) we fill Cedric's tank every other week… and it can take up to 280 gallons to do it each time.

The leak (if it's that red drip mark?) isn't from the pump, rather from the burner gun. It, of itself, will not be a direct cause of excessive oil consumption — but it very strongly suffests that the burner (and probably the rest of the boiler or furnace) hasn't been properly serviced recently, and that will affect your oil consumption, possibly significantly.

That said, your use of oil is much more a matter of the house just needing that much heat, from your description.

EBEBRATT-Ed

Could be the pump seal. Could be another problem. Call the landloard.

jesmed1

With drafty old windows, those will be your #1 source of heat loss. As a renter, you can do some inexpensive winterizing yourself to stop the drafts during heating season. Your best options are either the clear plastic sheeting that heat-shrinks with a hair dryer, or a temporary peelable clear caulk that you can apply along all the window seams to seal the gaps, and then peel off at the end of the heating season.

Be aware that the peelable caulk will take some random flakes of paint off here and there, so if you or your landlord is fussy about the trim paint, it may need touching up in spots after you peel the caulk off. The caulk is DAP Peel 'N Seal, which you can find on Amazon. And here's a link to the clear plastic sheets:

https://www.amazon.com/Frost-King-V73-3H-Shrink/dp/B0000CBJN3/ref%3Dasc_df_B0000CBJN3?mcid=a42b84179ec13cd2803ca886eb425d65&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693499423661&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14290029861544764020&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001965&hvtargid=pla-400889448612&th=1