What is an igniter on a hot water boiler made of

gary_3

I am wondering what the igniter in a Weil-McLain hot water boiler is made of and also any sorces to by one

Bob Tonner

It is made of silicon carbide. It is a crystalline type of material that, like many conductors, gets really hot when you put electrical current through it.

I would think that many wholesalers would carry them. The most popular manufacturer is Norton from Worcester Mass.

Bob

Steve Ebels

Pretty much the same thing as

A grinding wheel, plus additional materials to enhance electrical conductivity. None that I have seen hold up very well. I have to say the average life of an SC ignitor is 2 seasons or less.

The new silicone nitride ignitors seem to be holding up much better so far. In many cases you can substitute one of them for the silicone carbide type with one of the update kits now available.

Unknown

Norton Igniters

are distributed by Robertshaw and can be found in their catalog. They make both a silicon carbide and silicon nitride igniter. Depending on the age of the equipment most of the old ones are silicon carbide.

There are two kinds a Norton 201 and Norton 271.

The 201 has a 34 second warmup and a resistance of between 45-400 Ohms room temp resistance.

The 271 is a 17 second warmup resistance 40-75 ohms.

The igniters in the Robertshaw catalog are all 271 igniters. Except for one which is 34 seconds and is special made for Carlin Conversion burners.

There is another company called Surface Igniter Corporation (used to be Carborundum)they also make igniters.

Silicon Carbide igniters are used on heating, water heating, ranges (ovens & broilers), and gas dryers.

Silicon nitride igniters Norton 301, 401 and 601

301 is a 12 volt

401 is a 24 volt

601 is a 120 volt

3 to 5 second warmup

401 is 1 to 4 ohms

601 is 50 to 300 ohms

White Rodgers distributes an upgrade kit for Silicon Carbide to Silicon Nitride part # 21D64-1. Be careful to follow directions for installation very carefully. Also make sure you use the cross reference as it is not a replacement for every Carbide igniter.

THEY ARE ALL VERY FRAGILE HANDLE CAREFULLY!!

Hope this helps.

hot_rod

Plenty of sources

In my area Johnstone Supply has a wide selection. Graingers has a bunch. OEMs should be available from local dealers or reps. The factory is always an option.

Ignitor life is a mixed bag and hard to predict. I have 7 years on my Weils. Then others need yearly replacement. Enviroment, numbers of cycles, incoming voltage, improper venting, recirculated vent gases, exposure to burner flame, are just some of the more common causes of premature failure.

hot rod