Old oil boiler

Todd Mullen

Here are some pics of my boiler and oil tank. Currently I use about 900gal per year for heating, which with the current oil price (south WI) is about 1300$.
I need an educated guess - if I decide to replace the oil heat with a new gas boiler, how many years if will take until I get even - just a ballpark figure - five, ten, more than ten?

Robert O'Connor_7

It depends on the equipment

What do you want to replace it with? What % of eff. are you looking for? Tally up the rad #'s, then give all the info on the existing one and maybe someone could help you. By the way, whats wrong with the one you got? It's looks like a well exercised journeymen in its prime!! A= 10+yrs?? Robert O'Connor

Firedragon_4

The boiler is a minimum of 60-70 years old originally built for

coal firing before WWII. The burner could be up to 45-50 years old, FACT! I would just guesstimate that a new high-efficiency (85+ AFUE) should save you between 25-50% with all things being equal. If you put in the new unit and run the thermostat different all bets are off!

c-rex

Your old

oil boiler looks nice and clean.
I have had good results replacing the combo chamber with a 2800 deg frax blanket and upgrading the burner to a flame retention type, ( Beckett, Carlin, Interburner )and, if the terminal units are calced so that you know the connected load, you can save a bunch of money and only just wait for the casting to fail & then, with all the money you saved in the meantime, you can replace with what ever you want.
The cool part is, with water running across tha basment floor, you won't be thinking about payback! Oh, and by the way, you'll be interested in baffling the flues (hard brick works well) and might want to downsize the flue seeing as how it was mfgd to be correct for coal/wood. Peace.

keith

why gas?

In the North East oil is the competivly priced fuel. Not sure about your area.

Judging by the looks of your equipment I would say you have a top flite company servicing your equipment. Have you spoken with them about replacement options?
Keith

John Mills_3

Granny

My grandma had the same boiler. She bought the house in the 70s and said she didn't want to put money into it figuring she wouldn't be around long. It cost her an absolute fortune to heat the place. She was there 14 years - lived to 95!

Earthfire

why replace

Safety, Efficency , Peace of Mind! Are you still using an icebox? Are you using driving a prewar car for everyday use? It appears to be a gravity system with a stack switch as the only safety control. A stack switch was the best they had back when, but I wouldn't bet my families life on one today. Yes that old unit can be upgraded with a new burner and safety controls, the flue passages can be bricked, but the cost of parts and labor to do that, correctly, in a hunk of iron that old , in my opinion, is a waste of money and time. It is still functioning , thank it for serving you all these years and replace it with a new oil or gas fired unit, before it starts leaking all over the floor of your basement on some cold winter night, or worse that stack switch locks up and the burner runs wild and starts a chimney fire.

Earthfire

why replace ll

There is also the question of decades of sediment and internal corrosion settling in the water passages of the boiler and affecting the heat transfer ability of the chamber walls.Anybody that has broke up an old boiler has seen it. Its not a question of having sludge, its a question of how much. And trying to flush one as old as yours would be next to impossible.

Todd Mullen

Thanks for all replies. The unit has thermostat and the boiler is about 4 feet from the basement drain, so I can live with the danger of flooding the place for the time being. I also have a new CO detector installed near the beast and it never shows anything different than 0.
The burner has been serviced annually and looks clean as a whistle - no smell, no soot.
Since I'm kinda reluctant to plunk all the money for new unit, is this plan to use the boiler a few more years sounds reasonable:
1. put frax blanket and keep the old burner
2. put frax blanket and new flame retention burner
3. replace the flue if I can find anyone to size is according to the manufacturer's specs

Joel_3

savings

You could save money by replacing it with a high quality new unit. Here in N. E. though gas actually costs more than oil, so here I'll tell people yes they will save because thye equipment is newer/better but not because they are changing fuels. People often get confused on this point, for instance Geothermal is very efficent if properly done but here our electric rates make it prohibitive in many cases

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Roger Litman

savings

You are using about the equal of 1260 therms of natural gas a year- Find out the price of that amount and expect a savings of 15-35% of either fuel if you put in more modern equipment or upgrade your old system. In many parts of the country- fuel oil is a better deal and good local service is more likely with a company that wants to have a long term relationship.

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Steve_35

Not interested in plunking money down

If you're not interested in replacing the boiler, don't waste the money trying to do anything to it. If you were one of our customers my recommendation would be to either replace or don't spend a dime on it.

jim lockard

well

I think I would thank that old gal for a job well done and then I would retire her. True there may be a few things you can do. I would do a heat loss cal on your home and try to estimate how much fuel you could be saving. Next I would drop a proper size liner down the chimney for the fuel of your choose. I would replace the boiler with somthing nice and effecent. Replacing the heating equipt is part of taking care of a home. I do not know how long you intend to live there but should you sell, the buyer will like to see a current heating plant, and should you stay you save every year your there both in fuel and maintence costs. Best Wishes J.Lockard

Firedragon_4

I totally agree with Jim, it's

like putting a brand new engine into a 1935 Chevy that has a rotting body, needs brakes, has holes in the floor, etc, etc, etc. Upgrade the whole thing or at least get someone to do a through-the-door if anybody out there remembers how????

tate

old boiler

hold it. This belongs in a museum. I shutter anytime I walk in and see a burner this old. I would also be concerned about that oil line going under the concrete. Who knows if it is leaking. Make the investment, count your blessings, get an efficient boiler, gas or oil, that gives you plenty of hot water also!

Tom M.

oil tank

> Here are some pics of my boiler and oil tank.

> Currently I use about 900gal per year for

> heating, which with the current oil price (south

> WI) is about 1300$. I need an educated guess -

> if I decide to replace the oil heat with a new

> gas boiler, how many years if will take until I

> get even - just a ballpark figure - five, ten,

> more than ten?