Burnham Stack Damper

eleft_4

Darren_6

Burnham Satck Damper

Hello:

I have a series 2 Burnham gas fired boiler. Its a 1984 model I think. (20 years old roughly) It doesn't have a stack damper on it.

I called my local heating guy and he said the damper for that boiler would be $450. Seemed pretty pricey to me. Hard to say how long it would take to pay back, as I am not certain how much heat advantage I would gain from it. The local guy thought maybe an efficiency change of 2 to 3 %...

He wasn't sure that anything else would work with the Burnham...as it has to plug into the Honeywell Ignition module with some special plug etc etc etc. (all greek to me at the moment)

Does anyone here know if there is a cheaper alternative to the Burnham that would work with my unit? Is $450 a high price for an auto damper? I have no real means of comparison right now. Stack is 6".

Thanks in advance

Darren
Ontario Canada

Unknown

Depending

on the controls that the boiler came equipped with back then in Canada, they may very well be correct. It isn't just the damper. If the damper is installed then the boiler will have to be modified with a blocked vent switch at the draft diverter, a transformer/relay and related wiring harness to connect damper relay and safety devices. Your percentage gain will be about 2% for the effort.

Glenn Stanton

Manager of Training

Burnham Hydronics

www.burnham.com

Glenn Harrison_2

The socket on the Honeywell module...

is a industry standard. You can use a 6" damper made by Honeywell, Field Controls, or Effikal.

The price does sound about right. Prices of course will vary be region.

Personally, I think you would be better off using the $450.00 as a down payment on a new boiler, that would give you more efficiency than that damper ever will.

Unknown

Glenn

It sounds as easy as plugging the damper into the ignition module, except it really isn't. We don't equip our boilers with the damper plug on the Honeywell ignition module in most cases. We prefer to use the mated subharness wired to an R8285D control center. The damper is brought on by the high limit aquastat and when the damper opens the current continues on through the boiler harness through the flame rollout switch and blocked vent switch and then on to the ignition module. This can't be done with the damper plugged into the module unless a completely modified harness is made available, which it isn't. Every company has to standardize on their wiring techniques and that's the way we do it. Hope this helps.

Glenn Stanton

Manager of Training

Burnham Hydronics

www.burnham.com

Glenn Harrison_2

Glenn, you just made me stop and think,

I'm assuming that after 20 years, the ign. module has been replaced, and the new replacement module could have the plug on it. However, now that I think about it, you would have to add an extra wire from "R" on the R8285, to the 24 volt terminal on the module. Then you could use module plug, if it's there.

Otherwise, you, of course, are correct that the damper would have to have the sub harness included.

Either way, I still say it's a waste, and if he wants to save money, it should be put into a new, high efficiency boiler

marc

reset control

would be worth more than the vent damper. might cost more up front, but should save way more on fuel consumption

soot_seeker_2

currency?

you're in canada?

was that $450 canadian or USD?

[at today's rate that's about $376USD.]

tim smith

vent damper

One other piece of info, don't expect the vent damper to last more that 5 - 7 yrs. Factor this into the cost. They are prone to start hanging up at about that time and will keep the boiler from firing. Just fyi.

Darren_6

thanks all

Sounds like the damper is not going to pay back. The currency was candian dollars...less and less difference from the US dollar each day (except ours are nicer looking)

Thanks for the input. The module has been replaced, but it sounds like there is more to it than just plugging it in.

I was told, by Burnham, I could expect an increase in efficiency of 6%...i guess thats a bit optimistic.

I'll start saving for a high efficiency model...

Darren

Steamhead

One more thing to think about

If your boiler is connected to an old chimney that was designed for a coal-fired boiler, your chimney is undoubtedly pulling a lot more draft than a more recently built one. This is because it had to pull air thru a coal bed. Yes, the draft hood is there to cut this down, but it can't completely prevent the increased standby loss with this type of chimney.

I've found that in this situation, the excessive air movement thru the boiler on the off cycle can cool it down considerably before the next call for heat. As a result, the boiler must make up the difference on every cycle. So the savings potential on an old chimney can be greater than the expectations noted in the other posts.

I'd think that the chimney wouldn't cool down so quickly either, without the flow of cooler air coming into the bottom.

And while it's true that some stack dampers have failed after only a few years, others (like mine) are still going strong 10 or 20 years after they were installed.

With all due respect, guys, we need to look at stack dampers again to see how well they will work in different situations.

To Learn More About This Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Professional"

Unknown

% of Savings

If you are converting from standing pilot to Electronic Ignition and Vent Damper then you could surely appreciate a 6% savings in efficiency. The damper by itself will only get you a couple of percentage points though.

Glenn Stanton

Manager of Training

Burnham Hydronics

www.burnham.com

Boilerpro_3

A second ting to think about

If you have standing pilot and a stack damper, another side benefit is that the boiler stays quite warm year round. If you have a typical fairly humid basement, the extra warmth keeps the the heat exchanger from rusting, keeping the long term efficiency up. In my experisnce boilers with electronic ignition always end up with rusty heat exchangers in a few short years, reducing efficiency. The efficiency improvements advertised for electronic ignition only apply to new equipment, what happens down the road is another story, IMHO.

Boilerpro

Darren_6

More good information

Thanks for the additional info. The current boiler has electric ignition.

The current chimney is huge (tall) (house is three full storeys tall with a high pitch slate roof...and the chimeny extends beyond the highest point on the roof by more than a few feet.....IT's TALL!!!) It has two flues and one is for a second storey fireplace. That fireplace has amazing draft, so I suspect the draft for the furnace is also fairly strong, though the fireplace flue has one of those rotating hoods (90 degree elbow) on it to eliminate backdrafts. The furnace flue does not. So the draft on the furnace may not be as strong.

The basement is fairly dry. I have a dehumifier down there in the sumer..sitting right beside the furnace to keep the humidity in the vicinity of the furnace below 50% (60 F) The tech tells me there is very little rust on the exchanger... I haven't seen it myself.

The iginition module has been replaced, but I am not sure if the boiler ever had a pilot. The Previous owner of the home told me he replaced the iginition module with the same it had in it when he bought the house and he thinks if was always an electric ignition...but he could be wrong.

If I were to line the chimney with one of those stainless liners...would that improve/change anything?

Thanks for all the feedback..

Darren
Ontario Canada