Amtrol Boilermate problem

Floyd_7

Have never sold the Boilermate, but have one that I service for a couple of elderly ladies. They were complaining that they would get very hot water for a half minute and then it would go luke warm.... checked it out and yep, they were right.
Figured that the t-stat was bad so I changed it out. Zone valve was working and it is hooked to a GV-5 so there are plenty of BTU's to jump on the wagon. House is heating okay and it's in the teens, so the circ. pump has to be working just fine. Big old Vic. house, with CI BB........
Any ideas???? What am I missing here????
Why is the water stratifing in the boilermate so much and the t-stat shutting down before the tank is hot through????

Gotta be something stupidly simple that I'm missing here....

Floyd

Uni R

..

ScottMP

Floyd

How long has this unit been in service ?

The problems we see are gummed up coils. If you follow directions from boiler mate the tell you to drain the system then fill it a little and add Nicolsafe ice machine cleaner. This is to eat away the crud on the coil. CAll Amtrol for the excact directons.

Also we have had luck making a piece of tubing attached to a hose adpt. and sticking it down the feed connection to "blast" the coil. Also works if you shock the coil.

Not saying this will do it, but its helped in the past.

Also the reasons we Don't install Amtrols.

Good Luck

Scott

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

Unknown

Floyd

If the tank water coming out goes cold or luke warm instantly, the problem is probably with the cold water inlet dispursing cap. The cold water inlet tube is 1/2" copper with the end spun over much like a stubout. There are a couple of small holes drilled in the top side of this tube and one in the end. The older models had a 1" copper cap screwed to the end of the spun over tube to dispurse the water downward and sideways where it enters the bottom of the coil and these caps used to be fastened by a bibb screw. Later models use the same tube and cap but the cap is held on by a plastic Dzu type fasterner instead of a bibb screw. Blowing this cap off will allow the inlet water to go straight up through the coil to the top outlet of the tank. It will involve disconnecting the tank and taking the coil plate out to fix this. Hope this helps.

Glenn Stanton

Manager of Training

Burnham Hydronics

www.burnham.com

Rely_2

Did this just happen

or has it been an ongoing problem? If it just started what has changed in the house piping,new mixing valve,maybe no check valves,water could be bypassing throught washing machine valve , does it have a recir line I have seen ones put in that were gravity and when the old hot water line start clogging up cold water will flow threw the recir line instead of the hot mainly in galvinized pipe.Good luck

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

Floyd_7

Bingo!!!

I think we got a winner!!!
Sounds exactly like what is happening, like I said, stupidly simple.....the cold water is blowing right to the top of the tank and with the hot water running right out of the dome, the cold is mixing down the hot to luke warm.......

Now the fun part will be explaining tis to the "ladies", they are exactly like the Baldwin sisters on the "Walton's", for those of you's old enough to remember that show.
Right down to the both of them talking at the same time.... they even both get on the phone when they call me and talk all over each other..... Oh well at least they feed me when I'm working there....

Floyd

ScottMP

Damn

I forgot that one

Nice Call Glenn

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

Mark Hunt

The Baldwin sisters


Hey Floyd,

See if the have some of poppa's recipe!

Sorry to hear about your Amtrol issue, we gave up on them years ago.

I see that they are making them upside down now for easier access to the coil connections. I wonder why.(hehe)

Burnham used their tanks for years, they dropped them too.

Good luck!

Mark H

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

Boiler Guy

De Ja Vu

all over again. I quit using them after the second experience described. The first one gave me gray hair. Thanks for the memories Glen.

Pat Clark

Amtrol

We also have had numerous problems with them. We switched to the Alliance (Burnham) and haven't had one problem in close to a year. Plus it matches our boilers now.

Pat Clark