New Buderus Install - What do you think

mmarkfa

Hi Everyone,

I am a DIY'er and just installed my own complete system and need your help! JUST KIDDING but at least now your interested. FYI, This may be a duplicate since I posted this at Oiltechtalk as well.

I have been following this site and others now for 6 months ever since I realized I needed a new heating system in a house I bought. I have never posted here UNTIL now.

I have considered every kind of solution from High Velocity systems, Forced Air, Ceiling Radiant (still have problem with this one since heat rises) and evenutally my chosen solution Hot water baseboard. I only get served out where I am by Oil or LP so my choices were limited.

This forum is great and all of you have helped so much in my evenutally deciding to go for a Oil Boiler System and how to approach this relative large project. I followed the advice of getting a Heat/loss calc, I had a blower door test done, sealed all the gaps, plan on insulating in the attic once the work is done and used professional help for the complete heat system installation even though I never considered not using one.

I also asked many "smart" questions before deciding who I went with for the installation. The contractors may have thoguht I was knowledgeable but mostly it was suggestions I found on here and from other forums (i.e. Hvac-Talk.com). I did not take the cheapest quote nor did I take the suggestion to put in the most elaborate system that one can BUY (Major $$$). I too kthe quote that I felt most comfortable would deliver the ultiamte in heating comfort and yes I checked references and saw their work.

I bought a 3,800 sq foot house that had electric baseboard heat and it was costing the previous owners near $6,300 per year to heat. ANyway, this is what I had done.

The techs installed a Buderus G215/3 with Outdoor Reset, Power Venter and a LT200 indirect. I have all new baseboard (near 120 + feet) and all new copper lines with a little PEX in tight spots. The project completes this week so I took some pictures of my new boiler room and was hoping that I can get some inputs, items missing, alternatives or thoughts before they complete the project.

Overall the guys that I am working with have been wonderful. They have gone overboard to limit the amount of destruction and I can;t wait to fire up this beast. It'll be nice to be warm again. They will have a loyal reference in myself and I have offered them to open my house anytime for a visit by a prospective customer.

If I am out of line in asking this then please disregard my question.

I hope these images work. If not paste the link in Internet Explorer or better yet let me know how to make them work.

Thanks, MARK

Constantin

Overall, it looks good...

Let me pre-qualify my comments by stating up front that I'm just a fellow homeowner with an interest in heating systems. Overall, your install looks good to my untrained eye, here are some comments that are probably minor issues.

• Say, are you running spas in that house? I wonder, simply because a boiler with 134kBTU output seems like a lot for a 3,800 sq ft house... 35BTU/sq foot? I'm not suggesting it's wrong, but did they perform a heat loss calculation on the place? Or is the higher capacity to keep the hot water hot?
• I like the flanges on the circulators a lot. I plan on having similar flanges retrofit on my system.
• There is a lot of pipe in a small space, is this a garage install? I'd insulate the pipe, if possible.
• I'd also have them readjust the flue pipe so that it doesn't sag as is being suggested by your picture. I fear that such sag will accumulate soot and other debris over time.
• I don't know if I like oil lines coming down next to the burner. Seems like it would be an invitation for someone to hang onto inadevertantly, etc

So, now I'll let the pros have a go at it. Cheers!

dconnors

looks good but........

I would have mounted the air purger farther from the firt elbow on the supply riser. Looks like the supply was reduced at the boiler,why?

mmarkfa

thanks Constantin

Hi Constantin,

Thanks for your inputs and I have read many of your posts in the past although I must admit, I didn;t comprehend some of them.

I did have a heat Loss calc (actually two) and both were within about 10% of each other. First a little bit about my house. It is on lakefront and has many large windows thus a lot of heat loss. The house is built on slab on grade and is 3 stories high. The installers heat loss calculated to 83,106. They initially suggested I go with the G115/34 but then increased the BTU required because I added the indirect (LT200) and because I would like to eventually put a spa in within the next 1 to 2 years. I also haave a Hot Tub in the master bath that my wife really likes to use.

The install is in a small boiler/utility room that is maybe 80-100 sq ft max. They did good considering the space constraints.

Piping will be insulated as one of the final steps. The project has a couple of days left on it and insulation is to be done.

I like your suggestion on the flue pipe. Great find!

Oil Lines. Any ideas or suggestions. I;d like to get that taken care of if it is a concern.

Ernie

Oil Lines

Mark I too am a HO and everthing I have read on the Wall and OTT seems to indicate you should not have valve on the return oil line. Maybe Allen or Firedragon will chime in, something about code and blowing a pump seal.

Weezbo

hello....

the codes require so many meltdown valves....? wouldnt you have spent half the dollars installing an oil shut off valve tiger loop combo? the thing about check valves is you dont want them on the supply and returns....and horizontal applications are the deal as it were......is that a ? you were asking?

mmarkfa

So is it ok or not??

Hi weezbo, so in your professional opinion, does it look like I have a problem with the oil lines or not? I appreciate your help.

THx,
Mark

dconnors

80-100 sq ft boiler room?

Are you allowing for combustion air? maybe i missed that in your original post.