Which boiler?

Dave_4

Hello, I'm trying to decide on a oil fired boiler for forced hot water, cast iron baseboard, 1000 square foot house, indirect hot water tank.

First question: 3 section pin type or 3 pass? I have been reading and reading and understand that 3 pass are more efficient and easier to clean. Will I be ok with a conventional boiler? Would the 3 pass really be that much better for my dinky house? Do pin types really lose that much efficiency because they are harder to clean? Pin type are cheap and available here. I have a hard time believing that they suddenly suck because W/M and Burnham now make 3 pass boilers.

2nd question: My contractor recommends Weil Mclain Gold. I have heard they are very good. I have also heard they are not good because of their seals and that they will leak. I understand that evryone has their brand preferences, but is there any reason to avoid W/M gold?

Thanks for the help.

brucewo1b

Pin vs 3 Pass

Its not that pin type boilers suddenly suck, 3Pass oil boilers have been around for a long long time and pin boilers were made for atmospheric gas burners so most mfrs just went to pin type to save a buck in castings but with effecency concerns 3 pass are back in vogue. I loved the old Wiel-Mclain 68 series pin boilers but not been as happy withe gold series, some run fine and some are trouble time and again. As long as a pin boiler has a rear flue I can clean that better than any three pass any day.

B.S.

Constantin

Hmmmm....

I'm a fellow homeowner who also uses oil to heat his home. I would hire a great heating contractor to get the answers you need. I would start with a heat loss, then determine the maximum supply temperature needed to keep your rooms up to temp on a design day.

A 3-pass boiler may be a better choice if the system can be run at low temperatures (as I suspect it can) as several models on the market incorporate built-in means of surviving low-return water temperatures w/o issues, while there are no pin-type units on the market with such protection, AFAIK.

I also prefer non-pin units for the ease with which most of them can be cleaned. Over the long run, that may save you a lot of fuel, though getting the system installed properly with a combustion analyzer, etc. in the first place ought to go a long way for either type of boiler.

So it's not that pin-type boilers stink but that there are many boiler choices out there and that a great heating contractor will go a long way towards figuring out what is best for your home. I would base my choice on the equipment he/she recommends.

Rodney Summers

Do the 3 pass work well with cast iron baseboard heaters?

brucewo1b

Yes

That is probably all the first three pass boilers had to work with unless it was Gravity Radiators

B.S.

Ken D.

3 pass

The longer it takes for the heat from the burner flame to exit the boiler breech, the lower the stack temperature as the heat exchanger has more time to absorb the heat. The lower the stack temp the higher the efficiency, assuming a quality burner. In a vericle flue boiler, the heat pretty much goes in and out vey quickly. The stack temp is higher and the eff. is lower.

Rodney Summers

Sounds like 3 pass would work better in just about every situation.