Best oil burner for four section steam boiler

Steve Garson

Thanks for the insight. So how does a homeowner find someone who does the set-up properly?

Steve Garson

Best oil burner for four section steam boiler

I just started dismanteling my old steam boiler. I am amazed at how much soot and ash there is was this was tuned up at the start of the season. The burner is a Beckett that is perhaps 15 years old. The firebrick in the combustion area is like new but everywhere else is a mess. Is this normal?

For my new WM boiler, is there a burner that burns more effectively than the others to keep the heat exchanger less sooty, or is that just the way all oil burners are?

Thanks.

Todd_9

Burner choices

For me I like the Riello. There is nothing wrong with the current burners from Beckett or Carlin, either would be a big differance from the 15yr old Beckett. The most important thing is the install if not done properly you will have problems, and with a steam boiler soot may not be the biggest problem!

J.C.A._3

Steve,

Trust me on this one...It ain't the oil burner that's the problem! Most new burners (and tons of old ones too!) work just fine in most equipment. The one you want to go with is the one the installer is comfortable with installing, servicing and PROPERLY setting up. There are minor differences between all burners, but they HAVE to be set up with test equipment. Anyone who tells you they can adjust it by eye should be immediately dismissed as someone that will cause the soot you speak of.

Properly set up burners will provide great service as long as the environment they are placed in is suitable. Avoid making the boiler room the laundry room (listening architects?). Also avoid unfinished or dirt floored spaces. The amount of air these things need to work is paramount to their ability to run properly. Installing them where they are subject to lint and/or dust is a step in the "soot direction".

Worry more about the installer and his ability to test, service and keep stock on hand for your burner more than which brand. JMHO chris

joel_19

JCA

You da man ! proper set up and cleaning is very important. Many oil companies do not open and brush the units out like they should . That being said Riello or a well set up carlin is the way to go IMHO.

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D Logan Ireland Oil Co Inc

Steve, First of all ignore the idiotic remark from Joel. He took the time to make a stupid statement about oil companies,maybe that brightlight of information could give you some better advice that you could actually use.

techheat_2

Contract with someone who is qualified to install and setup oil boilers,this is not a DIY project.

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J.C.A._3

Dave,

Pretty presumptuous on your part. Joel speaks the truth in a lot of situations. I am offended and would NEVER lump all oil companies in one bunch, but have done services AND tested units where the writing on the annual service tag wasn't even close to the readings I achieved.

Not to say (at all) that there aren't oil companies that don't test all of their jobs, because I personally know lots that do...but there are too many coincidences where the numbers are the same year after year and my findings are quite different.The advice I was giving to Steve was to ask the companies that he is considering for his job if they do. I would also ask for a few "referrals", and by all means follow-up on them.

Please think before you make such statements. Chris

P.S. I worked for an oil company for just shy of 17 years, and own my OWN test equipment J.C.A.

Steve Garson

I'm not planning a DIY project, I just want to be sure the burner spec'd is the best for me. This is a big investment.
Thanks for your tips.

Steamhead

Steve, the burner furnished with a new boiler

is matched to the boiler thru the efforts of both the boiler and burner makers. Some manufacturers offer several burners that are matched to their boilers- Utica and Weil-McLain come to mind here, I think Slant/Fin does too. This lets the installers use the burners they are most familiar with.

Any flame-retention burner installed in the last 30 years or so will, when properly set up, run thru an entire season without making soot or smoke, FACT! Since your older Beckett was sooting up the boiler, it wasn't set up properly. And if your new one makes smoke or soot, it will not have been set up correctly. You really need a good oil tech here.

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oil-2-4-6-gas

carlin

most guys at the oil companies i talk to love the carlin e-z series --these are guys who take pride in adjusting equipment and setting it up for max efficiency(the same guys have to -vac & service the equipment they installed--ie..if you installed the boiler you will be servicing it year-to-year) ---hands down all service techs have been for the Carlin --ease of set-up and they are getting some great #s with a --quiet running burner to boot ---

Weezbo

there are a number of good burners,however left to thier

own demise, offof the factory settings ,you will have an opportunity to find more than soot over time...in our burg this year it will not be allowed a finish (certificate of occupancy) on a new home, without a test on ;gas, oil, LP or fossile fuel.stack, smoke, draft, pump pressure, nozzel etc...must all be checked.outside air openings are usually sized on what the boiler could be burning not on what the nozzel size happens to be.If for example your current burner has a seriously undersized nozzel and is smoking to beat the band you may need to also check the outside air requirements for the room in which it is located...cleaning the boiler and stack is a MUST before applying dollars to a burner and set up. I used to be able to buy riellos when i told everyone i hated them ooh well, old age and treachery catches up with us all.:) Welcome to my world The newer burners carlin and becket have undergone quite a few changes over the last 15 years as they have looked for more and more ways to make the American dollar hang around here longer...if you ask a weil mclain dealer he can get you any one of these three burners..the ticket is about the same,......
1. ample outside air
2.filtered oil supply
3.inital set up &annual cleaning and maint.

tommyoil

Sorry Dave

But I gotta agree with Joel here. There are ALOT of lazy techs out there. Some clean the boiler but dont take down the smokepipe. Some take down the smokepipe and dont clean the boiler. Some do those two things and dont do the burner. Nozzles and not filters ect,ect. I cant tell you how many times I've seen efficiency results copied from year to year until testing finally actually get done and the results are NOWHERE NEAR what they were from the past five or more years. Lets face it, it does go on and laziness is more rampant in some companies than others. I see it EVERY DAY. Obviously its a touchy subject for you but I'm sure that Joel was not aiming his comments directly at you as you may have come to believe. It was an accurate generalization of what actually goes on in the field. If the things I have described are not what you see everyday than you sir are in oil burner heaven. Here, where I am, I would call it fantasy land. Keep up the good work. JMO.

Firedragon_4

This answer is the

best one, JMO!

The best burner is the one matched to the heat exchanger by the oem'S concerned.

The best one is the one setup by a professional using instruments, period.

The best one is the one maintained also by a professional.

Joel is only half right, but he is right.

Lazy techs work for oil companies, HVAC contractors, plumbers and all kinds of repair shops. Using the right tools and parts and servicing all of the equipment required is the sign of another professional, FACT!

As to you Steamhead, watch that FACT stuff Frank :-)

Back to NEFI, great show, I'm outta here!