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Oil Burner Reset Tripping

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JeremyN
JeremyN Member Posts: 15
We've got a Weil McClain gold oil boiler here hooked up to a steam system. We just came home from a week away and realized that our house was way below the thermostat's set point and nothing would turn on the boiler. I went downstairs and hit the reset, and the burner turned on. Problem solved... That was until a few minutes later when it shut off again. I repeated this step, noticing that the whole time there was fire in the chamber. After the second time, I bled the pump in case there was some air in there somehow and that seemed to do the trick. We went through a number of burner cycles (about 2 hours worth of firing) and I was convinced I had solved the problem.



This morning I woke up and again the house was way below the set point. I went through the same step of bleeding, and again the burner worked for a number of hours. Just now, I noticed the problem again, and this time all I did was hit the reset button and the burner has been firing for a good 40 minutes without any signs of stopping.



I'm at a loss for what's going on here. The bleeding seems to be a red herring as this most recent time didn't require it. We're about to get our system swapped out for gas so I wouldn't be too worried about it except for the fact that we're heading out for New Years tomorrow and won't be back until Tuesday - we've just had this one day home with the problem sandwiched between trips. I'm pretty worried about leaving the pipes (and cat) in a potentially freezing cold house.



Any ideas for a quick fix?



Thanks,

Jeremy

Comments

  • Ironman
    Ironman Member Posts: 7,376
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    Maintenance

    When was the last annual service done?

    There are too many things to list. You need to call a tech.
    Bob Boan
    You can choose to do what you want, but you cannot choose the consequences.
  • billtwocase
    billtwocase Member Posts: 2,385
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    As Iron said

    we could give you a shopping list of probable causes, but you should hire a pro. 
  • Steve Whitbeck
    Steve Whitbeck Member Posts: 669
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    Oil boiler

    As said it could be a number of things.

    Call a tech.

    It could be a weak cad cell or high voltage transformer. Burner lights the first time but not the second. It could be blocked oil flow due to a plugged oil filter or nozzle.

    could be a few other things that are less probable.
  • JeremyN
    JeremyN Member Posts: 15
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    thanks guys

    Our annual service was done in September. Is that something they should have looked at? Should I call the guy back?
  • Steve Whitbeck
    Steve Whitbeck Member Posts: 669
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    YES

    Call them back. Just make sure that if you reset it AND it doesn't fire - DON'T reset it again.
  • Burnerboy2
    Burnerboy2 Member Posts: 26
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    reset tripping

    Where do you live?

    If you live near me, I can help you............... Springfield, Massachusetts
This discussion has been closed.