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Could my boiler be cracked but not show a leak?

ryan242
ryan242 Member Posts: 25
I’ve lived in my current home now for about 3 years, it has a burnham v714 that has an installation date of October 1997 written on it. I have 2 zones, 1 zone is the main part of the house which consists of old cast iron radiators and baseboard. The 2nd zone is just a 2 baseboard loop, it’s only serves a 2 room addition that was added on a few years before I bought the place. I also have fujitsu ductless units throughout the house, the first winter I lived there was unusually mild and all I used were the ductless units, this winter is the exact opposite so I fired up the boiler, the expansion tank was waterlogged so I changed it out and in the process lost most of my water because of the lack of shut off valves, from what I can tell I have most, if not all of the air bled from the system but every once in awhile I’ll get a gurgling noise from the baseboard in the addition section and it seems to happen when the boiler shuts down after a cycle but the circulator is still running, the boiler has a Beckett aquasmart on it so the high limit may sometimes be as low as 150 or so, burner runs up to 150 or so and shuts down with the circulator on and a few seconds later I get the gurgling sound, it only lasts for a few seconds, it does gurgle at other times but it’s extremely rare. It seems to be pretty much consistent though that I’ll get a gurgle right after the burner stops but circulator is still running, could I have a leak or something? I don’t see any water around the boiler or inside, I opened it up to clean it and it looks fine inside from what I can tell. Heats great too

Comments

  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 9,572
    edited February 2021
    What do you have for air elimination? How is it and the circulator piped in relation to the boiler?

    You could just have air that never got removed or you could have a leak that is too slow to see water somewhere in the system and fresh water is being added by the pressure reducing valve. Fresh water will have air (which contains oxygen and will rust things) dissolved in it.
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,042
    How much pressure shows on the gauge when cold/cool?
    Should be 12-15 PSI.
    Your new tank should have been pre-charged to that amount.....before installing.
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 15,452
    @ryan242

    I would suspect you just have some air trapped in the system
  • ryan242
    ryan242 Member Posts: 25
    My pressure gauge is reading just above 10 when the boiler is cold so I’d assume it’s about 12psi which is also what the expansion tank is, I checked it before I installed it, it has an American air purger device on it right above the expansion tank which is on the supply for zone 1, the main part of the house, the circulator for that zone is on the return right before the boiler entrance, which I think is where burnham puts them from factory. Zone 2 is actually piped off where the relief valve is, it comes up beside the main supply and has a Tee, one to the relief valve and the other up to the circulator for zone 2
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,042
    Does the purger have a small air vent on the top of it, there might be a cap on it that should be loose to let out any air.

    IF you have air bleeders on the BBs, I would fire both zones up to get them hot as possible and then shut off the power, let sit for maybe 1/2 hour. The air may migrate up to the BBs and then you can bleed them out. Maybe make 2 trips around all of them.
    Then go back to normal heating.
    bucksnortryan242
  • ryan242
    ryan242 Member Posts: 25
    I’ll do that, I have the vent open that sits on top of the purger, how effective are those things? The main zone in the house seems to be fine, it’s the addition zone that I’m hearing air noises on, funny thing is it’s not piped through the air purger. Does that matter? Also how long after I get water should I leave the bleeders open when bleeding the radiators and baseboards ? 
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,042
    That little purger is pretty effect, however the air has to travel with the water that passes thru it.
    If you have air in some BBs it may stay there and not travel with the water.
    So if you can eliminate it early you are ahead.

    I let the water spurt out until solid, again you may have to do this several times. (somewhat depends who's watching....and how much water the flooring can tolerate B) ).

    In some cases it is better to screw down the cap on the air purger , after all air is bled out.
    Sometimes, depending upon the location of the pump in the system, these bleeders have been known to suck air into the system.
    ryan242