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Can't drain my boiler anymore - Crown Boiler

MKE_steam
MKE_steam Member Posts: 10
in Strictly Steam

I'm unable to drain my boiler to clean the gunk out. Here's an older post for more background. I didn't do any of the things in my to-do list so now I'm probably worse off.

The boiler is about 12 years old. Everything works "fine" in the sense that the boiler sends steam to the radiators and the house heats up. I don't see any leaks anywhere but the vents hiss in the morning when the thermostat setting changes from 64 to 68.

The water usage is very high, maybe 25-30 gallons per heating season (Nov-Apr).

The last few years I would flush a couple cups of water every week or so until it ran clear. I didn't do that to start the season until today but only a few drips came out and now nothing.

Any short term options to unclog the drain? Any other concerns?

Comments

  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,950

    Do you mean you open the drain and nothing comes out?

    You can jamb something up there to try to free up the gunk, such as a large Zip™ tie.

    Or if your drain has a threaded spigot on it you could attach a hose and blast some water up there.

    Send a picture or two.

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
    Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
    See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el

  • Intplm.
    Intplm. Member Posts: 2,292

    You can also take a compressor and shoot a slug of air up at the blow-down point where the blockage is.

    With that type of water usage, I think you should be looking for a leak.

  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 11,122
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1825780#Comment_1825780

    Or see if everything with the feeder is actually working right, could be that it isn't feeding or feeding as much as it says it is or could be blocked off from the system from lack of cleaning, but if the vents aren't closing you will lose a lot of water that way.

    Someone should clean the lwoco/auto feeder, the sight glass, and the pigtail for the peressuretrol/vaporstat to make sure the controls are actually seeing the conditions in the boiler.

    Intplm.
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,780

    I would flood the boiler and look for leaks above the water line. Do you have any underfloor returns?

    Leaks in the system cause a lot of MU water to be used. More MU water which is high in oxygen will cause lots of muck, sludge rust and boiler deterioration.

  • MKE_steam
    MKE_steam Member Posts: 10

    I'll try the threaded spigot approach, and if i'm able to drain after that I'll fill above the water line to check for leaks.

  • Jamie Hall
    Jamie Hall Member Posts: 25,214

    Don't just look for leaks — find them. That much water usage you have them, for sure, it's just a matter of where they are.

    And @mattmia2 gave a nice list of other maintenance which should be done as soon as possible.

    Br. Jamie, osb
    Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England
  • MKE_steam
    MKE_steam Member Posts: 10

    I went around the house and checked the radiator valves during heating and all of them are hissing with a slight leak. Not the vents, the valves you turn to let steam in and water out. It's not leaking so much that it drips but I can see with a flashlight the steam coming out and the around the handle stem is damp.

    Is this pipe-work for a professional? Are there band-aids I can apply for these leaks?

  • Jamie Hall
    Jamie Hall Member Posts: 25,214

    Somehow I'm not that surprised… fixing a leaking valve stem can be really easy, or mildly difficult depending on how badly the valve is worn. The first thing to try is to get a good crescent wrench or regular wrench which fits the packing nut on the valve. That's the hex nut closest to the handle — the very "top" of the valve — and try tightening it. This is not a band-aid — this is what a plumber would do. If that doesn't work — don't be a gorilla — then you'll have to renew the packing. That's easy, too, but not as easy. Unscrew that packing nut completely (you will want the boiler off!) and remove the old packing which will be soft and torn up and between the shaft and the valve body itself. Get some new packing from the hardware store and carefully wrap it into that space between the shaft and the valve body and sort of push it home. Bring it almost level with the top of the valve body. Screw the packing nut back on and tighten it down… should do it. Be brave!

    Br. Jamie, osb
    Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England
    MKE_steam
  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 11,122

    Note that many times the old packing contains asbestos so you want to keep it damp and contain it if it is white and fluffy or has white bits in graphite.

    MKE_steam
  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 11,122

    You can also just loosen the packing nut and shove a wrap or 2 of string packing in there and see if that tightens the old packing up enough to stop the leak.

    MKE_steam
  • MKE_steam
    MKE_steam Member Posts: 10
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1825782#Comment_1825782

    Those items were all checked/cleaned about four or five years ago, and that technician told me to start flushing the boiler once a week to keep those things from gunking up again.

  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,950
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1826052#Comment_1826052

    That's too much in my opinion (except for float-style LWCO devices where it's recommended)

    By draining regularly, even a few cups, you are introducing that much more fresh water which will create more mud, causing you to chase your tail.

    By raising the pH to some level (around 10 according to most manufacturers except W-M), you will greatly reduce mud generation and will therefore only have to drain a little water annually if that.

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
    Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
    See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el

  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 11,122

    Those things should be done at lease once a year.

  • MKE_steam
    MKE_steam Member Posts: 10

    I'll repack the valves this week, add some 8-way and clean/replace the vents.

    If all leaks in the system are fixed, then how healthy is my boiler after what it's been through? It's 12 years old with high water consumption the last four years. I filled the boiler to the riser and didn't see any leaks. Does all of the brown stuff I've flushed out indicate anything beyond repair?

  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,950

    None of us can say how healthy it is today. But I can say that if you get the corrosion under control you are doing the best you can do to ensure more years of service.

    And based on my experiments, you can GREATLY reduce the amount of corrosion that a steam boiler sees.

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
    Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
    See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el

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