I was hoping to get some helpful information on the boiler at the house I recently purchased, after having issues firing it up for the first time. The house itself is fairly old, but the hot water gas boiler for radiator heating was apparently installed shortly before the sale (Pennco Model 15b). After reading up the details (I am not well versed on this topic) on boiler system components I also have some concerns about the quality of the installation.
So I fired up the boiler up for the first time, and didn't think twice about checking anything. Luckily the fire alarm right next to it in the basement went off soon, so I noticed that the temperature gauge was going up but the pressure was zero. I quickly turned it off, and I can only guess as to why the pressure was zero - water may have leaked out during the summer, someone may have flushed the radiators and not filled it back up.
So first thing I noticed is that the system did not have an auto feeder for water, only a valve to manually fill it up. Is that an issue with the installation, or is it fairly common to not have it installed? Another component that is missing is apparently the LWCO, which I am a bit more concerned about. Why would that not be part of a new installation? Does that raise concerns about the quality of the install work? It seems like if the fire alarm did not go off and I didn't bother to check the pressure, dry firing could have ruined the boiler, am I right? Should I have the LWCO installed as a safety measure, especially without the auto water feeder?
After letting the boiler cool, I filled it with water to about 15PSI, and fired it up again. Everything seems relatively fine, except the alarm was going off again and there was a strong smell of burning plastic/rubber. The boiler temperature was fine, but was rising rather slowly, and I didn't wait until it got to operational temp and shut it down again. Pressure seemed fine as well with no leaks and the supply pipe was getting hot. Does anyone have any input on potential cause of the smell? Could it be the circulator pump, which seemed pretty hot to the touch? Should I try and clean the burners?
Anyway, I realize I need to have someone inspect it, but is it safe to fire up for now given the smell? I want to reach out to the contractor who installed it to, given how recent the installation was. I also understand I should try and bleed radiators, which I can do myself.
Thanks
Nik
So I fired up the boiler up for the first time, and didn't think twice about checking anything. Luckily the fire alarm right next to it in the basement went off soon, so I noticed that the temperature gauge was going up but the pressure was zero. I quickly turned it off, and I can only guess as to why the pressure was zero - water may have leaked out during the summer, someone may have flushed the radiators and not filled it back up.
So first thing I noticed is that the system did not have an auto feeder for water, only a valve to manually fill it up. Is that an issue with the installation, or is it fairly common to not have it installed? Another component that is missing is apparently the LWCO, which I am a bit more concerned about. Why would that not be part of a new installation? Does that raise concerns about the quality of the install work? It seems like if the fire alarm did not go off and I didn't bother to check the pressure, dry firing could have ruined the boiler, am I right? Should I have the LWCO installed as a safety measure, especially without the auto water feeder?
After letting the boiler cool, I filled it with water to about 15PSI, and fired it up again. Everything seems relatively fine, except the alarm was going off again and there was a strong smell of burning plastic/rubber. The boiler temperature was fine, but was rising rather slowly, and I didn't wait until it got to operational temp and shut it down again. Pressure seemed fine as well with no leaks and the supply pipe was getting hot. Does anyone have any input on potential cause of the smell? Could it be the circulator pump, which seemed pretty hot to the touch? Should I try and clean the burners?
Anyway, I realize I need to have someone inspect it, but is it safe to fire up for now given the smell? I want to reach out to the contractor who installed it to, given how recent the installation was. I also understand I should try and bleed radiators, which I can do myself.
Thanks
Nik