The oil fired boiler for the dry return steam system in our country cottage was 9/30. After about 10 weekends of "real" use, our guests were awakened when the daytime heat came on by loud banging. In fact, it was so loud they said their room actually shook! :eek: (This was preceded by a flood from one of the new main line steam vents the prior weekend, apparently do a chunk of something jamming the valve. :()
The "fix" included removal of the two mainline steam vents, attaching a hose and flushing the mains. Squick and skimming of the boiler followed and things seem to be under control, at least for now. :)
My question is whether this should be considered as a part of the routine when the new boiler was installed. In other words, is the flushing, etc. part of the "complete job" called for in the contract for the new boiler or should I be expected to pay for this as a separate, additional service?
Thanks in advance,
Michael:confused:

Bump, anyone with a comment?

The installation instructions on steam boilers discuss the boilers need to be skimmed. This gets the oil from the top of the water. For more info see the attached link, click steam menu and see FAQ and skimming a steam boiler.
Technical Menu (http://www.comfort-calc.net/tech_area_index.htm)

I would try some Squick steam chemical and then flush and skim the boiler as per chemical instructions