[kbuchholtz]

Hello. I have a Utica Boiler, hot water system. It's pretty old but has run well before. I had a new expansion tank installed last season, no problems at all.

This year, with the cold weather in Northeast, my radiators are not getting hot. The feed line coming from the boiler is barely warm, the return lines are cold. The thermometer reads 80 degrees, but is set at 200 (I just raised the temp to see if that would help, but it didn't). The pressure is at a steady 20#.

I did not bleed out the radiators this year. Is that something I should do before calling in someone? They were bled out when the tank was put on last year, so I wasn't sure if I needed to do it again.

Thanks for your suggestions.

[hvac1000]

I hope with 20 pounds of pressure you have a two story home. \

200 degrees for the water temp is a bit high.

Its obvious that your burner for the boiler is not working. Is it oil or gas you are burning?

[kbuchholtz]

It burns natural gas. We actually have a 3 story house, one radiator in the attic. I've had the temp set at 180, but like I said I turned it up hoping to warm the house. Burner fires up well when called for.

[kbuchholtz]

I get steady blue flames on all three burner tubes. I had the burners cleaned out in the fall to prep for our winters here. Seemed to work OK at the beginning of the season. Cold radiators came on all of a sudden last week or so.

[hvac1000]

Since you have pressure it could be the circulator pump not performing as it should.

It could also be air in the lines. Does the attic radiator have a automatic air eliminator?

[hvac1000]

What does the boiler water temperature gauge read?

[kbuchholtz]

The boiler temp gauge reads 80 degrees. I'm not sure what an air eliminator is, but I'm going to say the attic radiator does not have one of these. It looks the same as all the others in the house.

I can hear the pump working, and the feed line gets mildly luke warm, so something is pushing through those pipes. May not be working well. But I can grab the feed line at the boiler and hold it without feeling much warmth.

[hvac1000]

The boiler temp gauge reads 80 degrees

If all the burners are lit and you only have 80 degree water in the boiler something is wrong with this picture.

It is so cold in the home that the boiler cannot keep up since all the heat is leaving by the radiators and the return line is cool.

I hate to try and advise further. You need on site service from a local professional to find out the exact problem. This could turn into a guessing game real quick. Sorry but I believe you will be better served by calling a local pro since it is so cold and you do not want any damage to happen to your home or water pipes.

[kbuchholtz]

Thank you for your help and advice.

[kbuchholtz]

Getting some warmth

[kbuchholtz]

As I was typing my last message I heard the boiler click off. I went down to check and the radiators are warm, the feed line was much warmer to the touch. The thermostat is set at 200, but the boiler temp reads 120. What should the temp read?

[hvac1000]

Usually boilers for radiation like you have are set at 180 degree F. BUT that can vary depending upon the design temperature,indoor outdoor controls or other temperature maintaining devices. My water temp I run here at this time of the year is about 135 to 140 degree F. But my system is designed to operate at a lower temperature yours is not.

Always remember each boiler system is its own animal. No two systems are exactly alike and control settings have a base line but are usually adjusted on a system by system basis. What works exactly for one home might not work the best in another.

[kbuchholtz]

After turning up the temp on the boiler to 200 degrees, the actual water temp is running at 125-135 depending on how long the boiler runs. All 12 radiators in the house are now warm, top to bottom. The longer the boiler runs, the hotter the rads get (which I suspect should be the case).

There is a small pressure screw on the line off the expansion tank that I tightened ever so slightly (maybe 1/32 of a turn, or less) which brought the pressure in the boiler up to 124#. When the tank was installed the guy said not to let it get at or over 130#.

The house is now warm and things seem to be running smoothly.

Thank you for all your replies to my question.

[hvac1000]

The 124# thing has me confused but if you say they said a maximum of 130 I guess all is OK. Standard normal pressure for a residential boiler is a max 30 pounds in the USA and they usually run about 12 to 20 depending upon how many stories of height are involved. Usually the safety is set for 30 pounds (PSI) so I do not know what you have there.

[kbuchholtz]

I mis-spoke. It is at 24#, not 124#. I was switching the temp and pressure.

Thanks again for your responses.

[hvac1000]

Glad you got it going and yep it was confusing with those numbers. Good night.