Boiler possible leak

FUZZNICK

I have a oil well mclain boiler during the storm we lost power so boiler did not work.I recently noticed that there is an orange leak on left side of boiler on floor when I look underneath the boiler the parts are rusty is this condensation from the boiler not working for a week or so the boiler is working and the stain seems like its dried and been there for a while. Also when I run my hand along the bottom edge of boiler it's wet does not seem to be oil.. Any advise or explanation would be appreciated.

carmon

pictures help......

FUZZNICK

Just had oil tech over and he said that the push nipples are leaking water, can this be fixed?

carmon

anything can be fixed....what exactly is a puss nipple...does he mean air bleeds.....

FUZZNICK

he said it was leaking water from the push nipples between the sections..

carmon

oh ....that sounds not good...hang on hopefully a boiler expert will be around soon.....

REP

I'm not 100 percent sure but I think Wiel Mclain boilers do not have push nipples.I think they have elastomer seals which are slightly easier to cvhange out.Someone should check and make sure no one has added any chemicals which could damage these seals.If they did all the seals will need to be changed.

beenthere

Yep, seals. They not too bad to replace.

COLDIRON

If the leak is minimal and it's not loosing to much water give it a couple more days and see if it stops, When you loose power the metal shrinks along with the gasket material when you restart it the metal expands and the gaskets sometimes reseal as long as it stays hot.

__________________
No Warranty Means- If it breaks in half you get to keep both halves.

FUZZNICK

Thank you so much for your reply, I ran my hand across the bottom of the boiler today and it's dry, Is that a good sign?
Also the tech that the oil company sent over last told me that they would need to come back take the casing off and replace parts , and also that it might not be able to be fixed, he did not look under the boiler basically he just said to get it checked out after the cold season it over. If the bottom of the boiler stays dry does that mean that gaskets resealed themselves
Also from reading your post which I thank you again so very much, is this something that normally happens when the boiler does not work for a period of time and then restarts?

FUZZNICK

I just ran my hand under the bottom over the boiler and now there is water not leaking on the floor just wet when I run my hand across bottom meanwhile this morning there was nothing?

COLDIRON

Yes it's a common occurrence when people shut down their boilers for the Winter they seep a little until it is restarted when everything expands.

That's why many heating mechanics recommend never letting it get cold.

Keep your eye on it , I wouldn't make any quick decisions to replace it or have it ripped open. A little seepage is OK for a while.

__________________
No Warranty Means- If it breaks in half you get to keep both halves.

FUZZNICK

Thank you yet again for the information, I went to check on the boiler this evening and it's dripping a little on the floor again, so basically this is normal, I have been trying to keep the heat on all day but lowered it because it was getting warm, then put it back up again ..So how will I know when a little seepage
is too much the original dried seepage stain was about 1 ft by 1 ft. now it's just 3 inch 2in about give or take.

beenthere

When you find a big water puddle in your basement.

It may leak/seep slowly like that for years. or let loose later this winter. many seep like that for years before letting loose.

COLDIRON

Couple questions, how long have you lived in the property? How old is the boiler? Have you ever seen water on the floor in that area over the years? I have seen leaks on boilers that don't always come from the boiler but from the valves, controls, back flow preventer's. Pictures would help tell the story. It can't be that bad if the Company you called said run it this Winter until the Spring. You on city water or well water?

__________________
No Warranty Means- If it breaks in half you get to keep both halves.