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Oil Boiler Will Not Fire

7K views 24 replies 4 participants last post by  flatlander745 
#1 ·
Good morning, Today our Burnham boiler quit running and I checked it out and there is oil and the the control was tripped. I reset it and the pump runs, but no fire, then trips again. The oil burner control is a Honeywell R8184G (I believe or close to this model), and was wondering if the control would be the problem or something else. Is there a diagnostic to see where the problem is?

Thanks!
 
#4 ·
More likely the nozzle is spraying a bad pattern. And a good chance its has been for a while. And the boiler should be cleaned also.

If you just replace the nozzle. And then hit the reset button again. Be prepared for that excess oil to burn off. Depending how many times you have pushed the reset. Will vary how bad it acts as it burns off the excess.

Be prepared for lots of smoke if you pushed it more twice already.

Have fire extinguisher ready.
 
#6 ·
I did not notice Beentheres post but we both have done oil and had runaway fires.
You should replace the nozzle as it may have a bad spray pattern. BEWAREyou now have excess unburnt oil in the chamber which can result in a serious runaway fire if it starts and there is too much of it. Have a fire extinguisher handy and the phone for the fire dept or get a Pro to inspect the chamber etc before lighting it up.
 
#7 ·
Electrodes get carboned up from poor nozzle spray pattern.

Worse thing you can do to a new electrode assembly(besides breaking it yourself)is to use it with an old nozzle that is spraying a bad pattern.

Kind of like installing new spark plugs in your car. When you know you have an injector sticking open.
 
#11 ·
It will have soaked into the combustion chamber and any cracks in it. I am not joking. If it gets away on you the chamber gets red hot and it is next to impossible to stop. Had it happen to me several times/ trailer units are the worst. You can try stop it by closing the air shutter but that can cause a huge backfire and be worse. If the chamber is wet enough it may need replacing. Beenthere does oil a LOT and can give you more advice. Flame retention burners have critical nozzle to electrode settings and if not done accurately will result in delayed ignition. If your burner has been burning dirty the boiler flues are dirty with carbon and you lose a LOT of heat transfer/efficiency and burn lots more oil. The burner should be setup with a combustion analyzer and the barometric damper also. Your families safety is worth more than saving a few bucks by DIYing.
 
#18 ·
In the old old days(8 bucks an hour labor charge, and I got paid 3 bucks an hour, woo hoo :laughing:). We use to clean nozzles as small as .85
And wonder why each year the boiler/furnace would be sooted up more then it was in the previous year.

A new nozzle every year saves far far more then it cost.
 
#15 ·
Great spray???

How do you tell it has great spray.

I know how to tell if it has good air fuel mixture. Which means proper atomization.

But not how to tell it has great spray.
 
#19 ·
After a few filthy-30F callbacks at night we change the nozzle every time. I wonder if there are stats as to how much a properly setup burner with a combustion analysis and barometric setup will save versus a visual setup. I am sure that with the outrageous price of oil it would more than pay for itself. If it ain't in writing homeowners won't believe it. The oil companies would like to keep that info private. Them Sheiks like their racing camels and Dubai Tower etc.:laughing:
 
#20 ·
I use to have a paper on that years ago. No idea where it is now.

Several oil service trade groups/organizations(not oil providing companies) had done test on eye ball and combustion testing set up units. And had an average efficiency difference. I thnk it ws 6% min at season start up, and of course increased by the end of the year from soot build up on the eye ball systems.
 
#21 ·
3 Bucks an hour, wow you must be "experienced". :thumbsup: LOL.:laughing: I started at $13, charged about $40. I hope you gave yourself a raise. My "eyeballin" ain't as accurate as it used to be so we would be out by at least 10%.:laughing:
Fits right in with my siggy below.
 
#23 ·
My first real job was "honorable dishwashah" at a Chinese restaurant. Great place to get started, free food, cute waitresses, except for the nightly ritual of cleaning the baked on rice in the huge pots, ugh.
 
#24 ·
OK so now it's all back together and running. What is the

Over fire draft
Draft at the breech
O/2 or CO/2 reading
Excess air in %
How about the smoke reading is it a trace or is it higher?
What is the flue gas temperature at the breech?

There is a whole lot more to setting up an oil burner than getting the right nozzle and the electrodes set in there correctly. Any one of the above settings are off and you could be either throwing money up the flue, rapidly sooting up the boiler or producing carbon monoxide. Without a combustion analyzer and the experience to operate it and make the proper settings, fiddling with an oil (or gas) burner can have some disastrous results.

Now a buddy of mine would say that that was an anti DIY post, but believe me, I care more about your and your family's safety than I do about being politically correct. Get a technician out to check your work post haste.
 
#25 ·
OK so now it's all back together and running. What is the

Over fire draft
Draft at the breech
O/2 or CO/2 reading
Excess air in %
How about the smoke reading is it a trace or is it higher?
What is the flue gas temperature at the breech?

There is a whole lot more to setting up an oil burner than getting the right nozzle and the electrodes set in there correctly. Any one of the above settings are off and you could be either throwing money up the flue, rapidly sooting up the boiler or producing carbon monoxide. Without a combustion analyzer and the experience to operate it and make the proper settings, fiddling with an oil (or gas) burner can have some disastrous results.

Now a buddy of mine would say that that was an anti DIY post, but believe me, I care more about your and your family's safety than I do about being politically correct. Get a technician out to check your work post haste.

I appreciate your concern NH; my buddy has a meter that is getting recalibrated and he should have it back today or tomorrow to check readings.
 
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