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October 31, 2007
Chemical additive for boiler water
I just had Vigilante come to do the annual boiler maintenance. After draining and refilling the boiler, he said the water is a little dirty, like tea. He recommended adding a chemical to the water to keep it clean. I wasn't there to ask, but I'm curious why the water would still be dirty. It's an old boiler, could it just be years of build up on the inside? I'm inclined to listen to Vigilante's advice. Any other opinions?
Comments
If this is a submerged coil, oil burner, there should be
some sort of flush valve on the unit. We drain ours
into a bucket on a weekly basis to prevent dirt build up.
Water usually runs clean after a few seconds of draining.
Posted by: guest at October 31, 2007 11:18 PM
What kind of boiler? I would not believe a word out of vigilante's mouth. They are so overpriced. We have a friend who is a plumber and when I asked him about flushing/cleaning etc our boiler he said you don't need to do anything and I should not add new water to it because the new water is more corrosive than what has neutralized in the system over the last 20 years. We have a hot water radiator system.
Posted by: guest at November 1, 2007 8:07 AM
Above poster is right. New water is more chemically reactive and will corrode more. The black dirty water is neutral and reacts less with the piping.
Posted by: guest at November 1, 2007 10:41 AM
OP here, I've had engineers tell me during home inspection that dirty boiler water is a very bad thing. BTW, it is a gas boiler, Weill McClain (is that that right name?).
Any other opinions on dirty water in my gas boiler?
Posted by: cornetor at November 1, 2007 3:45 PM
Yes the water can also get dirty from the Radiators that condense the steam and rusty water sits in them. the water then runs back the return and fills the boiler with the dirty water from the old radiators. I blow down my boiler about once a week in the winter (drain dirty water until its clear..about 2 cups). I have added the chemical to the water and it helps. When the water is too dirty it "Surges". This is like a pot of water full of pasta or poached egg or anything else. When the water is dirty is will rise higher. This causes the raidators to fill with water or the pipes to bang....or both. I dont have the name of the product I use, it is at home..I am at work. I bought it at a plumbing supply place. It keeps the water from getting dirty and makes it a light orange to red color.
Hope this helps
Posted by: tomgee at November 1, 2007 4:48 PM
Don't you flush the boiler every week?? What kind of additive is this? That would be my first question. Sounds like a crock to me.
Posted by: guest at November 2, 2007 4:08 PM
there is a product made by hercules that i recommend. It is a yellow liquid that should be used in boilers as part of a maintenance program. SOS makes one called BOILER COLLOID, and is a blue liquid. This additive is done with commercial buildings that have very large boilers, and should be done with residential homeowners. The one made by hercules, is a boiler cleaner, and has silicone, and helps prevent rust, scale, and surging pipes, and is a good treatment for older properties. I usually flush the boiler before the heating season, and use two bottles (quarts), and add two after the heating season because of the anti-corrosion properties of this item. I see very little rust and debris in the system when i flush, and water rarely turns brown or rusty. I have had no issues. Vigilante is not a crook. Constant flushing of the boiler is not good either because deposits, and fresh water causes more oxidation and problems, as to water that has been in the boiler for a few heating cycles.
Posted by: guest at November 2, 2007 5:08 PM
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