New steam boiler flue... and what else?

I’m about to take on this steam boiler and the house it heats. I have been told that it’s not that old, but seems to have issues that are probably caused by exhausting up a completely unlined brick chimney, (a) Any recommendations for a competent firm to run a flue up the whole chimney and (b) based on the pics here, any likely issues i should be worrying about? deano

deano

in Chimney and Fireplace 13 years and 8 months ago

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steam_man | 13 years and 8 months ago

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The burn mark is most likely due to inmproper rope installation on the burner mounting plate coupled with really poor firing. Or…. There was afterburn and there _really_ was a fire (which I don’t think because it would have been a REALLY big fire). That is a burner issue. In any case, I would install a new boiler (convert to gas) and be done with it.

Colonel | 13 years and 8 months ago

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Big Apple Chimney was amazing for us – one of my favorite contractors that we’ve ever worked with. Ask for Jason to come visit and give you his thoughts.

eman134 | 13 years and 8 months ago

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rebuild the header , rebuild the hartford loop, and get the chimney lined…you have serious ass condensate problems, and an imbalance in fresh air to venting…as mp said start over.. if you are thinking about converting to gas, remember that you will need new upgraded gas service and probably a new meter to accomodate the increased load.. my contact info is on my profile

wholesalerbill1 | 13 years and 8 months ago

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Listen to MP, get rid of that puppy. Looks like a Peerless ECT. I see you have nat. gas. If your oil tank isn’t a big issue in removing, then I’d convert to gas. Just make sure you line the chimney if you convert to gas. If you stick with oil, and get the chimney lined make sure who ever does it uses a stainless steel liner. DO NOT use anything less than stainless steel for oil. If they tell you you don’t have to use stainless then escort them to the door and boot them out.

slopegirl | 13 years and 8 months ago

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we got our chimney relined by A&A (they advertise here) a couple of years ago and were very happy with the job they did. Be advised, it was a HUGE mess. They cleaned and sealed stuff up as best they could, but it’s just a very messy project.

Master Plvmber | 13 years and 8 months ago

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MY issue with your boiler is the giant black burn mark on the front panel and the fact that it was installed by just piping it up into a header made for another boiler. The “header” is the large yellowish distribution pipe in the upper right of the picture. The new boiler piping is the smaller black pipe that connects to it from the left. Anyway, it’s not terrible.
A bigger issue is that the return pipe may have been undersized when they changed it from threaded steel to copper (mid-frame, right) as I can see a bushing (reducing fitting) was used to make that connection. The chimney iteself might be the vent problem, but I’d look at a lack of incoming make up air for combustion. Also, what’s that white crud forming on the vertical supply pipe near the top of the boiler?

deano | 13 years and 8 months ago

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Thanks – know nothing about steam boilers so far so I dont yet know the issues exactly (seller is a little strange, and isnt passing on much info about the house she’s owned for decades) But inspector remarked on scorching marks and also that a small bolt was added to force closed the little port on the face of the boiler. (silver bolt on the reddish port shown in this pic)

http://cdn.brownstoner.com/4e775029a3dee-processed-boiler_closer.JPG

steam_man | 13 years and 8 months ago

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Yes, what are the issues? That’s one crazy looking Hartford Loop! Does this boiler have flooding or filling problems? I’m not too happy about the transition from steel pipe to copper… As for lining, there are a number of chimney companies that can give you a price for this.

ejalbk | 13 years and 8 months ago

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Just curious what the issues are.

deano | 13 years and 8 months ago

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http://cdn.brownstoner.com/4e77287249f31-processed-steam_boiler_1.JPG

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