Boiler Electrician Expert Needed

I’ve had about 3 plumbers and 3 electricians look at my boiler, and no one has been able to solve my issue. My boiler will not come on unless I hit the spill switch. The boiler will go on and reach the target temperature on the thermostat, however, once it does it will not come on again when the temperature starts dropping. I have to hit the spill switch every time to get it going. I replaced the thermostat wire. The thermostat was tested and I’ve been told that it is ok. The chimney is clean, the damper open. This means that in the middle of the night, I have to run to the basement to hit the spill switch every time I want to get the boiler going. If I’m not home, I can’t turn on the heat for the tenants upstairs. I’ve been told my water pressure is not great, not sure if that has anything to do with it. It’s been almost three weeks like this–pulling my hair out! If anyone can recommend a good boiler/electrician specialist, it would be appreciated!

phoffy

in General Discussion 6 years and 9 months ago

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NickCarrol | 6 years and 9 months ago

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This is a good news。 https://allicdata.com

phoffy | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Thanks for all the great input. I emailed the developer the building code (and CC’d my lawyer.) The developer rep called me and has assured me they will work on it asap.

dorkofwindsor | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Just beating a dead issue… I had same exact problem and my chimney was blocked / had no flue / partial collapse from interior of the chimney. Switch problem solved! Figured it out myself.

chinyere.ezie | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Agree 100% with Master Plumber. I have come across this same problem twice in the last 18 months in Williamsburgh and Park Slope where developers have extended the height of adjoining buildings butting up to chimneys on lower buildings. Extending the chimney in both cases resolved the problem. I forwarded the DOB code to both developers giving them the option to correct the problem immediately or I was going to notify the DOB. In both cases it was resolved immediately as I specified it was considered a “Life Safety Issue” and the fines would be much more than the cost of extending the chimney. Notifying the DOB should be your last resort because if they deem the problem as a “Life Safety Issue” they will notify the gas company to shut down the gas to your building until the issue is resolved. Getting the gas turned back on we all know can be a pain in the you know what.
Dept. of Buildings code link
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dob/apps/pdf_viewer/viewer.html?file=2008CC_MC_Chapter_8_Chimney_and_Vents.pdf§ion=conscode_2008

Master Plvmber | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Great. Let me know if you need any help.
I’m here at: www.72fLLC.com

phoffy | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Thanks again. I have found the code and printed it out.

Master Plvmber | 6 years and 9 months ago

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I have no idea. The duct that lets air in from outside is only there to replace the air that’s being exhausted by the boiler’s flue, so more air is not going to resolve your lack of venting. You can test this by simply opening a door or window in the home that will make air from outside available to your boiler, even if it’s 30 feet away. It’ll be the same thing as having another vent in the boiler room, if there is a boiler room. But that’s not the answer.

phoffy | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Thank you so much for your input. I will contact the builders tomorrow to get on it. In addition to raising the chimney, do you think adding an extra vent inside the boiler room would help? (Meaning, just the street level hole in the wall that vents some heat and lets some fresh air in–not a stack.).

Master Plvmber | 6 years and 9 months ago

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The Code says the building next to yours is responsible for the cost of raising your chimney to the adequate height at which your upward draft will not be affected by the new taller building. It sounds like you know this is not an electrical or boiler problem. This is a life-safety problem that needs immediate remediation. Reseting the carbon monoxide spill switch to get the boiler running again is clearly not the answer. You need to contact the building owners next door and make them aware of this problem. To expedite resolution, you’re probably also going to have to get in touch with the DOB and make them aware of this issue. They’ll get involved and make the building do what they’ve got to do.

phoffy | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Thank you for your input, and I think very astute. A tall building went up next to my house this summer and fall. The chimney person said it is causing a downdraft. I bought a vacu-stack chimney cap. It did seeming stop the downdraft–when we test the flame/smoke do go up the chimney and not back out. How can we remedy this?

RobertGMarvin

in General Discussion 6 years and 9 months ago

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What if your spill switch is working properly and there’s a blockage in your flue? We had that years ago, before we had a stainless steel liner installed in our furnace flue; it might have saved our lives.

Master Plvmber | 6 years and 9 months ago

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Vent or fresh air problem. Chimneys work best when they’re warm. The vent damper, when cycling normally, helps keep the chimney from going cold. This is not an electrical problem. Feel around the spill switch once the damper closes. Is there a lot of heat escaping the flue’s draft diverter? Check to see if that’s the moment the spill switch activates. I’ll bet it is because that’s when I see these hard-to-explain lockouts happen. These problems will drive you crazy and they are truly best analyzed by a boiler/heating specialist rather then random plumbers and electricians.

eman134 | 6 years and 9 months ago

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  array(2) {
    ["subscriber"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["bbp_participant"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["cap_key"]=>
  string(15) "wp_capabilities"
  ["roles"]=>
  array(2) {
    [0]=>
    string(10) "subscriber"
    [1]=>
    string(15) "bbp_participant"
  }
  ["allcaps"]=>
  array(4) {
    ["read"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["level_0"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["subscriber"]=>
    bool(true)
    ["bbp_participant"]=>
    bool(true)
  }
  ["filter"]=>
  NULL
  ["site_id":"WP_User":private]=>
  int(1)
}

This is my field…it is almost definitely a vent problem The spill switch will only go off if you are overheating the chimney, indicating that you have poor ventilation flow.. you can drop me a line at errol832000@hotmail.com