The last thing any homeowner needs is for his or her boiler to stop working during the dead of winter. Ensure your heat stays on and your boiler running with these troubleshooting tips.
Begin With the Thermostat: Settings should always be slightly above the actual temperature in the room. In cases of zoned systems with multiple thermostats around your home go to the main room or primary control system to set the proper temperature.
Check circulating pump operations: Touch the pump motor, taking the proper safety precautions first, to see if the unit is hot. If your motor isn’t operational check the power supply to the motor and the breaker for any obvious energy delivery issues. If the unit is cold but the power is up and running the thermostat or the circulator relay could be the culprits.
Conversely, if the motor is too hot to touch safely it could be indicative of the motor, run capacitor or the pump being locked up.
Inspect the boiler’s pressure/temperature gauge: Gauges should hold steady somewhere between 0 degrees celsius and the red zone that indicates pressure levels are too high. Normal readings could mean that air has gotten into the system, a common issue with older manual air eliminators. These gauges can easily be replaced.
In cases where pressure/temperature levels are low check the inducer fan and vent damper are running. If these system components aren’t operational flip your breaker to see if they kick back on. If they don’t the issue could lie with the aquastat or boiler control.
Check main and pilot burners: Pilots that don’t light could mean the vent pipe is blocked, cutting off oxygen supplies. If pilots won’t stay ignited it’s usually indicative that the pilot assembly or flame sensor is dirty, or possibly that the thermocouple and boiler controls could be malfunctioning. If main burners don’t ignite the gas valve could be broken.
All of the components mentioned above can be easily replaced. Identify the parts that are causing issues in your boiler and have them replaced. Contact Arpi’s Industries for professional services in Calgary, Alberta.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Calgary, Alberta about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about boilers and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide. Image courtesy of Shutterstock
