Calling all plumbers...
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Calling all plumbers...
Ok he is my problem.. I need some help from someone who know's how indirect fired water heaters work.. I lost hot water this morning around 11am and I still don't have any.. I called my maintenance guy that services the building and no call back yet.. I have 2 kids that needs baths and a sink full of dishes to do..
Now from what I can tell the circulation pump is working and the boiler is working just fine but for some reason I still have no hot water... I read somewhere about an aquastat or something like that.. the circulation pipes going in and out of the boiler are hot but for some reason it's not getting to the coils in the water tank.. What could be the problem... I need help PLEASE
James
Now from what I can tell the circulation pump is working and the boiler is working just fine but for some reason I still have no hot water... I read somewhere about an aquastat or something like that.. the circulation pipes going in and out of the boiler are hot but for some reason it's not getting to the coils in the water tank.. What could be the problem... I need help PLEASE
James
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From: Winnipeg, Manitoba
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From: Western Massachusetts
Do you have only one circulator? If that is the case you will have zone valves. The zone valve that serves the indirect probably is stuck or failed. There should be a way to manually open it.
The aquastat could be bad too. I would try turing it up and down to see if that does anything. You should be able to hear a click when it makes and breaks contact.
The aquastat could be bad too. I would try turing it up and down to see if that does anything. You should be able to hear a click when it makes and breaks contact.
Last edited by wittom; Jan 23, 2010 at 07:39 PM.
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Do you have only one circulator? If that is the case you will have zone valves. The zone valve that served the indirect probably is stuck or failed. There should be a way to manually open it.
The aquastat could be bad too. I would try turing it up and down to see if that does anything. You should be able to hear a click when it makes and breaks contact.
The aquastat could be bad too. I would try turing it up and down to see if that does anything. You should be able to hear a click when it makes and breaks contact.
I think I have only one circulator.. I only see one pump and motor on the bottom of the water tank.. About half way up I see something screwed into the side of the heater with wires coming out... Where would this aquastat thing be and how would I go about getting it to click..
James
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From: Western Massachusetts
To be honest, it would be easier to know what you are looking at if you could post a pic. If you could show the boiler and water tank it would help.
I have a Boch indirect tank. The aqustat is about a foot an a half from the bottom of the tank on the left side. It's a gray box something like 2 1/2 x 4. Yours could be something completely different.
I have a Boch indirect tank. The aqustat is about a foot an a half from the bottom of the tank on the left side. It's a gray box something like 2 1/2 x 4. Yours could be something completely different.
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It would be nice if this were an easy fix but with a system like that it might not be.
It looks like what you've got there is a steam boiler with a hot water loop for the domestic hot water. If the failure is an aquastat it might be an easy fix. The aquatat is the small gray box. If you take the cover off there is a dial in there. It's turning that dial that will creat the clicking noise. Pay attention to where it's set so that you can put it back.
The box that's hanging off the aquastat is the relay. When the aquastat senses that the water is cooling it sends a low votage signal to the relay which turns on the circulator. If you take the cover off the relay you can pull the contacts in. There is a small (about 1 x 1) lead looking peice that you can push or pull to draw in the contacts. Just be aware that there is 110 volts in there. If you're not sure, leave it alone.
Worst case scenario is that the water level in the coil has dropped and you aren't getting any circulation. Running a hot water loop off of a steam boiler can be tricky. The water level in the boiler can't drop too low, otherwise the hot water loop will loose it's water. If this is the case you've got to purge the air from the coil. I don't see any purge valves in your pics, so I can't tell you what you need to do that.
If you're not sure if you can check this out, this is one of those things that I would reccomend having someone check out for you. It's not a simple set up.
Hope this helps.
It looks like what you've got there is a steam boiler with a hot water loop for the domestic hot water. If the failure is an aquastat it might be an easy fix. The aquatat is the small gray box. If you take the cover off there is a dial in there. It's turning that dial that will creat the clicking noise. Pay attention to where it's set so that you can put it back.
The box that's hanging off the aquastat is the relay. When the aquastat senses that the water is cooling it sends a low votage signal to the relay which turns on the circulator. If you take the cover off the relay you can pull the contacts in. There is a small (about 1 x 1) lead looking peice that you can push or pull to draw in the contacts. Just be aware that there is 110 volts in there. If you're not sure, leave it alone.
Worst case scenario is that the water level in the coil has dropped and you aren't getting any circulation. Running a hot water loop off of a steam boiler can be tricky. The water level in the boiler can't drop too low, otherwise the hot water loop will loose it's water. If this is the case you've got to purge the air from the coil. I don't see any purge valves in your pics, so I can't tell you what you need to do that.
If you're not sure if you can check this out, this is one of those things that I would reccomend having someone check out for you. It's not a simple set up.
Hope this helps.
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It would be nice if this were an easy fix but with a system like that it might not be.
It looks like what you've got there is a steam boiler with a hot water loop for the domestic hot water. If the failure is an aquastat it might be an easy fix. The aquatat is the small gray box. If you take the cover off there is a dial in there. It's turning that dial that will creat the clicking noise. Pay attention to where it's set so that you can put it back.
The box that's hanging off the aquastat is the relay. When the aquastat senses that the water is cooling it sends a low votage signal to the relay which turns on the circulator. If you take the cover off the relay you can pull the contacts in. There is a small (about 1 x 1) lead looking peice that you can push or pull to draw in the contacts. Just be aware that there is 110 volts in there. If you're not sure, leave it alone.
Worst case scenario is that the water level in the coil has dropped and you aren't getting any circulation. Running a hot water loop off of a steam boiler can be tricky. The water level in the boiler can't drop too low, otherwise the hot water loop will loose it's water. If this is the case you've got to purge the air from the coil. I don't see any purge valves in your pics, so I can't tell you what you need to do that.
If you're not sure if you can check this out, this is one of those things that I would reccomend having someone check out for you. It's not a simple set up.
Hope this helps.
It looks like what you've got there is a steam boiler with a hot water loop for the domestic hot water. If the failure is an aquastat it might be an easy fix. The aquatat is the small gray box. If you take the cover off there is a dial in there. It's turning that dial that will creat the clicking noise. Pay attention to where it's set so that you can put it back.
The box that's hanging off the aquastat is the relay. When the aquastat senses that the water is cooling it sends a low votage signal to the relay which turns on the circulator. If you take the cover off the relay you can pull the contacts in. There is a small (about 1 x 1) lead looking peice that you can push or pull to draw in the contacts. Just be aware that there is 110 volts in there. If you're not sure, leave it alone.
Worst case scenario is that the water level in the coil has dropped and you aren't getting any circulation. Running a hot water loop off of a steam boiler can be tricky. The water level in the boiler can't drop too low, otherwise the hot water loop will loose it's water. If this is the case you've got to purge the air from the coil. I don't see any purge valves in your pics, so I can't tell you what you need to do that.
If you're not sure if you can check this out, this is one of those things that I would reccomend having someone check out for you. It's not a simple set up.
Hope this helps.
Ok so if I pull the cover off this aqua stat and I turn that dial.. Will that give me hot water if that is bad? As for the relay I don't want to fry my ***
so I will leave that alone.. Thanks for all your help..James
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If the aquastat is out of calibration or there is something else that is causing an inaccurate reading it might not turn on the circulator. From what you are saying it sound like the circulator is running.
Can you see if the water level is at the right place in the gauge glass? If it's low, you need to add some water. I see that there is a ball valve on the pipe that goes to the circulator. If you shut that valve and then add water you might be able to purge the loop. That blue box with the digital red read out is an automatic feed. There should be a way to manually feed the boiler, be it a bypass valve or a manual switch on the automatic feed. By doing this you are feeding the water though the coil, pushing any trapped air out.
Like I said, this is a somewhat complicated system. It's easy to get in over your head, so know your limits.
Can you see if the water level is at the right place in the gauge glass? If it's low, you need to add some water. I see that there is a ball valve on the pipe that goes to the circulator. If you shut that valve and then add water you might be able to purge the loop. That blue box with the digital red read out is an automatic feed. There should be a way to manually feed the boiler, be it a bypass valve or a manual switch on the automatic feed. By doing this you are feeding the water though the coil, pushing any trapped air out.
Like I said, this is a somewhat complicated system. It's easy to get in over your head, so know your limits.
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If the aquastat is out of calibration or there is something else that is causing an inaccurate reading it might not turn on the circulator. From what you are saying it sound like the circulator is running.
Can you see if the water level is at the right place in the gauge glass? If it's low, you need to add some water. I see that there is a ball valve on the pipe that goes to the circulator. If you shut that valve and then add water you might be able to purge the loop. That blue box with the digital red read out is an automatic feed. There should be a way to manually feed the boiler, be it a bypass valve or a manual switch on the automatic feed. By doing this you are feeding the water though the coil, pushing any trapped air out.
Like I said, this is a somewhat complicated system. It's easy to get in over your head, so know your limits.
Can you see if the water level is at the right place in the gauge glass? If it's low, you need to add some water. I see that there is a ball valve on the pipe that goes to the circulator. If you shut that valve and then add water you might be able to purge the loop. That blue box with the digital red read out is an automatic feed. There should be a way to manually feed the boiler, be it a bypass valve or a manual switch on the automatic feed. By doing this you are feeding the water though the coil, pushing any trapped air out.
Like I said, this is a somewhat complicated system. It's easy to get in over your head, so know your limits.
My landlord finally called me back and got the petro guy here to take a look.. The problem was the circulation pump stalled and it was still getting juice but not spinning so the pump was burning itself out.. Not sure why it happened but I figure its an old pump and was due to get replaced anyway.. He put the new pump on and purged the air out of the coil and guess what.. I HAVE HOT WATER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for your help again....
James
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From: mass.
i agree.. i work with furnaces and water heaters at my job.. steam systems are whole diferent animal though always good to have a pro take a look. those systems have low water cutoffs that shut down the whole system.
Last edited by keith97xlt; Jan 24, 2010 at 08:24 AM.