Burnham gas furnace problems; touchy thermocouple?
Hi and thanks in advance for any advice; I have a 2 family with 2 Burnham gas furnaces in the basement -I've been replacing the thermocouples prior to each winter (Mass) because they burn out almost every year. I was told that this is expected in the old (maybe 15 yrs) Burnham gas burners because the pilot assembly is very touchy - now with spring near both pilot lights are going out simultaniously despite replaced thermocouples. Finally called in an expert who adjusted the pilot flames on both units- they both went out the next day. My heating guy insists the problem is still simply adjusting the pilot flame correctly -does anyone have any other theories? I feel like there's got to be more going on here. . . Maybe the pilot burners need to be removed and their orifices cleaned (rust/flakes may have accumulated there over the years). The electrical connection from the thermocouple to the valve has to be clean and tight Is it possible that you may have downdrafts in there? BTW - I did not know Burnham made furnaces. Are these boilers perhaps? Sorry for the confusion, they are boilers. I'll try to clean the pilot burners and thanks for the advice. Not sure about the downdrafts; I'll look for a post on check on that. we had a draft coming in from a section of the fieldstone foundation that I though we plugged. whatever it is doesn't effect the two gas water heaters next to the boilers though. is there any way one boiler could be effecting the other when it fires on and off? thanks again, this is a great websight. Originally Posted by Paul017777 Not sure about the downdrafts; I'll look for a post on check on that. If the mechanical room lacks ventilation air you may experience air coming down the stack/chimney, on occasion snuffing-out the pilot flames...this could happen if the room is real tight (no drafts) and without provision for sufficient amounts of fresh air for combustion. Originally Posted by Paul017777 we had a draft coming in from a section of the fieldstone foundation that I though we plugged. whatever it is doesn't effect the two gas water heaters next to the boilers though. I actually meant drafts down the smoke pipe and into the burner areas, not drafts down in the basement. Originally Posted by Paul017777 is there any way one boiler could be effecting the other when it fires on and off? It is possible but unlikely. Can you post pictures that shown the smoke pipe layouts? Has anyone ever tested the actual output from the thermocouples? It is possible the pilot is either too hot burning out the thermocouple or not hot enough to consistantly make the thermocouple generate the required voltage particularly as the thermocouple ages. Orifice size, cleanliness, gas pressure other things come into play. I know from first hand experience that a building with multiple chimneys and fresh air vents can wreak havoc with boiler drafting - where one or more chimneys or vents is venting UP/OUT, causing low pressure in the basement, and the remaining boiler chimey to allow air to DROP DOWN the chimney. Not to say this is your case but you should be able to check for this. They even had isolated fire door rooms, but they weren't perfectly sealed enough and the low pressure would pull air through voids and cracks in that room. On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being an extreme situation, this building problem was maybe a 7. But then when they ran the giant kitchen exhaust fan in the basement ( a jet shaped motor - same building I posted not long ago about the dead pigeons behind the exhaust screens), the problem became a 10. [They've since remodeled the building and got rid of that problem old dinosauer boiler.] At least you can follow the theory here. Originally Posted by pflor If the mechanical room lacks ventilation air you may experience air coming down the stack/chimney, on occasion snuffing-out the pilot flames...this could happen if the room is real tight (no drafts) and without provision for sufficient amounts of fresh air for combustion. I actually meant drafts down the smoke pipe and into the burner areas, not drafts down in the basement. It is possible but unlikely. Can you post pictures that shown the smoke pipe layouts? thanks all for the input: I can't imagine the room is too tight (we're talking built in 1890's) but the mechanical room is in the basement and I'm not sure exactly how it's vented for fresh air - so maybe there is something to the down draft theory. I threw in the hole in the foundation info b/c it's about 4 feet from the systems and really did throw out some strong drafts; I figured you were talking about the smoke pipe I'll see if I can get some pics up and I'll check to see if my expert tested the thermocouples actual out put.
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