Another Plumber “Didn’t Have Time” to fix their Burnham Steam Boiler with wires burnt & high CO
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- Опубликовано: 12 янв 2025
- Another contract "didn't have time" to fix this Burnham gas boiler! We immediately found the direct issue causing no heat - burnt wires going to the roll out switch like this one: amzn.to/3rq0ZKU
Spliced new spade connectors on
Checked and cleaned main burners and the entire combustion chamber with a vacuum - I love my Milwaukee M18 wet/dry vac: amzn.to/39REJUp
Then performed a combustion analysis with the Testo 320 amzn.to/3aAJqRI Good luck finding one!
New Burnham SIN5 being installed in a couple days - Stay tuned for the installation video!
Central AC Service Call - Client Heard a BANG - thought it was gunfire outside - but instead it was her central AC unit. Going into the attic where the Goodman air handler is located we found the blower motor cap dead.
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"Now we're here, and we're not going to leave till it's working!" You had the new boiler sold at that point. Exactly what relaxes a customer, and throws all their worries in the trash. Just love the straight talking attitude.
Reason you’ll grow is the videos are raw and authentic. Watching the interactions the whole procedure of going into a job finding problem finding cause of the problem and fixing etc. great work my man!
Excellent video, even BETTER explanation of how an excessive amount of water consumption leads to increasing loss of iron in the boiler internal parts. Great!
My Burnham Boiler is 60 years old. It did get new additions, new firebox material, newer burner and water level control, still runs great.
As always Mike....your a great mechanic and you have a boat load of knowledge....nice job!!!
Knowledge is power. You have it. The combustion test is the way to go. And you are protecting your customer and yourself. Take care and work safe.
‘ It’s the small things they say that are the biggest,
, well’ as the small things and tiny things you do must be gigantic!!!!!!
, such as ‘ rolling out a mat before you enter a house of a client ‘
LET ME TELL YOU , DEFINITELY, NEVER IN MY 30 YRS OF WORK HAVE I NEVER SEEN THAT , !!!!!! WELL DONE ,
We don’t have snow and the beauty of central heating that heats water , air , etc..
But being a world away and learning the extreme way of how dependent this system is in the US , I wish I could repair and add this system of heating to my trade field , well done , your a champion!!!!! Soooo love and spend a whole Sunday just watching your post’s , Godbless you and your family , KEEP SAFE :)
Great channel!. I heard the lady mention Canadians and couldn't follow what she was getting at. I'm in Toronto and have a hot-water boiler, cast iron rads, was originally gravity but it now runs with a circulator with an old Slant Fin boiler. This setup is common in older neighbourhoods. I rarely see a steam boiler system in Toronto.
Super impressive. It’s great that you educate your customers. Can’t believe the other plumber just up and left!
No hate here, I think you did a professional job explaining to the customer what was going on , what may happen and at the end you came up with the SAFE resolution to the issue. GREAT VIDEO!!!! hope we get to see how much hard work it takes to replace such a beast !
I wish I had I guy like you teaching me when I started in the trade Godzilla and kelvin are lucky to have you as their mentor
Another great video👍🏻!
If the boiler was leaking there should have been some sign of that when they fired it back up. They let the boiler warm up and no signs of leakage, interesting! Installed in 2008 and probably hasn't had a cleaning since. Second step should have been a thorough cleaning and then a combustion analysis. The other thing that got me is for being an experienced heating guy that has probably seen hundreds of gas valves and changed a few, you don't even remember in which direction you turn the adjustment screw to increase the pressure? The radiator valves probably need a once over too, might need replacing some of them or maybe all. Sizing a boiler from the boiler that's in there now is a clear sign of a someone that doesn't have the time to do it right and just wants to sell you something! It's not a bad thing to replace things when they need to be replaced, but getting a job just because you can convince someone that something needs replacement when it clearly didn't need to be is down right unethical.
Wow, classy response.
Very interesting! Saved another customer from CO poisoning! Thanks for sharing!
Great video as always. Burnham boilers is minutes from my house. Have worked on a few of them over the past 20 years.
You had it sold when the carpet dropped! Boom done
Are they getting a new pad?
Excellent video on the gas valve adjustment
Wow! that orange flame... I could feel my nose burning. You saved their life.
My guy smooth as fuck with that rug you popped down. If I were the customer I woulda been like “dayummmm pops out here w the ol foot scraper”
"That white smoke doesn't mean you are electing a new pope."
"I know that!"
I love how you New Yorkers talk and joke.
Thank you Mikey pipes,!
I'm your Jewish brother who envired about your Air force nun or son.
I thought you said he was an A&P mechanic or worked on Aircraft as I .
I didn't mean to embarrass
him, but we all need a kick in the ass sometimes.
Love you guys
Keep the entertainment I'm not going anywhere 🤪
Why adjust the gas valve before checking air mass flow through the boiler, particularly when you saw all that crap in the grate - which suggest the combustion side of the heat exchanger is fouled?
His Highness can’t be bothered to respond to your comment unless you are worshiping him properly with praise and adoration.
I’m an HVAC service tech. Every thing I saw indicates a possible plugged heat exchanger, which would explain why the 1st guy said he didn’t have time to deal with it. Cleaning a plugged exchanger is messy and time consuming, and I’ve seen other techs walk away from them. We’ve had times we’ve been booked solid and had to put plugged exchangers off for a day or two. Frankly, I don’t have much sympathy for people with plugged exchangers Usually results from lack of proper care and maintenance.
Nice caring plumber!!!
Boy hard to come by......
Nice job Mike
Nice explanation about the water in the oxygen never heard it put that way before thanks for the heads up
Just looking at the thermostat when you casein should have given you and idea of how much maintenance the homeowner does on his house. What a mess of a utility room. Your matt is probably the cleanest thing in the house.
Did you see the bottom of the sight glass? ! Agreed, no maintenance at all.
It’s not that the other guy didn’t have time , he just didn’t want to work in filth. What professional would install a steam boiler on dirt floor. These homeowners didn’t have any maintenance done. They deserve to have to pay for a new boiler
@@bobwills4420 Some people just don't know what to do. How many widows have I met that had their husbands take care of home matters. I didn't see any filth , just a normal cellar. But to find a homeowner guilty without knowing their circumstances is unfair. Bob Willis , I hope to never meet people like you, judging them without any knowledge. Shame on you.
@@staryjdido918 I was taking about the installer who put the boiler on a dirt floor or broken concrete. Furthermore I can read and spell names evidently you don’t care to read names and spell.did you notice the clean out for the chimney was open. The thermostat hadn’t been dusted for a long time. Lack on maintenance is the homeowners fault.
@@bobwills4420 The other guy was just very unprofessional. Didn't bother him to walk away and leave them without heat in the middle of the winter. In that sense, he did them a favour though because the next guy they called was someone who actually cared about the service he was providing.
Theory/opinion , the broken concrete is releasing moisture from the ground and being sucked up through the fluke in the rear. Causing rust and breaking down the cast iron all year round
That would be a good spot for a safeguard auto feeder with the digital counter in it. It would keep good track and you would know how much water has been added.
On another note. I haven’t seen you using the Milwaukee m18 water pump. I used to have one it died and I went back to my trusty blue angel transfer pump. Did your die.
I doubt they would know what todo,as evidenced by the tankless situation!
I have a different diagnosis. I don't think the boiler is leaking is the cause of the rust. The high carbon monoxide is incomplete burn. Natural gas has a lot of moisture as a by product, and is also acidic. That surface rust on the power flue was a good indicator (of overall moisture levels in the basement). If the last burn wasn't complete, a whole summer of wetness in the basement could cause that rust to form.
Usually the floor and base of the unit would have significantly more rusting if it were a block leak. I'd stick a bore scope and look up see if I see rust spots.
Youd also have white smoke if its incomplete burn because the temp isn't hot enough.
I dunno. With zero change in the color output of flame even on low manometer I'd almost chance replacing the gas valve.
Gah, that part I completely forgot you mentioned. But nobody knows how much more he's refilling. A single bad vent thing could cause it to refill quite often (as you also mentioned)
Then again, no white smoke in that condition. Unless the white smoke is only in the heat up phase. Possibly ? Ok i retract my earlier statement and go with Mikey pipes! Still doesn't explain the orange flame!
Taj Mahal neighborhood!! 😆 Was just thinking swap the assembly let it run for another year or two!
Where’s the water???
20:40 Chimney cleanout is open reducing draft to the boiler.
Talking about paying attention to the direction of flow brought back a memory of a customer and friend that claimed that I put in the pressure regulator for propane on the side of his house that was upside down the vent screen was up! I looked at it and it was put in backwards! Customer complained that he was having to pour hot water on it when it was freezing cold. I didn’t know that it would actually work backwards but it was! When he accused me basically of doing this I laughed at him and told him no I didn’t do that someone else had to have done that. I didn’t have the fittings to change it like it should be so I improvised lol,😝 I thawed it out with a torch lol! And put a bowl over it to keep water out! And informed him that it needs to be fixed right when the weather is better it was really bad outside!
Burnham has had cast iron cracking problems in the past, I gave up on them when the warranty replacement block to replace the first one that cracked, cracked on mine after about 3 years. Forced hot water. Changed brand, no problems since.
@@PipeDoctorYes in the mid 90 to yearly 2000 , they had an issue with Oil Boiler blocks cracking ( poor casting near clean out doors )
@@rickyhertz7250 most of the cracking issues we have run into were caused by improper near boiler piping not defective blocks. Read the manual and follow the directions!
@@alvanacore914 I was a Burnham rep during that period! They had issues with casting , Just about all oil boiler blocks cracked on the same spot !
I even had the replacement block crack at start up !
even the dog knew the home owner needed a new boiler, did you hear the way he was groaning.
Love the custom rug total professional
I did demo on a lot of Burnham boilers. They are made just a few minutes from where I live in Lancaster PA.
Maybe incoming gas pressure was low and that's why the manifold pressure was so low. The scale and mineral from the leak most likely clogged up the heat exchanger heat exchanger surfaces reducing the heat contact, draft, and proper combustion. Remember the underlying condition stuff you were discussing. Well low gas pressure incoming Is a possible underlying condition that was missed. In MN it would be illegal to leave that boiler running.
I’m in HVAC down in philly your videos are golden bro ( new Sub)
Looking forward to seeing what that thing looks like with the jacket off.
hi i am a german Pluming man. and i hear burning cable oh ich have no time. :D So So GOOD! in german is that a Emercy Call. And you can`t Go Away from the costumer :D. U made my Day!
Thank you for showing us what you do.. congrats on getting the job
That is the only problem putting an auto water feeder on a residential system they get steam and water leaks customers my not see the leaks and the feeder keeps adding water. With a hand feed most customer get sick of adding water and have system checked. Plus good yearly maintenance is a good plus
I like how you do a combustion test before checking the gas pressure. Also adjusting the pressure before using a manometer. In you defense the customer service is amazing especially using a Milwaukee cordless vac.
Lol @ “I’m gonna get lots of hate on this one” we all gotta eat.. no hate here. All I see is benefits all around. Good luck! It’s nice seeing the New York service calls rollin out nice.
I'm in charlotte market we don't have boilers down here we have gas heat and heat pumps I'm learning the heat load calculations now to get my nc license
Love the red carpet entrance 😂😂😂
The thermostat cover w/ dust just an indication of what gets done at home. In steam you also need to check the water quality!!!
Hi from middle Georgia. love yalls work and your dedication. that wrench you use alot we call that a line wrench. I'm a mechanic by trade. And your making me rethink my trade. keep up the good work and stay safe and warm.
You can be caulky when your that good.. nice work!!
Interesting video, sure like watching them, I’m Florida born and raised never had a steam boiler.. Thanks
When you adjusted manifold pressure and could only achieve 3.3”wc I wondered what your inlet gas pressure was and if it potentially could be a gas supply issue.
@pipe doctor i need your help i have a bosch 30 hrc that is losing its full 2 bars after 6 to 7 days and we have replaced the expansion tank so i thought maybe it’s the underground piping so what do you think? Everything is good with the boiler but just the pressure isn’t
HVAC in the dirty south... Louisiana. Recently subbed!!! Awesome content.. keep em coming 👍👍
Didn’t see a Hartford loop there. I might have missed it watching the video.
You got me starting to trust you a tiny bit so don't mess up. 😉 You have a awesome channel and you know your shit .👍
When i did commercial HVAC service we had a few customers with Burnham gas boilers and we pretty much never had to touch them, i spent a lot a time working on Lochinvars but never Burnhams
Good analysis I hate having to tag a heater but with those numbers of CO2 it would kill them.
It was CO, not CO2.
And ten years is the typical life expectancy for both CO and smoke alarms; this is another educational tidbit that should be passed along to homeowners, to replace them every ten years.
You had me at the red carpet entrance ... Lol ...Good vid Mikey ...
I do like your channel but how did you condemn a gas valve for not putting out 3.5” without checking inlet pressure and it would have been nice to know what the pressure was before adjusting and then putting manometer on.
Great job..I love to learn from your videos..Thank you
U have a gift of the gab but not knowing how to ajust gas valve makes me wonder ? That is a basic thing . And to ajust without a gauge to know we're your starting ? The whole problem maybe low gas pressure also water is a product of combustion so moisture will be exiting the vent system . I do hope your new boiler is set up correctly.
Great video. I like how you teach us who aren't plumbers how things are supposed to work and why they fail. You are a credit to your trade. Thanks for posting!!
Excellent video!!! Thanks a million
Mikey P, you need to get yourself a go pro head cam! Keep up the great work!
I wonder if the boiler was short cycling. Seems like a massive boiler for the space. I’m interested to see what caused the premature failure of the beast
All steam boilers should have a water feed line that comes of the water heater in the house.
Subscribed, love the channel 🇨🇦
very nice mike, would you please let us know what was the issue that cause the boiler to fail. Im looking forward for your follow up video on Monday.
@@PipeDoctor
In general terms, boiler rotting away has 2 connected causes:
1. excess water - stemming from leaky radiator vents, old and dry packing nuts around radiator valves, or leaky unions between the valve and the radiator. There can also be dripping wet returns, especially if they are buried. Aside from vents not closing which is quite obvious, the other two can be unnoticed because hot pipes will quickly evaporate the water droplets escaping, and if the pipe is buried, the only way to track that loss (which is usually quite excessive) is to have a metered make up water feeder (like a VXT). One has to really look at it all.
General rule is that an old radiator and valve union needs to be checked every few years and tightened up. It's safe to assume that packing nuts also need repacking every 20 years or so, as a prevention. Or at least inspected.
2. Second issue once excessive make up water is introduced, is the quality of that water, namely hardness (TDS = total dissolved solids) and chlorides. You can get that info from your water department, and you can also get a kit and test it. Everywhere where salt is thrown on the roads in the winter, in the last 30 years, it's safe to assume your chlorides are high and your TDS is probably too. Both super bad for boilers. Thus, use of specific chemicals is warranted in order to raise the ph up to 9-10 range (basic), and potentially mixing tap water with distilled or RO water in order to bring down TDS and chlorides... There is some concern with ion exchange in RO water but that should not have an effect on the boiler if sources of water loss are addressed and regular makeup is no more than a few gallons per heating season, on a typical 110,000 btu output system (425 EDR), and if water is basic, as basic water will be less corrosive.
Hope this helps.
First time. I'll try some more. Thank you sir.
What a joke, a gas shut off in the cabinet! That boiler needs to be condemned!
Some boilers, like the Weil-McLain GV-6s equipped with a Dungs gas valve, came from the factory with the gas cock in the cabinet.
You mentioned that during another replacement they didnt address the underlying issue. How would you pinpoint the underlying issue that leads to the cracked block?
guaranteed the other company said, "you need a new boiler", because this one is leaking, burners are rusted and someone tampered with it leaving the roll-out switch and plate pulled away.
clearly it was leaking, having roll-out long ago and someone cobbled it by pulling the plate and roll-out to not trip. the roll-out looks far too new and the wire didn't melt and corrode overnight.
should have tagged that one as unsafe to operate and moved along, because clearly the homeowner or someone has been tampering with it and long ago. not worth the risk
May have left the Roll out assembly laying on the Burner tubes
I like your working style! Greetings from the Netherlands
Another nice job Mikey Pipes
God, i hate boilers,cant understand why builders put them in the first place,good job
If just starting out working on oil furnaces is combustion analyzer needed right away?
Mikey pipes whipping out his testes, lmao... I mean testo 320 lx combustion analyzer. Great job on securing a new boiler install. Of course the 7k question is why did it fail in the first place. 12 years is not that long at all.
@@PipeDoctor Right, but what is the reason for all the make-up water? I think typically these things shouldn't be filled more than 3-4 times per month. Of course that automatic feeder without the counter don't help to find out exactly how much (and how often) it's been adding.
@@PipeDoctor Ok, in that case it's totally on the home owner, because they ignored the constant hissing (or they didn't know -- because they weren't told).
Great call on the CO may have saved these people life.
Come on man. Lol. Don’t harp on the plumbers that run 6-7 a day and try to keep up a week scheduled out and 3 days behind that. I have to step on the customer neck and pull every task out on their to do list before I let them stop talking. It’s super annoying to be called out for a toilet filling to often. Just to arrive. Fix the toilet. Then they pull out a scroll this size of a 50 gallon water heater while saying “while I got ya here”. That just pushes you never getting home or even close to getting everything scheduled. I run a tight schedule. I need every task on your list so I can plan the time. I am owner, secretary, technician, and collections. Don’t really have time for “while your here, it’ll only take you 5 minutes”. I actually resorted to text communication. If I am regulated out. You write your list down like you already did on your note book. Take a picture of that and I will study it when I get a second. Find time in the schedule to fix it all (25 years. I know how long it will take me). And I ask them “is this all on your list?, I run tight schedules and need to fill in the remaining parts of day but still need to be punctual to my other customers.” 90% of the time they are impressed. The 10 are morons and still have a list. They wanna see ya work first.
Enjoyed the video, I’m curious to know, did you condemn/ shut down that boiler to make safe, Ie so that it cannot be used.
In the Uk we are required to make safe, cap off the gas and issue a warning notice signed by the costomer with warning stickers all over the dangerous appliance. ??
@@PipeDoctor interesting how things are different. Thank you.
Are you going to put your gauge on the gas side
Forgot to also say to have all the tubes be equal level of rust would be unlikely in a dripping scenario
Always good to learn from the Dr. Don't want anyone to blow steam up my chimney. 🤣
Very informative! Keep up the great work.
Was is problem beacuse they didn’t blow this boiler down monthly??? Good job mike you are the best
Even so You still have to blow this boiler down correct there is maintenance to this
Thank you for posting your videos. It's refreshing that you don't pretend that its brain surgery to your customers. Don't get me wrong but some people don't understand righty tighty lefty Loosey. LOL.
At 23:55... did you go up a one way street the wrong way!!! lol. Nevermind... Sundays
@@PipeDoctor I know you roll through your stops!!! lol PS: love the videos!!
We had a new Burnham boiler installed in '13. I clean and wax the exterior ! I vacuum anything that might get under the gas burner pipes every year. I have to add water every few days in colder weather. Does that mean my radiator valves are defective ? (great video )
@@PipeDoctor Are my radiator vents at fault ?
so how did the CO measurement work out?...
@@PipeDoctor great news, thanks Mikey!! truly enjoyed your Video and the way you Talk to the people and to US watching your video! I look forward to checking out your other videos!! :D
I see you give yourself the red carpet. What a idea 💡
Some "Plumbers" are Lousy like Kew Forest Plumbing in Glendale queens NYC, Thieves, Crooks and Unprofessional. Never ever use these so-called plumbers !!! You will regret it !!
How much did the new boiler cost?
I could almost see the confusion on the guys face when you were trying to explain things to him😅
As part of your install, do you check all the valves, vents and unions in the radiators? Was that pipe wrap old enough to have asbestos?
Great video. Keep it up. Do a time lapse of an installation!
very thorough good job
if it had a low water shut off instead he'd known long ago there was a problem.. that autofeeder just compounded things
Piping does not have a swing header. That might of caused fatigue on the sections over time. So important to pipe boilers correctly.
Dare I say that you're almost as funny as Steve L? Enjoyed your video, especially, your comment "we don't leave until it's fixed".
Half as funny and twice as arrogant is more like it.
What is the gas pressure coming in?
Another awesome video thank you
You should sell company shirts and jackets love watching and learning how to fix and diagnose biolers.
@@PipeDoctor Haha. Dude, you're going to be there by the end of the weekend. Subscriber growth will be exponential. Willing to bet 100k in 2 months if you keep pushing content like this!
lol the mat is a nice touch
Hey Mikey. As an add on have you ever installed chemical feeders on residential steam systems?
Hey saint Mike good job. Lots of issues with that boiler. I bet between the sections are scooted up, also indicative of off the chart CO!