got a boiler problem.

[mopinko]

so, a bit of back story- my 10 yo boiler has been banging all winter. works fine, just noisy. i called the guys who installed it, they said it’s limed up and shd b replaced. i know it’s been 10 yrs, but they wanted twice what i paid. i figured i wd wait, at least until this tariff nonsense settles down.
but that seems a little quick to have failed. we have pretty soft water here. they said they cd do a flush, but they’d have to cut a pipe to add the chemicals, and the couldnt guarantee anything.
so i figured it couldnt hurt to just flush it myself, w just the water flow. so, i started that yesterday-
put a hose on the drain, and cut off the feed and the return, wanting to just flush the boiler itself. well, i got water for a few minutes. a bit of white stuff, but not that much. then nothing even tho the inlet valve was open. tho this worried me, i opened the other valves to let the whole system drain. got a fair amount of black sludge, but no more white stuff.

closed everything back up, but noticed no sound of water coming in. opened the bleeder on the upper most radiator, got a weak little hiss for a few seconds, then nothing. clearly, it’s not refilling. waited a while, opened the bleeder again, same. this morning it was same.

so i went and looked over everything (i dont know THAT much about boiler systems, but i’ve been living w 1 for almost 40 yrs now. this is my 3rd boiler.) i found a valve on the fresh water inlet that i didnt know the function of. so, that ja for google image search.
it’s a pressure valve, linked below. this appears to be the problem. it has a lever to fast fill. threw it, nothing.
so, reading up, and several pros say it’s not usually that the valve fails, but that there is a screen that clogs. i’m tempted to open it up, cuz i wont b getting any heat anyway. how much more broke can it get?
i have no doubt that my local excellent hardware store will have this valve. i have a contractor scheduled for tomorrow at my 2flat, and figure he can replace the valve if needed. it’s threaded, so it isnt a huge deal.
meanwhile i have a fireplace, so i wont freeze. it’s supposed to b nice most of the week.

so, before i venture out onto this limb, any advice from my betters?

https://www.plumbers-supply-co.com/2825533/product/bell-gossett-110191lf

[mopinko]

1. ps- the company

a big firm that advertises like crazy. i’ve done a fair amount of biz w them, and been happy enough w what i hired them to do.
but i’ve also had them out for estimates and been appalled. just last week, i had a problem w shower faucets at the 2flat. all they rly needed was a couple washers, but i agreed that replacing the stems was acceptable. their quote? $952!
this included a trip to get the parts. said great hardware store wd absolutely have the parts, 10 min away. guy said he cd do that, but it didnt change the price.

told him to get lost, fixed them myself. even tho i had to drill out a screw, i had it fixed in half an hour. did spend another half hour fetching parts, as they were resurfacing half the streets btn here and there.
thankfully the tenants agreed that that was an insane amount of money, and were fine w me fixing it myself.
i guess i cd have insisted they just do the washers, since i knew damn well that’s what it was. surely they had washers in the truck. but…

the other estimates for repairs like this have been equally insane.

[IbogaProject]

5. You're good to try

This is the right time of year to work on the furnace before it's too warm and low freeze risk. After the boiler is restored, research the process to flush each year and if there is any service part like the sacrifical anode like for a hot water heater.

[mopinko]

2. small update-

so, there’s a handy little plug on the bottom of the valve. opened it up, and boy, yuck. so much rust.
the thread on the bottom is almost garden hose, just a tighter thread, so was able to flush it a bit.
got a lot more black sludge out of the boiler, but still no scale. hmmm.

that didnt do it, tho. i suspect a thorough cleaning of the valve wd fix this. but i’ll see if my guy knows more tomorrow.

[Turbineguy]

3. There should be a feedback passage from

the low pressure side of the valve to under the diaphragm. If that passage gets clogged, the valve won't work.

[mopinko]

4. hmm.

not sure what u mean, exactly. but there is a gate valve on either side. i opened and closed them, but even w the drain open got nothing. so, yeah the feed cd b blocked.
and w the hose on, water did feed into the boiler. so i assume the valve isnt completely gooped up.

i read that a valve btn the feed and the boiler is a huge no-no. if u accidentally leave it shut, u can blow up your boiler. 🙄

[IbogaProject]

6. Is your's running steam or just hot water?

Some houses use a boiler for regular hot water based heat.

[mopinko]

7. yeah, hot water.