GAS FIRED BOILER FULL OF BLACK SOOT,CALL FOR SMELL OF GAS

[@nonurbiznes2441]

Steven I’m a boiler electrician for over 36 yrs and you are the most thorough trade mechanic I ever seen. Your experience is priceless and you do everything right. If I lived in your service area I wouldn’t use anyone else. Thanks for the videos 👍

[@colin4685]

A boiler electrician? Haha wtf is that? You mean a heating engineer?

[@kenc.9067]

Some electricians specialize in wiring boilers. Some plumbing companies hire electricians to wire the boilers they install.

[@BiteTheCurbNow]

Just did a soot job this week. Wasn't as bad as this one's sooting though. Detroit. Same routine. 3 companies told the lady $10000 for a replacement. "Couldn't fix it." A family friend called me, and I charged $550 complete clean for the entire boiler, orifices, burners and venting...and a new t-couple. Don't make fun of me for the low price, it was a single old lady, on social security. Now their whole family is calling me an angel, and I'm just a thorough tech. Nothing special. Good video. Note: Ive used high temp (furnace cement) on the inner hood plates forever. I buy two fine particulate bags for my shop vac (20bucks) to avoid buying an over rated soot vac. Regular shop vac with those inner bags works VERY WELL.

[@kenc.9067]

Sootmaster soot vacs are junk. Very fragile, yet they're not cheap.

[@313GHETTOFABULOUS]

I just had one do this in a older 1920s home due to my nephew having the entire home foam insulated and the boiler no longer had sufficient airflow available for natural draft to pull through the boiler and up the chimney...

[@jpatt1000]

I wouldn't have thought of a gas fired appliance sooting up, but I guess like any other fuel if you run it rich...These videos are better than any advertising you could do. Your work speaks for itself! I bet her utility bills would have gone way down as the boiler could have heated the water more efficiently with all the surface area you opened up!

[@polishtheturdmickelson5473]

jpatt1000, Steve ended up replacing that boiler a few days later. Pay attention and read the description. He was just getting the customer by until he could do the new boiler install.

[@denniscat9395]

Outstanding work - I work for AO Smith tech support. Good to see a tech knowing his business.

[@stevenlavimoniere]

+Dennis Cat thanks for the comment & for watching

[@homeinspectionsofchicago]

Now that's how you clean a boiler. Thanks for posting this video. I am sending it to my HVAC techs so they understand what I want on my boiler cleaning.

[@michaeljacques2190]

and what is that scraping tool called he was pushing down into the heat exchanger?

[@teege911]

Love the video. Very informative on the way that you work. Did you find the overall reason for the boiler sooting up? I can picture oil doing that but not gas. Thank you.

[@nicholaspaley876]

Had to do this same gig here too. Pulled the burner out to get the garbage at the bottom. It was a Durnham oil furnace. The liner in the fire box crumbled to shit. Got a new liner came as a kit with refractory to glue it back in. Didn't want to buy a new furnace as it should of been junked. Had a tech tune it up. Runs great. Later on replaced the water pump/oil pump now looks like the back flow check valve is leaking a bit. It's just like a old car but getting 85% Good video

[@stevenlavimoniere]

Nicholas Paley thanks for watching

[@michaeljacques2190]

what is the white insulation called that he put on top of the heat exchanger?

[@Mrdealornodeal618]

Does anybody know how to deal with Weil-McClain old furnace boilers? I can't find nothing on it. It has to be over 60 years old. It still runs, which is crazy. I'm wanting to take it apart and thoroughly clean it.

[@shango6100]

Absolutely excellent video!!!!!!

[@Guyhakverdi]

Steve, what brand is that tool you clean heat exchangers? Looks like saw...

[@EVILTWINUNO]

Soot saw

[@ronbelik5395]

I have a 23 year old Dunkirk gas boiler I'm smelling burnt soot should I clean it or replace the boiler?

[@tonycordero955]

Can you spray it down with soapy water so you create less dust....have it mostly just fall to the bottom ......

[@jandbplumbing]

I always thought if the pressure was too low below 3..5 like for instance 2 inches water column then It could soot up , being a little high should make it soot up , and I would run the other gas fixtures while that’s going and see if there’s a big pressure drop , sometimes it’s the meter to fireomatic drops down a bit , and causes a loss pressure. But the important thing is that you change the boiler and once it in you can check the pressure on that job well done

[@PanamaSticks]

Is that just a piece of bandsaw blade?

[@imaguglielmo]

what is that white cotton stuff 8:13 in?

[@Renville80]

Eric Williams he called it ‘kao wool’ on another video

[@georgefolgers8731]

Good Video, great work, great tech, Steve is this spillage / backdrafting caused by damper problems,,, restricted flue ??? I JUMPED the gun, restrictive flow due to reverse negative pitch, Or what else ,, anything else, I guess you cut stack / and corrected pitch for proper drafting, guess ,,, last half tech did not own snips or shears. If not what else did you do What gives on this boiler. ?

[@natedaniels2854]

all that cleaning that unit should last more than a a few weeks

[@PanamaSticks]

How do you gain access to the heat exchanger? You didn't show it.

[@BiteTheCurbNow]

Hey... Once the top is off. There are usually two retainer bolts, sometimes they are furnace cemented in sloppily from the factory. It's pretty self explanatory-- I hope your are not a DIYer, you can kill everybody if you miss ANYthing on assembly. It's dangerous work with carbon monoxide potential. Please don't take offense, none intended. Some people know just enough to get themselves in trouble.

[@AhJodie]

You are great. Thank you.

[@j.r.richard8532]

Nice video.. Tell me though, when you got back to your truck was your face all smeared with soot?? When I was on a job like that I just couldn't keep that crap off my face. Someone else mentioned using water to wash off the soot. If at all possible water is a great way to remove soot. I comes off easily when hit with water but not always practical because it makes an awful mess..Most of my experience was with gas fired wall furnaces. You could get the heat exchanger out easily and get it out on the front lawn and give it a bath.

[@hvac01453]

Yeah, but everybody waits till a blizzard in January with no heat to think about maintenance as an after thought.

[@RalphsHeating]

Were did you get the section saw. A normal flu brush is tough to get into the pins. Or what is the name of the tool?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

John Heritage its call a soot saw they sell them at any oil burner supply house ..there are 2 different ones i usualy use the thicker one ..but have both.

[@HM-yp8sd]

I recently came across a 80% gas fired, natural draft hot water boiler(no draft hood just a vent damper) TESTO 320 was giving me a reading of 150*F at stack temperature, 1ppm of CO which is fine but the stack temp got me worried. I know it should be higher, the CO2 was at 25% also. what do You think the issue can be? boiler is not in bad shape. about 12 years old

[@stevenlavimoniere]

Hybrid nj sometimes the draft hood is built into boiler on back or front of boiler .what was the gas manifold pressure ???? i think you taking the reading in the smokepipe not at boiler draft hood .you have to look up to see the built in draft hood on boiler and 320 probe has to go up there were the boiler sections are for proper reading

[@HM-yp8sd]

steven lavimoniere gas pressure was 3.2 W.C. You are right about the built in draft hood, it was in the front of boiler (I think it was a Utica boiler) I now understand, the measurement needs to be taken BEFORE air dillution, before draft hood, so it is incorrect to put probe above draft hood.

[@stevenlavimoniere]

Hybrid nj correct insert prob in smoke pipe to check draft only.

[@HM-yp8sd]

steven lavimoniere Thank You Steve! always very helpful You're the best

[@HighVoltageMadness]

under fired

[@dariantakieh1398]

do you test gas pressure in water gauge and not mbar is us?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

inches of water collum

[@robertplayford4031]

I had my old Manometer set for inches mercury for several years - was fun!

[@MuddyDrivewayProductions]

Wow that was super dirty great job getting it back into shape. Aloha

[@stevenlavimoniere]

durty means,,, carbon dioxide in house .not a good thing if you want to live a long life ..thanks for commenting budlight

[@hvac01453]

you mean carbon monoxide....

[@rachelbakken5857]

My Gas hydronic boiler is so gunked up . . . My local HVAC wants to charge $2000 to pull my boiler out. pressure wash it, and re install. Is that crazy?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

+Rachel Bakken not sure pressure washing is the best idea . all that pressure will probley reun the boiler by loosing it up at sections then it would leak water . best to blow it out with compressed air then reset the air bands and gas valve find out why it sooted up .or just change it out with a new gas boiler .gas boilers are not besigned to be cleaned . so you can not rod them like a oil boiler , i have found air from a air compresser blowing down can get most of the soot out if its dry but willl make a mess that would have to be cleaned up so be prepaired for that .a gas boiler sould never soot up like that something is wrong that has to be changed or fixed to prevent the problem for reaccuring

[@rorybakken7627]

+steven lavimoniere Why did the boiler in this video soot up? Do you know of some common reasons why it would soot up like the one in this video? The Heat Exchange in ours is just totally plugged.

[@stevenlavimoniere]

bad gas valve ,or not enough air to burners .there are air adjustments on burners .

[@1martinontherocks]

I'll do it for 500

[@gyver471]

@@1martinontherocks Steve I’m sure charged more than that.

[@cr6515]

HEY let me just say your videos are great thanks on a different note what kind of insulation are you using on the top of the boiler thanks again

[@jeromesmith6415]

Vent pipe is supposed to be a 1/4 inch rise per ft of run replace carbonized equipment 33 years gas utility technician trust me u will get someone hurt recommend replacing it

[@andysmechanical7825]

She was dirty. Good cleaning Steven. Wow that vent was like a foot to high. You gotta wonder what people are thinking sometimes. lol What was the deciding factor to replace It ?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

the boiler is overdue for replacement i did the cleaning just to get her by for heat for now .it needs to go .ya i cut 6" off hight of hot water heater vent pipe to make it fit right lol

[@ldiazmdiaz]

seems like it is easier using an extension on the compressor hose tip so that the soot will not be on your face. hope you're wearing a mask. Like you said "So you want to be a plummer".

[@mike617]

Love the videos Steve..question..after cleaning out a gas boiler like this, do you recommend replacement? Or let it run till this happens again?

[@hvacdude48021]

I have run into many boilers like this. What I do, IF there is a floor drain near the boiler, is I take the collector box off the top of the boiler, take the burners out, and flush the soot out with a water hose. Right down the drain. If there is no floor drain, I sell them a new boiler or refer the home owner to some one that is willing to vacuum it out. I don't do soot unless I can hose it out. When I do take on a soot job, I make sure the burners are clean, the venturi's are clean, there is enough combustion air, after I have cleaned it out. The soot floats on top of the water when you hose it out, if you go too fast. do it a little at a time so the soot goes down the drain.

[@stevenlavimoniere]

***** a good vac and a good compressor will do the job also .with out all the water and flood . most places i work in are houses how many house do you know have floor drains .. i would say non i know of .maybe if your in a commercial building there might be a floor drain .

[@bg147]

steven lavimoniere Most of us have floor drains here in Southern Illinois, but I have never heard of using water. With my boiler, I just take the cast iron lid off, vacuum and brush as you do.

[@hvac01453]

floor drains are about nonexistent anymore in commercial properties because of environmental concerns

[@danielfinch7987]

Would that mean that the boiler is not getting enough air?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

+Finch, Daniel yes or to much gas .durty burners ect bad draft could do it also

[@RalphsHeating]

Thanks Steven I will definitely pick one up.

[@stevenlavimoniere]

John Heritage good luck with it

[@bryanhitchcock9156]

I just had this done on my boiler. 4 weeks later and build up of soot is back. I feel like I just dumped $350 down the drain for the service. What would be causing this?

[@fuzzytech3846]

Commonly caused by the wrong air / fuel ratio. Those vents at the beginning of the burner tube will adjust air fuel mixture (if it's gas and not oil).

[@mrfranciscojuarez187]

Try checking the flue pipe for obstructions or the pressure at the gas valve. My dads steam boiler sooted up because there was a dead bird in the flue pipe and the gas pressure was a little high. It has been running fine for two years now.

[@johngnipper1454]

Need new one, thats where its headed

[@BiteTheCurbNow]

Incomplete burning of fuel.

[@kenc.9067]

Could also be lack of combustion air

[@kountryedge]

What kind of vacuum is that? Ive never seen a metal vac hose. Nice!

[@stevenlavimoniere]

soot master vac

[@anthonyd2923]

Awesome video, I have the same boiler , with the same problem.. What kind of meter was that you used?

[@Marcobrklyn]

You should never flush the fire side of a boiler with water. The combination is equlivant to ACID rain. It will eat away at thin metal surfaces, bad for the environment. I guess adding water to fire side of boiler is considered job security.

[@zalman7208]

Keeps saying he's getting a new boiler to replace this one, steadily. Why are you going to do that? How much more efficient is the new boiler compared to this one? Does it make economic sense in this world? Is there anything structurally wrong with this one? Is it just easy money?

[@sophiamarshall4058]

I wish you were in New York

[@AliAhmadi-hq9pj]

Great video thanks

[@kenc.9067]

You know it's bad when you have to use a soot saw on a gas boiler.

[@TheBergy32]

Oil to gas conversion?

[@TheBergy32]

I guess not, just an older boiler...

[@stevenlavimoniere]

i replaced it with a gas boiler

[@jfernandez2082]

I have a oil gas conversion that keeps sooting up any thoughts? Why

[@stevenlavimoniere]

not enough air to much fuel ... thats the problem ..do you have enough make up air ??? is it in a small room???

[@elran123]

Where are you located? What do you charge for a normal boiler cleaning?

[@polishtheturdmickelson5473]

I would not call that a normal boiler cleaning at all. Time and materials on that one, lol. He works in Massachuets.

[@plumbworker]

did ya get that cap on the roof?

[@stevenlavimoniere]

there was no cap it was a brick chiminy

[@plumbworker]

steven lavimoniere my bad i was commenting on the wrong video..

[@electroplumber]

Very good work! are we ready for the split's and combi's!? lol

[@deanmartin1966]

Great Video, Thanks for posting

[@stevenlavimoniere]

thanks for commenting & watching

[@GoatzombieBubba]

the pros don't want ppl to DIY due to loss of profit.

[@5xo19xo12]

what happens if the boiler keeps doing the same thing?

[@traviskalinowski3231]

gas pressure

[@traviskalinowski3231]

dampers

[@traviskalinowski3231]

pilot flame

[@rightchoicehvac3620]

Dang that thing was full of soot!!!

[@stevenlavimoniere]

yes she was .i am changing her out on friday .brand new crown boiler taking her place

[@marta0640]

What is cause to get so much soot?

[@realestateservicessaleshea99]

👀

[@stevedoug3297]

Snorkel it Stevie!!

[@keith24693]

That's the same boiler I have man

[@gyver471]

Easy $1000