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Mobile ViewHEATING SYSTEMS AFUE DEFINITION, RATINGS AGE of AIR CONDITIONERS & HEAT PUMPS AGE of HEATERS, BOILERS, FURNACES AIR CONDITIONING & HEAT PUMP SYSTEMS AIR FILTERS for HVAC SYSTEMS AIR HANDLER / BLOWER UNITS AIRBOUND HEAT SYSTEM REPAIRS ANODES & DIP TUBES on WATER HEATERS ANTI SCALD VALVES APPLIANCE EFFICIENCY RATINGS ASBESTOS IDENTIFICATION IN buildings BACKDRAFTING HEATING EQUIPMENT BACKFLOW PREVENTER VALVE, HEATING SYS BACKFLOW PREVENTER, HEATER WATER FEEDER BACKUP HEAT for HEAT PUMPS BAROMETRIC DAMPERS BASEBOARD HEAT BIOGAS PRODUCTION & USE BLEVE EXPLOSIONS BLOWER DOORS & AIR INFILTRATION BLOWER FAN CONTINUOUS OPERATION BLOWER FAN OPERATION & TESTING BLUE vs YELLOW COMBUSTION FLAMES BLUERAY Recall BOILERS, HEATING Air Bleeder Valves Air Scoops Purgers Separators AQUASTAT CONTROL Functions BACKDRAFTING HEATING EQUIPMENT BACKFLOW PREVENTER VALVE, HEATING SYS BANGING HEATING PIPES RADIATORS BOILER COMPONENTS & PARTS BOILER CONTROLS & SWITCHES CAD CELL RELAY SWITCH CHECK VALVES, HEATING SYSTEM Chemical treatments, Boiler Circulator Pumps & Relays DIAGNOSE & FIX BOILER DRAFT REGULATORS, BAROMETRIC DAMPERS ELECTRIC MOTOR OVERLOAD RESET SWITCH ELECTRICAL POWER SWITCH FOR HEAT Expansion Tanks FIRE SAFETY CONTROLS Gauges on Heating Equipment Limit Switches, Boilers Low Water Cutoff Valves, Boilers MIXING / ANTI-SCALD VALVES OIL LINE QUICK STOP VALVES OIL LINE SAFETY VALVES Pressure Gauges, Boilers Pressure & Temperature Settings, Controls RELIEF VALVES - TP VALVES Reset Switch - Primary Control Reset Switch - electric motors SPILL SWITCHES STACK RELAYS THERMOSTATS, HEATING / COOLING Water Feeder Valves, Hydronic Boiler Zone Valves CARBON MONOXIDE - CO CHIMNEY INSPECTION DIAGNOSIS REPAIR CHIMNEYS & Flues - Asbestos Transite Pipe CHINESE DRYWALL HAZARDS CIRCULATOR PUMPS & RELAYS COOL OFF HEAT, Thermostat Switch COMBUSTION AIR COMBUSTION AIR for TIGHT buildings COMBUSTION GASES & PARTICLE HAZARDS COMBUSTION PRODUCTS & IAQ COMPLETE COMBUSTION, Stoichiometric CREOSOTE FIRE HAZARDS COMBUSTION GASES & PARTICLE HAZARDS COMBUSTION PRODUCTS & IAQ COMPLETE COMBUSTION, Stoichiometric CREOSOTE FIRE HAZARDS CONDENSING BOILERS/FURNACES CONDENSING BOILERS/FURNACES DAMAGE CONVECTOR HEATERS - HYDRONIC COILS DEFINITION of Heating & Cooling Terms DIAGNOSE & FIX AIR CONDITIONER / HEAT PUMP DIAGNOSE & FIX HEATING PROBLEMS-BOILER DIAGNOSE & FIX HEATING PROBLEMS-FURNACE DIRECT VENTS / SIDE WALL VENTS DIRECTORY of OIL TANK EXPERTS DRAFT HOODS - gas fired DRAFT MEASUREMENT, CHIMNEYS & FLUES DRAFT REGULATORS, DAMPERS, BOOSTERS DUCT INSULATION, Asbestos Paper DUCT SYSTEM & DUCT DEFECTS DUCTS, Asbestos Transite Pipe DUST CONTAMINATION FROM HVAC? ELECTRIC HEAT, DIAGNOSIS, REPAIR ELECTRIC MOTOR DIAGNOSTIC GUIDE ELECTRIC MOTOR OVERLOAD RESET SWITCH ELECTRICAL POWER SWITCH FOR HEAT EVAPORATIVE COOLING SYSTEMS FAN, AIR HANDLER BLOWER UNIT FAN AUTO ON Thermostat Switch FAN, COMPRESSOR/CONDENSER UNIT FAN CONVECTOR HEATERS - HYDRONIC COILS FAN LIMIT SWITCH FAN NOISES FILTERS, AIR for HVAC SYSTEMS FILTERS, OIL on HEATING EQUIPMENT FIRE SAFETY CONTROLS FIREPLACES & HEARTHS FLAME COLOR, BLUE vs YELLOW COMBUSTION FLOODED HEATING EQUIPMENT REPAIR FLOODED WATER HEATER REPAIR FLUE VENT CONNECTORS FREEZE-PROOF A BUILDING FUEL OIL TYPES & CHARACTERISTICS FUEL UNIT, HEATING OIL PUMPS FURNACES, HEATING DUCT SYSTEM DEFECTS ALLOY SYSTEMS FLEXDUCT DUCT & AIR HANDLER ODORS DUCT INSULATION, Asbestos Paper FAN LIMIT SWITCH FURNACE CONTROLS & SWITCHES FURNACE OPERATION DETAILS FURNACE OPERATING TEMPERATURES HEAT EXCHANGER LEAKS STACK RELAY SWITCHES GALVANIC SCALE & METAL CORROSION GAS BURNER Flame & Noise Defects GAS FIRED WATER HEATERS GAS PIPING, VALVES, CONTROLS Gas BTUH & Cubic Feet Gas Conversion LP Natural Gas Gas Flame & Noise Defects Gas Igniter Defects, Repairs Gas Leak Detection Gas Lighting Pipes & Fixtures Gas Meters Gas Piping Defects Gas Regulators for Appliances Gas Regulators for LP Tanks Gas Regulators, Two Stage Gas Shutoff Valves LP Gas Tanks LP & Natural Gas Safety Hazards LP & Natural Gas Pressures METHANE GAS SOURCES Natural Gas Combustion Products Types of Fuel Gas Source GAUGES ON HEATING EQUIPMENT HEAT LOSS in buildings HEAT LOSS DETECTION TOOLS HEAT LOSS INDICATORS HEAT LOSS PREVENTION PRIORITIES HEAT LOSS R U & K VALUE CALCULATION HEAT PUMPS, DiAGNOSIS, REPAIR HEAT TAPES & CABLES on Roofs for Ice Dams HEATING COST FUEL & BTU Cost Table HEATING COST SAVINGS METHODS HEATING LOSS DIAGNOSIS-BOILERS HEATING LOSS DIAGNOSIS-FURNACES HEATING OIL CLOUD WAX GEL POINT HEATING OIL EXPOSURE HAZARDS, LIMITS HEATING OIL - OLD, USEABLE? HEATING OIL PIPING TROUBLES HEATING OIL SHELF LIFE HEATING OIL SLUDGE HEATING OIL USAGE RATE HEATING SMALL LOADS HEATING SYSTEM INSPECT DIAGNOSE REPAIR HEATING SYSTEM INSPECTION DETAILS HEATING SYSTEM NOISES HEATING SYSTEM TYPES HOT WATER HEATERS HOT WATER IMPROVEMENT INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT LP & Natural Gas Safety Hazards MANUALS & PARTS GUIDES - HVAC MIXING / ANTI-SCALD VALVES NO HEAT - BOILER NO HEAT - FURNACE NOISE / SOUND DIAGNOSIS & CURE NOISE AIR CONDITIONER / HEAT PUMP NOISE, DUCT VIBRATION DAMPENERS NOISE, HEATING SYSTEMS NOISE, PLUMBING NOISE, WATER HEATER ODORS GASES SMELLS, DIAGNOSIS & CURE ODORS FROM HEATING SYSTEMS OIL BURNERS OIL BURNER FUEL UNIT OIL BURNER INSPECTION & REPAIR OIL BURNER NOISE SMOKE ODORS OIL BURNER NOZZLE & ELECTRODES OIL BURNER SOOT & PUFFBACKS OIL FILTER MISSING OIL FUEL TYPES & CHARACTERISTICS OIL & GAS PIPING OIL LINE CLOGGING FIX OIL LINE QUICK STOP VALVES OIL LINE SAFETY VALVES OIL ODORS, LEAKY OIL TANK PIPING OIL PUMP FUEL UNIT OIL SPILL CLEANUP / PREVENTION OIL TANKS OIL TANK ABANDONING PROCEDURE OIL TANKS, BURIED OIL TANK GAUGES OIL TANK INSPECTION REPORTS OIL TANK LEAKS & SMELLS OIL TANK PIPING & PIPING DEFECTS OIL TANK PRESSURE OIL TANK REGULATIONS OIL TANK REMOVAL COs OIL TANK REMOVAL FINANCIAL AID OIL TANK SAFETY OIL TANK SLUDGE OIL TANK TESTING OIL TANK TESTING COs OIL TANK WATER CONTAMINATION OIL TANK WATER REMOVAL PLASTIC HEATER VENT PULSE COMBUSTION HEATERS PASCAL CALCULATIONS RADIANT BARRIERS RADIANT HEAT RADIANT HEAT Floor Mistakes to Avoid RADIANT HEAT TEMPERATURES RADIANT SLAB FLOORING CHOICES RADIANT SLAB TUBING & FLUID CHOICES RADIATORS RELIEF VALVES - TP Valves on Boilers RELIEF VALVES - STEAM TP VALVES RELIEF VALVES - Water Heaters RELIEF VALVES - TP Valves on Boilers RELIEF VALVES - STEAM TP VALVES RELIEF VALVES - Water Heaters RELIEF VALVES - Water Tanks Reset Switch - Heater Primary Control Reset Switch Broken - Quick Repair Reset Switch - Electric Motors Reset Switch - Stack Relays SAFETY HAZARDS & INSPECTIONS SAFETY HAZARDS GUIDE SAFETY, HEATING INSPECTION SAFETY,HOME HEATING TIPS Safety Recalls, Chimneys, Vents, Heaters SAFETY, HEATING INSPECTION SAFETY,HOME HEATING TIPS SOOT on OIL FIRED HEATING EQUIPMENT SPILL SWITCHES - Flue Gas Detection STAIN DIAGNOSIS on BUILDING INTERIORS STEAM HEATING SYSTEMS AQUASTAT CONTROL Functions BACKDRAFTING HEATING EQUIPMENT BACKFLOW PREVENTER VALVE, HEATING SYS BANGING HEATING PIPES RADIATORS CAD CELL RELAY SWITCH CHECK VALVES, HEATING SYSTEM Chemical treatments, Boiler Circulator Pumps & Relays COMBUSTION GASES & PARTICLE HAZARDS CONDENSATE RETURN PIPES, PUMPS, STEAM DIAGNOSE & FIX BOILER DRAFT HOODS - gas fired DRAFT MEASUREMENT, CHIMNEYS & FLUES DRAFT REGULATORS, DAMPERS, BOOSTERS ELECTRIC MOTOR OVERLOAD RESET SWITCH ELECTRICAL POWER SWITCH FOR HEAT Expansion Tanks FIRE SAFETY CONTROLS Gauges on Heating Equipment Limit Switches, Boilers Low Water Cutoff Valves, Boilers MIXING / ANTI-SCALD VALVES Pressure & Temperature Settings, Controls Pressure Switch, Steam Boiler RELIEF VALVES - TP VALVES Sight Glass, Steam Boiler Spill Switches Stack Relay Switch Steam Pressure Gauge STEAM TRAPS Steam Vents THERMOSTATS, HEATING / COOLING WATER FEEDER Valves, Steam TANKLESS COILS THERMAL EXPANSION of MATERIALS THERMAL MASS in buildings THERMAL TRACKING & HEAT LOSS THERMOSTATS, HEATING / COOLING Transite Pipe Chimneys & FlueS VIDEO GUIDES: Heating System Videos VIDEO GUIDES - InspectAPedia.com WATER HEATERS WATER HEATER SAFETY WATER HEATERS for HOME HEATING USE? WATER HEATER NOISES WATER HEATER SCALE - De-Liming Procedure WATER HEATER SCALE PREVENTION WINTERIZE A BUILDING WOOD, COAL STOVES & FIREPLACES WOOD STOVE SAFETY ZONE VALVES More Information |
Sooty oil fired heating equipment: this article explains the significance of soot on, around, or inside oil fired heating boilers, furnaces, and water heaters. We explain how much oil burner soot is normal and when soot production is a problem. Thick soot build-up inside of a flue, the chimney, or inside of the boiler or furnace heat exchanger or inside of a domestic water heater is a problem that causes higher fuel bills, equipment operating problems, and potential fire and safety problems. InspectAPedia tolerates no conflicts of interest. We have no relationship with advertisers nor with topics or services discussed at this website.© Copyright 2012 InspectAPedia.com, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use page top links to major topics or use links at the left of each page to navigate within topics and documents at this website. Green links show where you are in a document series or at this website. How Soot Causes Problems with Heating Boilers, Furnaces, Water HeatersA discussion of our page top photo and those rusty sooty fragments in view is found at How to Inspect a Barometric Damper. Separately, diagnosing black stains on indoor surfaces in the living space, possibly caused by oil fired equipment sooty operation or puffbacks, is discussed at THERMAL TRACKING & HEAT LOSS. This website answers most questions about central heating system troubleshooting, inspection, diagnosis, and repairs. We describe how to inspect residential heating systems to inform home owners, buyers, and home inspectors of common heating system defects. Contact us to suggest text changes and additions and, if you wish, to receive online listing and credit for that contribution. Watch out: Safety warning about soot: Sooting can occur with both gas fired and oil fired systems. Soot coming from a gas fired heater is probably indicating a very dangerous condition risking carbon monoxide poisoning. If a gas fired appliance is producing soot, it should be turned off and Immediate service is needed. See COMBUSTION AIR DEFECTS and also SOOT on OIL FIRED HEATING EQUIPMENT and GAS FIRED WATER HEATERS for safety warnings about soot at heating appliances. Soot coming from an oil fired heater warns of improper operation and risks a destructive puffback. See OIL BURNER SOOT & PUFFBACKS Significance of Sooty Debris visible in the flue vent connector or on top of equipment around the heating boilerIf you see soot, rust flakes, and debris in the flue vent connector (photo at page top) or chunks of black and brown sooty crud on top of horizontal surfaces near your oil fired heating equipment, this means that the heating system needs to be cleaned and serviced. Our photo at page top shows what was probably several years of accumulated soot, rust flakes, and debris in the flue vent connector of an oil-fired horizontal furnace in a wet moldy crawlspace. The owner thought that his system, which was almost impossible to access, had "just been cleaned". Why is soot or crud in the oil fired boiler or furnace flue a problem?A flue vent connector ((also called the "stack pipe" or "flue pipe") is the metal pipe that connects the oil fired heating appliance to a chimney in order to safely vent combustion gases outdoors. That's a place where we can see some helpful clues about how the oil fired heating equipment is operating without disassembling the oil fired boiler, furnace, or oil burner itself.
When we look in to the flue close to the heating boiler or furnace, such as at the barometric damper shown at above left, it's normal to see a thin coating of soot on the interior of the metal flue pipe. Because soot acts like an insulating coating, too much soot in a heating system causes problems. So we do not want to see soot accumulating in depth in the flue vent connector or chimney (above right) nor blowing around the boiler room, accumulating on top of the boiler, or blowing into and staining other areas of the building. Technical note: the seasonal efficiency of oil fired heating equipment declines between service calls - that's the normal result of soot accumulation. If we run oil fired heating equipment too hot, to produce "zero" soot, we're sending too much heat (and money) up the chimney. So a modest amount of soot accumulation in the boiler, furnace, or flue vent connector is normal between annual service calls. More examples and photos of soot in and on oil burners and oil fired heaters are at How to Inspect a Barometric Damper and at Chimney Height & ClearanceWatch out: if your oil fired heating equipment can't make it from one annual service call to the next one without blowing soot into the building, sooting up, clogging, and becoming noisy or smoky, something is wrong. Just how much soot is ok? We answer that just below. Soot layers too thick in boilers or furnaces means we spend more to heat the building:Soot inside the furnace or boiler reduces the transfer of heat into the heating system's water (or air if it's a furnace). Thus the transfer of heat into the building is reduced by soot in the heating equipment. As the soot layer gets thicker less heat is transferred and more of the heat simply continues to go up the chimney instead of into the building. When a heating service technician measures the "efficiency" of a heating system, the number, say 85%, means that for each dollar you spend on heating oil, about 85 cents is coming into the building as heat, and the remaining 15 cents is going up the chimney as wasted energy. Soot layers too thick in a boiler or furnace could be unsafe, even a fire hazard:Soot layers in boilers or furnaces that are too thick means that the equipment is running "hot" and could even be unsafe. Where a heating boiler was nearly blocked solid with soot, we've measured flue temperatures close to the boiler of over 1000 degrees F.! Any combustibles too close to a hot metal flue or chimney could catch on fire at this temperature. So how thick can the soot layer be before we have to clean the furnace or boiler?1/8" of soot is the limitSo if the thickness of the soot you see in the flue vent connector, looking in at the barometric damper is 1/8" thick or more, the system should be cleaned and tuned. Warning: even if the soot layer is thin and fine where you're looking, don't rule out other possible boiler, furnace, flue, or chimney problems. For example, debris could be blocking the chimney, or the flue pipe could be blocked with debris further on closer to the chimney. But seeing that the flue looks clean where we can inspect is good news. BOILER OPERATING PROBLEMS discusses the signs of improper oil fired hot water at operation. Warm air furnaces are discussed at FURNACES, HEATING, and problems with loss of heat are discussed at NO HEAT - BOILER / FURNACE DIAGNOSIS. Questions & Answers regarding this articleQuestions & answers about sooty heating equipment: causes, problems, cures. Ask a Question or Search InspectAPediaHTML Comment Box is loading comments...
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