Job completed for Genevieve K.

Completion date: February 8, 2021

Location: Charlottesville, VA

Why did the customer contact us?

They had no heat and found the boiler was no longer working.

Solutions provided:

Over the course of several visits (yes, this boiler challenged us), we replaced a failed circulator pump, two thermal fuses, a pressure switch and a delay on make timer. We also completed a major cleaning of the heat exchanger and burners. 

Why? We discovered that several isolation valves - including one from the auto-fill - had become blocked or frozen in place. This caused the system to run low on water which we believe contributed to the failed pump. Once we replaced the pump, the boiler system ran for several hours and then shut off again. This led to us to the first thermal fuse and our first call to the manufacturer - Weil-Mclain. 

WM provided us with a clean, complete copy of the manual for this boiler and confirmed that the thermal fuse was indeed 228 Celsius or roughly 450 degrees F which is very HOT! We sourced the thermal fuse, replaced it and the boiler fired and ran for several more hours - then shut down again. 

A second call with WM and we learned that the most likely cause of repeated thermal fuse failure is a clogged heat exchanger. We also received a warning to be careful during the cleaning because replacement parts for major components may not be available. 

So we returned with a second thermal fuse, cleaning supplies and plenty of patience. We left with a fully functioning boiler system - bled of air, all valves and zones operating, new parts, a clean heat exchanger, and a new circulator pump.

What did we learn? We have wonderful clients with patience and faith in us. And that good partners such as Weil-Mclain and Ferguson allowed us to identify and source the correct replacement parts from out of our local area.