Heater run out of oil; o.k. to leave until Fall?

Igotadose

The heating system (oil, Firebird 2000 burner) ran out of oil this a.m.. This wasn't planned. I measured and the tank is low, looking at our records it had been awhile since we filled the tank.

Both lights were on the heater this a.m. and it might have run some in the morning then turned itself off.

Is it o.k. to turn off the heater and leave it off until we need it again the Fall, or should we get oil and attempt to start it up, then turn it off? I may be able to pick up a few gallons of oil, I'd rather not put much in the tank now as its just going to sit until probably October, when we'd normally fill the tank and use the heater. We'll use the immersion heater for our hot water needs, and have small electric heaters for rooms should we get a cold snap.

But, I'm not sure that leaving the heater as is won't cause a bigger problem when I go to restart it in 6 months or so.


Advice welcome, thanks.

punisher5112

Get a few drums, it's still cold enough at times.

You will have to bleed it, even in worst case suck the line to get fuel back through.

dobman88

Igotadose wrote: »

The heating system (oil, Firebird 2000 burner) ran out of oil this a.m.. This wasn't planned. I measured and the tank is low, looking at our records it had been awhile since we filled the tank.

Both lights were on the heater this a.m. and it might have run some in the morning then turned itself off.

Is it o.k. to turn off the heater and leave it off until we need it again the Fall, or should we get oil and attempt to start it up, then turn it off? I may be able to pick up a few gallons of oil, I'd rather not put much in the tank now as its just going to sit until probably October, when we'd normally fill the tank and use the heater. We'll use the immersion heater for our hot water needs, and have small electric heaters for rooms should we get a cold snap.

But, I'm not sure that leaving the heater as is won't cause a bigger problem when I go to restart it in 6 months or so.


Advice welcome, thanks.

If it's on a fall, it should be on an incline forward towards the tap so you dont get a build up in the back corner.

We had one before that was on a fall backwards and when the landlady realised I had propped it up to fall forwards she couldnt understand it until I had to really simply explain it.

I'd probably keep it topped up with a small amount. No doubt you will have to run it at some stage between now and October.

punisher5112

dobman88 wrote: »

If it's on a fall, it should be on an incline forward towards the tap so you dont get a build up in the back corner.

We had one before that was on a fall backwards and when the landlady realised I had propped it up to fall forwards she couldnt understand it until I had to really simply explain it.

I'd probably keep it topped up with a small amount. No doubt you will have to run it at some stage between now and October.

No they talking about winter

Holy Diver

punisher5112 wrote: »

Get a few drums, it's still cold enough at times.

You will have to bleed it, even in worst case suck the line to get fuel back through.

What’s the easiest way of getting the fuel back thru?
I had similar issue last week and after adding a couple of drums I could not bleed the boiler as the level of oil didn’t rise enough. I am changing the tank and boiler soon so did not want to add any more.

dobman88

punisher5112 wrote: »

No they talking about winter

What am I missing here? I dont get the winter reference

Igotadose

dobman88 wrote: »

What am I missing here? I dont get the winter reference

We usually turn it off around now, and start it up again in October (or November if it's warm.)

I sort-of remember how to bleed it. I am going to see about acquiring a few gallons of fuel to get it going again then shut it off.

This happened once before when the oil was stolen and the technician couldn't come out, so he walked me through on the phone how to bleed it. We had left for a long trip over the summer, with the tank full, came back, turned it on in October, no oil and the tank had been drained dry.

crossman47

dobman88 wrote: »

What am I missing here? I dont get the winter reference

The OP is obviously american and refers to autumn (not winter) as The Fall

Igotadose

crossman47 wrote: »

The OP is obviously american and refers to autumn (not winter) as The Fall

You're right on both counts!:D:D Got to start calling the season between summer and winter as autumn!

cruizer101

dobman88 wrote: »

If it's on a fall, it should be on an incline forward towards the tap so you dont get a build up in the back corner.

I'm pretty sure it is meant to be tipped away so that any sludge buildup will be to the back of the tank away from the outlet to the boiler.

Yes, there might be a few gallon of oil stuck back there too, but thats better than damaging the boiler due to intake of sludge.

dobman88

crossman47 wrote: »

The OP is obviously american and refers to autumn (not winter) as The Fall

Lol. Well that went completely over my head.

punisher5112

Disconnect power, remove the cover, usually 2 or 3 screws, this cover houses the electronic end and burner, the red button is inside this cover.....

You will see the braided hose, there should be a valve to turn on or off the feed to this, have a little container or jug and familiarise which is off on the valve as you will be removing the hose at the boiler end, you will then need to suck like sucking on a straw, let it run into the container as you will hear the air and see it gulp.
As soon as it runs clear turn it off and re fit.

A2LUE42

OP needs to put oil into the tank, to not have the sediment sitting there for the next 6 months. Fuel place should have 20l drums available for about 4 or 5 euro that you can fill with kerosene and put 40L or so into the tank if they don't want to put a few hundred litres in via a delivery.
Then see if it is working, so they know now if it is ok. Then they can leave it until after the summer

Wearb

For anyone reading this thread, don't put your mouth anywhere near kerosene or diesel. It's dangerous on your hands, never mind you lips and mouth.

OP your regular service guy will bleed this for you without charging too much. Sometimes the delivery driver will do this, but that's getting rarer due to insurance and competency concerns. Also it's good practice to to run the boiler for about half an hour about twice a month even during the off season. It keeps it in better condition and those run times can be used to heat the hot water.

punisher5112

Wearb wrote: »

For anyone reading this thread, don't put your mouth anywhere near kerosene or diesel. It's dangerous on your hands, never mind you lips and mouth.

OP your regular service guy will bleed this for you without charging too much. Sometimes the delivery driver will do this, but that's getting rarer due to insurance and competency concerns. Also it's good practice to to run the boiler for about half an hour about twice a month even during the off season. It keeps it in better condition and those run times can be used to heat the hot water.

Of course it's dangerous but sometimes no choice.

This is last resort, if the bleed Allen key at side doesn't work.

Op YouTube have many clips showing the right one to loosen in order to release the air.

Igotadose

Any recommendations for gauges that are visible from a distance? My system is to stick a long stick into the tank and measure the oil level that way. This depends on 1) me remembering it needs done 2) the weather not being too bad to prevent this. I see a number of gauges available that either use FM or WiFi to transmit tank levels. Any reviews? Are any of them good? I expect I could drill a hole using a hole saw to install one, but I'd worry that out here in West Kerry where the weather can be pretty fierce, the device won't hold up.

Thanks! As followup I'm waiting on a delivery and I will bleed the boiler, I've done it a few years ago and have instructions, and this was before the handy Youtube videos.

K.Flyer

dobman88 wrote: »

If it's on a fall, it should be on an incline forward towards the tap so you dont get a build up in the back corner.

Nope, the tank must always slope away from the fuel connection. This allows silt and gunk to gather at the furthest point away from the outlet.
I've spent hours cleaning fuel lines because people propped up the end of the tank to try get the last of the fuel out only to completely block the fuel pipe with s**t.

Wearb

Igotadose wrote: »

Any recommendations for gauges that are visible from a distance? My system is to stick a long stick into the tank and measure the oil level that way. This depends on 1) me remembering it needs done 2) the weather not being too bad to prevent this. I see a number of gauges available that either use FM or WiFi to transmit tank levels. Any reviews? Are any of them good? I expect I could drill a hole using a hole saw to install one, but I'd worry that out here in West Kerry where the weather can be pretty fierce, the device won't hold up.

Thanks! As followup I'm waiting on a delivery and I will bleed the boiler, I've done it a few years ago and have instructions, and this was before the handy Youtube videos.

Boilers need annual servicing. Otherwise their life is really shortened. Servicing also improves efficiency and therefore saves on fuel.

I'm not a fan of remote gauges due to them needing battery replacement. My favourite is the one with the float on a leaver and the visible part looking like an upturned test tube.
Edit. This type.

jimf

K.Flyer wrote: »

Nope, the tank must always slope away from the fuel connection. This allows silt and gunk to gather at the furthest point away from the outlet.
I've spent hours cleaning fuel lines because people propped up the end of the tank to try get the last of the fuel out only to completely block the fuel pipe with s**t.

jesus k flyer dont tell em thats a nice little earner :P:P

K.Flyer

jimf wrote: »

jesus k flyer dont tell em thats a nice little earner :P:P

Ah damn, where's the delete button.

Igotadose

Heater running again, however, when I bled it, some of the kerosene sprayed. Cleaned up the room, and everywhere I could reach within the heater unit itself.

Let it sit with the door open (room opens to outdoors) for a few days. Smell is reduced, but still around. Ran it again today for an hour, seems like the smell's gotten a little worse.

Any hints? Down to leaving sliced lemons in the room to reduce the smell - they actually seem to work. But, I think there's some kerosene in an inaccessible place that needs to be wiped up or otherwise made to go away. Would running it longer, help?


Really starting to hate this heater. It's 17 years old, might not have been used for several years prior to our moving in, has been serviced pretty regularly but even without this recent problem it's always smelled when run. CO2 detector in the room, ,with an up-to-date battery, no problems there.


Advice appreciated esp. about upgrading to something better.