Prioritizing boiler safety ensures that you and your loved ones stay safe and that you optimize return on investment in the unit, while promoting lower energy bills. Boiler safety is achieved with regular preventive maintenance. Professional maintenance generally involves a comprehensive inspection of the unit’s components, inspecting the system for wear and tear, checking system pressure and fuel factors, as well as thoroughly cleaning the system so that dirt buildup doesn’t wreak havoc on system efficiency and boiler safety.
Learn the tasks involved with maintenance that ensure boiler safety, which includes inspecting:
- The safety valves. When all other safety components fail, the safety valves are designed to blow off any pressure buildup within the system. Checking these components—there should be at least one—ensures boiler safety. Dirt buildup and corrosion are two of the primary components that lead to safety valve failure. Your technician should check this component and replace it if necessary.
- The water-level controls and fuel cutoff. Often combined into one component, the cleanliness of these devices is imperative for boiler safety. If dirt buildup or sediment accumulates in the controls, cutoff or float chamber, safety becomes compromised, along with system efficiency.
- The gauge. Steam boilers utilize a glass gauge, so that the technician can visually inspect the water levels in the unit. If the glass becomes dirty or stained, water level readings become compromised and the gauge becomes an unreliable methodology for ensuring safe system operation.
- The burner. When the burner becomes dirty, it greatly reduces heat transfer between the heating element and the water, lowering system efficiency. In addition, a dirty burner can compromise safety, and in the worst-case scenario, result in an explosion.
- Fuel connections and combustion. Particularly important for gas-powered units, checking the fuel connection ensures that the unit can access fuel safely, that combustion gases are properly vented, and that home occupants are safe from backdrafting, or exposure to carbon monoxide.
Make boiler safety a priority this year. Contact Aladdin Heating & Cooling today to schedule a preventive maintenance appointment. We’ve served Lake Orion, St. Clair Shores, Ferndale, Berkley homeowners since 1945 with quality HVAC installations, maintenance and repairs.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about Boiler Safety and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
Aladdin Heating services Novi, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Southfield, Oak Park, Ferndale, Beverly Hills, Berkley, Royal Oak, Birmingham, Bloomfield Twp., Bloomfield Hills, West Bloomfield, Madison Heights, Clawson, Sterling Heights, Warren, Troy, St. Clair Shores, Grosse Pointe, Grosse Pointe Woods, Grosse Pointe Farms, Grosse Pointe Park, Detroit, Utica, Shelby Twp., Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Lake Orion, Oxford, and Clarkston.
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