I have been teaching heating subjects for a while now. It started in 1973 in the US Air Force Reserve and then also included teaching at the old NEFI school in Cambridge and Watertown, Massachusetts. Teaching basic and advanced always comes back to where to start on a call and in my case the first thing that pops into my head is, “What changed?” Maybe it’s a very basic call and the most common problem is a switch is off – also known as an “open limit.” In Massachusetts and other states that means something is keeping the burner from running. So, let’s start at the beginning and find out what it is ( Figure 1 ).
Let me give you a couple of my personal favorites as other examples. Nice Saturday in the Spring and my shift is almost over. Just one call so far, an “out of oil,” the number two most common problem. What changed? No oil in the tank.
In the afternoon another call comes in, “overheating.” Upon arrival at a two-story, two-family home, the customer tells me, “I can’t shut the burner off except through the ‘customer switch’ or the ‘serviceman’s switch.’ The thermostat does nothing.” (Figure 1.)
I get the burner running again and the thermostat circuit is “out of control.” I try even disconnecting the wires and when I remove them in the basement the burner goes off. Hmmm! So, I ask the customer, “Did you do anything today?” He says, “Nope, not me. But the guy on the first floor was banging on something.” So, I’m off to interview the first-floor tenant because he changed something.
He tells us that the banging was from just hanging a picture on the wall in his dining room right below the second-floor thermostat. We take the picture down and get the second-floor burner running again. As soon as I pull the nail the burner goes off. What the hell are the odds of this guy punching through the thermostat wire? Pretty good, evidently. We move the nail an inch away and everything goes back to normal. We corrected “the change.”
Another one in the category of “something changed” is very common. Had it happen dozens of times. Customers complaint is “excessive oil consumption .” This could be very serious because “the change” could be a punctured underground line. Above-ground tank leaks are pretty easy to find as are leaks
at or around the burner, but underground lines are a whole other problem. I’m not going to waste my time on explaining the benefits of sleeved or coated lines and osv’s. You either get it, or you don’t, period.
It is important that the line be tested using a procedure that is part of the “tank and tubing test” and
that should be done with all new tanks and lines ( Figure 2 ). In our case we disconnect both ends of the line and put a “compound gauge” on one end and a hand pump ( Figure 3 ), on the other. The line should be tested for both pressure and vacuum to be 100% sure. The test on pressure should be for five psi for five minutes and a vacuum of five inches Hg for five minutes. After completing the test that proves the line secure, we interviewed the customer. It should be noted that a complete combustion test is also not a bad idea, but most of us can tell if that’s the problem or not. Old equipment burns poorly and wastes fuel.
The scenario here is very common and if it hasn’t happened to you, it will. It turns out the tank was filled three days before Thanksgiving and refilled four days after Christmas, figure it out now? So, the customer interview goes like this: “I can’t find anything wrong with the technical side of your equipment,” I state. “Let me ask you a few questions if I may? Were there any changes in your home over the period of time? Any visitors, guests etc.?”
“Oh boy”, says the customer, “I forgot about that. Yes, the kids were home from college and turned up the heat in the bedroom addition and the basement den.”
“Did they do any laundry,” I ask, knowing the boiler also heats hot water.
“Yes,” she answers, “they brought home a ton of laundry and took three showers a day too!”
I see her realizing what happened but decided to throw in it was also a much colder winter than the last few years. Change, change, change!
We agree to see what happens between now and the next delivery and it’s always been my habit to follow up and when I do I find everything has gone back to what they consider normal, changes fixed.
There’s always a reason for the changes that occur that create problems, but they are not always mechanical or electrical. If you’re a regular reader of my material you’re probably familiar with
Lanthier’s Laws. Although there are 12 of them the points in this article directly relate to these four: 1. Listen to the customer. This is not only the first rule because it makes sense, but it also acts as a pathway to troubleshooting , and besides it’s just a courteous and professional thing to do. The trick is to listen. If you really hear the customer out, you’ll know what the real complaint is, and you can fix it. 2. Assume nothing. 3. Always read the directions, don’t kneel on them. 4. The customer is almost never right, but they’re why you have a job. “The customer is always right.” Ever hear that one? Ennnh, that’s wrong. But if we followed Rule 1, we might be able to at least make the situation right for them.
By the way, if you think that nail through the thermostat wire is exceptionally rare, I’ve had three over the years and heard of several more. That won’t happen ever again as soon as everything goes wireless.
Over the years I’ve had a lot of people borrow and adopt my teaching and service principle of “something changed” and that’s good because we all learn from each other and imitation is the greatest compliment. See ya!