Anyone Find a ECM pump swap for Taco 110

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peakbagger

Minister of Fire
Jul 11, 2008
8,838
Northern NH
I am working to get a nieces wood boiler back on line. It was last run about 8 years ago. It appears to hold pressure but definitely needs some TLC. Its vertical fire tube without turbulators so no worry about a cold stack. It also need a circulator pump. The current pump is TACO 110 which looks pretty large. Its a one zone system. Anyone find a good ECM replacement for a Taco 110?. I contacted TACO and they suggested a 007E which is less than half the cost of new 110. The 110 runs out to around 33 GPM with max head of 8 PSI. The 007E runs out to 16 GPM but has flat curve from 0 to 8 GPM at 10 feet of head. I have been unable to get a manual on the boiler but my similar vintage and size boiler has a 007 for a circulator.

A standard Taco 007 runs out to 20 GPM starting with a 11 PSI shutoff. If I take look at 8 GPM its around 7.5 psi so the 007E seems to have bit more pressure as it puts out 10 psi from 0 to 8. My guess is the head loss in the loop probably sets the flow and expect the prior flow is lot lower than 33 GPM runout.

The boiler rating is around 100,000 BTU/hr. If I assume I can get at least 8 GPM through it that's about 3840 lbs per hour or a 26 degree F temp rise across the boiler which does not seem outrageous. I expect the flow rate will be bit more as the Taco 110 has a lower shutoff head with a flat initial curve of 8 PSI so if I line that up on the 007E curve I am at around 12 GPM that gets me down to 17 degree rise. This seems to line up with the standard recommendations that baseboards should be sized in the 20 degree F drop range. The main distribution pipe (I didn't check the radiators is 1" so at 12 GPM the velocity is 4.45 FPS which is well over the recommended velocity of hot water in pipes of 2 to 3 FPS.

The piping set up for the wood boiler is pretty good, lots of isolation valves. It has the older style overheat valve that requires power to open and the safety is plumbed into the firebox. No storage but given its age (1979) not worth throwing good money after bad until her and her husband decide they want to deal with it. They have an oil boiler next to it but its an either or system, the boiler is not an automatic backup.

I may just buy the 007E and if it does not work on the nieces it may get swapped in on mine

So has anyone tried a similar upgrade? Or have any suggestions?
 
Are you referring to a 0011 Taco? That sounds pretty high flow and head for a typical residential indoor loop. Would be nice to have more information on what kind of distance and size piping it's pushing.
A Grundfos Alpha has a lot of flow options and is pretty reasonably priced for an ECM.
 
Its a Taco 110 "Red Baron" circulator. https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.supplyhouse.com/manuals/1348755618119/81388_PROD_FILE.pdf. I have seen them used on a lot of older oil boilers as the primary loop circulator on systems with zone valves. I expect it was an an easy universal pump. The pressure drop through the pipe and fittings is going to limit the flow way before it runs out on the curve.

Looking at the Grundfos curves, the Alpha 3 has the hihger flow but even at low setting the heads too high. The Alpha 1 looks like its similar curve but its got three curves so it might be a better one for customizing.
 
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Ok, yes, forgot about those, around here I see a lot more old B&G's.
An ecm would be a really nice upgrade.
 
I have Grundfos Alpha on order, it looks like it has a bit more flexibility than the Taco 007E and a bit more flow. Its half the cost of the Taco 110 although a few more bucks than the 007E. I was also worried that the Taco has some built in modes that may not line up with the boiler operation that may not be selectable. I will start out the Alpha on low range fixed speed operation and then see if the auto operation is a better fit. Hard to justify pulling an old circulator for energy savings alone but its no a brainer when the old pump is dead.
 
My Alpha (15-55?) is the only ECM circ I have any experience with. I would highly recommend it, it is a very nice unit. But I can't say it will meet your GPM needs or not. Let us know when you find out. :)