Pressure testing new (to me) Eko 40.

[DSSA]

I'm preparing to test the Orlan Eko 40 I picked up this past weekend (2008 build date) to make sure it's holding pressure as it should before I get too deep into it.


My plan was to connect my hose to it (60 psi max house pressure) at the bottom fill port, close the swing valves that the prior owner has on the tee connected to the 2" return port at the bottom, then cap the 2" outlet at the top of the boiler with a 2" pipe cap that I'm drilling and tapping 1/4" NPT. I'll then install a 1/4" FNPT x MNPT inline ball valve in this port, fill slowly until I purge the air out of the system, then install a pressure gauge into the FNPT port of the ball valve and slowly raise pressure with the house hose until roughly 45psi and check it for leaks.

There's no pressure relief valve on it at the moment, just the basically the bare boiler as it would have come from the factory.

Just wanted to run it by someone in-the-know, as it's my first time testing a boiler like this.

If no leaks are found, I then plan on setting up a temporary circulation system with a 12V pump, some hose, and two buckets to circulate some descaler or the like for an hour or two to clean it, then do a final flush before moving it into the garage it's going to be installed into.

Any advice is appreciated.

 

[DSSA]

Edit to above, for clarification of the above, I said I'd be hooking up the hose to the "bottom fill port", which thinking about it, I would believe it to actually be the boiler drain port.

 

[PassionForFire&Water]

Before you test with water, test with compressed air and check for leaks with water/soap solution.

STEPS:
install 30 psi rated pressure relief valve. This way you have some protection
SET air compressor output at 5 psi.
cap all boiler ports
put 5 psi air pressure in boiler.
Test with water/soap solution
Repair leaks if any

Then do pressure test with water at 45 psi, what is 1.5 times the max working pressure of 30 psi.

 

[salecker]

Do not pressurize it without it full of water
If you just use just air if there is a weak spot you will get a violent failure that could hurt or kill you
Fill it with water first then pressurize it to 80 psi with air.
the reason is water cannot be compressed, but air can. So if there is a week spot and it full of water you will not have any stored energy as the water cannot be compressed.
With just air you keep pushing more and more air into it till it's at the pressure you want, but if it ruptures it is usually, can be violent
When i built my system i was told to test everything to 80 psi, that is over 2x the operating pressure, if it passes 80 psi then you should not have any leaks at operating psi

 

[DSSA]

Do not pressurize it without it full of water
If you just use just air if there is a weak spot you will get a violent failure that could hurt or kill you
Fill it with water first then pressurize it to 80 psi with air.
the reason is water cannot be compressed, but air can. So if there is a week spot and it full of water you will not have any stored energy as the water cannot be compressed.
With just air you keep pushing more and more air into it till it's at the pressure you want, but if it ruptures it is usually, can be violent
When i built my system i was told to test everything to 80 psi, that is over 2x the operating pressure, if it passes 80 psi then you should not have any leaks at operating psi

Appreciated, but I wasn't planning on following the "pressurize with air first post" above. I'm well versed on air pressure, I'm trying to get the water pressure testing done today while we have one of the few remaining days of good weather, and I wasn't understanding the logic of pressurizing it to 5psi with air and then taking the time to spray the every inch of the water jacket (in and out) and all of the welds/pipes/connections down with soapy water to look for bubbles. It seems counter-intuitive.

Operating pressure on this boiler is 1.8BAR, (26.106 PSI), and I've seen many write-ups suggesting pressurizing to 1.5x operating pressure, which comes out to 39.159 PSI, so that's why I planned on pressure-testing it with water to 40 psi.

I actually pressurized it to 45 PSI as I found that my pump controller for the house is only pushing to that point (time for a new pressure switch, but I'll try to adjust the current one that was installed in 2016 first). My 1/4" NPT ball valve didn't arrive like it was supposed to, so I had to just drill an tap the 2" cap, fill it slowly until full, then install the gauge into the port. While filling, I over-ran it a bit, so I'm waiting until it's dry (outside on the trailer, backed up to the closest hose bib) to inspect it again.

All covers are off, and I've cleaned the inside, and so far---no leaks.

Are you suggesting that I I run it up to 80 PSI after passing this test?

If so, I'll probably tap the 2" cap a second time and just install a schrader valve into it and then push air into it on top of the water to 80psi. (kind of like a air bladder pressure tank for a well-pump), unless you can tell me why that wouldn't accomplish the goal (and I'm all ears). I'd pressurize it to 80 PSI with water alone, but with my current well setup that's just not in the cards.