Should I run my oil boiler?

[ChadD]

I now exclusively heat with wood and am no longer using my oil boiler for hot water as I installed a geospring heat pump hot water heater a couple months back. Should I be running my boiler occasionally to "maintain" it so I don't have problems with it in the future? If so how often.

 

[begreen]

Yes, cycle it once every month at least.

 

[firefighterjake]

I run my oil boiler a few times in the Fall . . . first because it's sometimes just easier to let it run and heat up the house a bit to take off the chill . . . despite my urge to only use wood . . . and second because it is nice to check everything out as I want to fix any issues this time of year on my back up heating system rather than in middle of the winter, right before I go away for a week.

As to how often . . . my oil boiler comes on a few times each month . . . typically in the early morning hour on very cold days . . . before I reload the stove in the morning. I also cycle it a few times when temps dip down into the sub-zero temps for a few days to just keep the hot water moving through the plumbing and into the crawl space with the domestic water pipes . . . I figure having a bit of heat down there may help some.

 

[STIHLY DAN]

No. cold start boilers that do not heat h2o are fine sitting for 6 months. Its a hunk of iron with a motor and electrodes. Fire it off every fall so you know your chimneys clear, burn out any dust and crap. 1 thing I would suggest is to add fuel treatment to the tank, don't want water build up.

 

[begreen]

I run my oil boiler a few times in the Fall . . . first because it's sometimes just easier to let it run and heat up the house a bit to take off the chill . . . despite my urge to only use wood . . . and second because it is nice to check everything out as I want to fix any issues this time of year on my back up heating system rather than in middle of the winter, right before I go away for a week.

As to how often . . . my oil boiler comes on a few times each month . . . typically in the early morning hour on very cold days . . . before I reload the stove in the morning. I also cycle it a few times when temps dip down into the sub-zero temps for a few days to just keep the hot water moving through the plumbing and into the crawl space with the domestic water pipes . . . I figure having a bit of heat down there may help some.

Exactly right. A little heat in the basement is a good thing when the wood stove is upstairs and the temps outside are cold. It's also helpful for those pipes in exterior walls. There are a few more components in the system, like pumps, relays, stats, etc.. that benefit from occasional exercise.

 

[jeffesonm]

Subscribing to this thread... I am about to be in the exact same situation. How do you like the Geospring?

 

[tom dee]

better bone up on a geospring . makes me look at gassifiers for heating water and a water battery or such seems this heat pump water heating is kinda a maint . nightmare looks like

 

[ChadD]

Subscribing to this thread... I am about to be in the exact same situation. How do you like the Geospring?

It has been great. Electric bill stayed about the same because I no longer have to run my dehumidifier in the basement the CL+P $400 rebate came 3 weeks after I sent it in and after I get my $300 tax credit from Uncle Sam
it will have only cost me $300 out of pocket with a 10 year extended warranty. I am now considering putting a Blaze king princess in the basement on my other chimney.

 

[jeffesonm]

Good to hear! Just waiting on permits and I'll be putting mine in....