Propane Fired Steam Heating

Propane Gas fired boilers in general run pretty clean but it’s not the combustion that requires frequent attention to avoid trouble its the process of generating steam and the piping and components that require attention especially if the piping and or boiler is older.

Read each of the recommended services and facts below to properly maintain and have your steam system run as efficiently as possible.

Water Level in Steam Boiler:

The first and most important item to know about when it comes to a steam heating system is to know what and where the glass water level gauge is. This is a glass tube on the side of your boiler that tells you what the water level in the boiler is. It is very important to be able to see what the water level is in the boiler. This can tell you why you are having trouble if you seem to have no heat.

If the boiler has too much water and you can’t see the level because the glass gauge is completely full that’s no good and you could hear loud banging in the pipes or even have water leaking at your radiators from the air vents. If you see no water In the glass gauge but the boiler is still running this is very bad because if the boiler is heating up with no water in it it can cause the boiler block to crack then leak everywhere and the boiler would be a total loss at that point. If you have a working device called a low water cut off this shuts off the boiker when it detects no water protecting your system.

This is why having a steam boiler serviced each year is very important.  We take steps to make sure you can always get a correct reading and see the water level.

Please read the next important fact about how to correctly maintain a steam boiler.

Low water cut off:

This is one of the most important parts on a steam boiler. This device has a probe inside the boiler andcwhen it does not detect any water it first shuts the burners off so it stops heating up the boiler. Second if you have a automatic water feed installed it tells the water feed to start feeding water into the boiler until it finally detects water again. Then it stops feeding water and tells the boiler to fire up and run again if there is a call for heat.

If the boiler runs and is heating up without water even for a short period of time this can cause your boiler to crack and the boiler would then need to be replaced. This why it’s extremely important to have a working Low water cut off in your system and always need to mange sure the probe can detect the water level by having your system serviced every year.

Automatic water feed:

This is a optional device you can have installed on your steam system. If your low water cut off doesnt detect water it shuts the boiler down then either sends a signal to a automatic water feed to start feeding water into the boiler or if you don’t have one you would have to manually open the water valve to feed water into the boiler until the light shuts off on the lowc water cut off. If you have a automatic washer feed everything is done automatically and you dont have to physically check on your steam systems water level everything is taken care of automatically.

Read the next important fact on Steam systems below.

Finally, I perform any necessary maintenance tasks to keep the propane fired steam boiler running smoothly. This may include replacing worn or damaged components, lubricating moving parts, and checking the overall condition of the system to identify any potential issues that may need to be addressed in the future.