Do you drain our OWB upon Spring shut down?

[J1m]

Just like everyone else, I simply cannot believe this weather! NOAA is calling for mid 70's today and nearly 80 tomorrow in Northern Maine!

I'm not quite ready to shut down the P&M yet because NOAA's also calling for lower 20's some nights...But it's got me thinking what to do when it comes time to call it quits for the Summer.

What's the general consensus when conducting your Spring shut down procedures? Does everyone drain their boiler? I remember the gallon of water conditioner being kind of pricey, so I'd rather not buy it again in the Fall if it's not necessary - but I don't want to leave the water in the boiler if it's considered harmful.

 

[beerman6]

I have drained mine every year.Still using the conditioner the dealer gave me 5 years ago.

I have let my fire go out for now,still have the pump running though.I'm guessing it will get cold again soon.

 

[Laird]

I add a little conditioner and then top off the water. I send a sample to the lab and they let me know if it's alright......it has been within specs every year so far and I'm still working on the first gallon for 4 years. I will turn the pump on for 24 hrs once a month in the off season.

 

[hoogie]

you might wanna check your manual, for my empyer gasser pro200 they say to top it off all the way with your conditiner still in there, like others i draw a sample off and send er in to make sure it tests out right...i dont think you ever wanna drain it....more rust and oxygen....

 

[Stihl310]

I top mine off till it's about to run out the fill. Having it full keeps the conditioner in contact with all the metallic parts.

 

[jlromine76]

I have a Shaver with two pumps that I leave full and top it off with water and treatment chemicals. I will run one last hot fire with a couple of creasote logs and some really dry stuff to help with the buildup as well. during the summer I try to turn on the pumps once a week for a few hours to get the chemicals running through the PEX and to keep the pumps moving. Havent had any issues yet but this is only year three for me. I let my fire die out last week but the pumps are still running just in case the cold does come back to Indy.

 

[Medman]

I shovel out the ashes then take the shop vac to the inside of the fire box. (after it cools of course).. I then coat the inside of the box with oil usually from my last oil change.
I drain the entire system and refill with fresh conditioner and H2o.

 

[topofthehil]

do not drain the boiler

do not drain the boiler, and do not leave it empty.
that would be a very costly mistake...I did that last year and it cost me several hundred $.
I got pitting, clogged heat exchangers and had to rebuild several circ pumps.
not to mention hours and hours of labor cleaning the inside of the boiler.
spend the extra $ to treat the water for the off season.
fill it to the top and do water testing to be sure your are at recommended specs.

 

[THE PLUMMER]

NO!!!! , letting air into the boiler cause 100x the corrosion versus keeping it topped off and capped. Oxy is the main catalyst in corrosion. Its also a good idea to excercise the pumps to keep air pockets or corrosion in the body, there are actually boiler controllers that have the pump exercise feature that do this once a month. Come start up, I have replaced many a pumps that sat there and cavitated till they burned up. Its a good idea to drain off any solids that might settle then top it back off and make sure the correct treatment is in place. anti-oxidizers.... If you read some articles on the subject, there is a reason we go to great lengths and expense to have air eliminators on the closed type systems, and thats how they can comfortably get 30+ years from those boilers. Corrosion is the big reason an OWB's life gets cut short. This is also why pump manufacturers won't warranty cast iron pumps on open loops, your supposed to use stainless or bronze as stated with grundfos & taco.