# Strong Smoke Odor after Okofen installation



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

Hoping to get some help solving our smoke odor problem with new installation of Okofen PE 32 boiler. We have very strong smoke odor like a smoldering campfire in out basement which comes up into the kitchen under the door. The odor seems to be coming off the vent pipe which goes to the chimney. The pipe has many seams which have been sealed with silicone and a drafting vent which has also bee covered to try to stop the smoke smell. The chimney has been re-extended further above the roof. The venting pipe from the boiler to the chimney and is about 5 feet and the installer states correct drafting measurements when tested. The Okofen boiler is in front of our propane boiler and we have the propane boiler as a back up. We ran the boiler hard yesterday turned up the heat to 90, and opened the windows and did not get the smoke smell in the house. But this morning it is back again after closing the house up at night with a few windows open. Has anyone else had this problem? Would anyone have any ideas for solutions. Would a double layer 90 degree vent pipe with no seams be possible?'

Thanks


----------



## TimfromMA (May 12, 2014)

A smokey smell is quite common with new installations. It’s usually the pain curing under the high heat.  It should go away after a short while.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

TimfromMA said:


> A smokey smell is quite common with new installations. It’s usually the pain curing under the high heat.  It should go away after a short while.


We are 2 weeks into the installation. How long does this smoke smell last?


----------



## TimfromMA (May 12, 2014)

It shouldn't be that long. The smell I was referring to should go away after a couple hours of running on high.


----------



## maple1 (May 12, 2014)

I think I would be going up the installer/dealer/manufacturer ladder - something sounds amiss....


----------



## Jags (May 12, 2014)

Possibly a draft inducing cap for the top of the chimney??


----------



## __dan (May 12, 2014)

My guess would be unburned fuel remains in the burn area after the boiler has shut down for an off cycle. Fuel that is only charcoal remaining probably has no smell, but unburned fuel that has volatiles remaining can have a strong acrid smell as it smolders.

If the boiler is new, there are probably some setup parameters like post purge, where the boiler will try to burn the remaining fuel in an off, shutdown cycle.

That's what I would look for, unburned fuel in the burner area when the boiler goes off. Maybe open it up as a burn cycle ends and make sure there are no pellets, creosote, remaining to be seen. For a new install, I would be looking for dealer / factory help with troubleshooting


----------



## heaterman (May 12, 2014)

What does the draft in your chimney measure? 
If I read your post correctly, the smell disappears if you burn the boiler with a door or window open? That would seem to indicate not enough combustion air.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

Draft is at 0.5 to 0.11 
We have been talking to Maine Energy, but now after 2 weeks we have insisted they come down and look at the boiler and the install.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

You cant smell it around the boiler, we have stuck our noses all over the boiler inside and out, but it does smell off the vent pipe. It does smell like smoldering wood. We have it on Summer program now because of low need for heat, mostly just fires to keep water hot in the tank. 

Thankfully this is happening now in the spring and we are getting some mild weather so I can air out the house It is really frustrating especially after investing big bucks for purchase and install. It is like buying a new Cadillac but you can't drive it because when you turn on the engine the car fills up with smoke!


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

We are thinking of trying to wrap high temp foil tape around the joints to the vent pipe to the chimney. Has anyone had to use this solution?


----------



## henfruit (May 12, 2014)

I use that on my wood boiler smoke pipe. Works fine.


----------



## maple1 (May 12, 2014)

NHTreehugger said:


> Draft is at 0.5 to 0.11
> We have been talking to Maine Energy, but now after 2 weeks we have insisted they come down and look at the boiler and the install.


 
I don't think the 0.5 is right - you likely need another '0' in front of the 5. But that's a wide range of draft - at what states of operation/conditions are those measurements?

And on the tape - it might help the problem, but I would think it wouldn't be necessary if everything was done right and I wouldn't be bandaiding a new install. Keep after everyone on your ladder.

If the problem seems to alleviate with windows open, maybe you need a fresh air intake, or more ventilation in your basement? It is in your basement, right?


----------



## Fred61 (May 12, 2014)

You need to check your draft with the boiler cold. You could use some incense for a smoke test to see if you have a downdraft or you could use a lightweight paper plate to see if there is some updraft at the thimble. Just take the plate and bring it up close to the thimble to see if the draft sucks it in. Pay attention because even if you have a good draft, as soon as the plate is sucked on to the thimble, it will be stopping the draft and will fall off. There will not be continuous suction that will hold the plate in place but it will give you some idea of which direction the cold draft is moving.


EDIT
Do these tests with your windows open


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

Where did you find the high temp foil tape? Is it available at Lowes or Home Depot?


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

Yes we have a fresh air vent , 6" diameter aluminum pipe installed in basement wall which leads outside. It is inserted into a plastic barrel to create a draft I think.
Maine Energy is coming out tomorrow to inspect the boiler and the install. I hope they have the solution to this problem. I agree they need to fix this installation.

Thanks to everyone's helpful comments and suggestions!


----------



## Floydian (May 12, 2014)

Hello NHT,

I can't really think of anything that hasn't already been mentioned. I'm just gonna ask: you have a working CO detector, right?

Noah


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 12, 2014)

yes we have the CO2 monitor, that is a real concern, thanks for asking. Boiler is shut down until Maine Energy looks at it tomorrow.


----------



## heaterman (May 12, 2014)

I would measure the draft under various outside conditions, IE: temperature and wind velocity/direction and see if it stays stable.
Would also recommend checking it with the chimney both cold and hot.

We ran into a situation where a customer experienced what is called cold "stacking" with a natural draft gas boiler and it sent him to the hospital. It took a little bit to figure out what was going on but basically when the chimney was cold [boiler off for an extended period of time]  there was enough ambient temperature air in the chimney to effectively put a lid on it and cause the exhaust to spill out of the draft hood.
Whenever we went to check it over the course of the week following the incident, the chimney was drawing fine because the stack was warmed up. I finally picked up on it when I happened to check it after the boiler had been off for a couple hours on a mild day.
The boiler fired and exhaust began to roll out of the draft hood immediately. There was no roll out limit on the hood of the old boiler so it didn't shut down. The draft showed 0.00" so i went outside to see it something was blocking the vent and found it all clear but absolutely no heat coming out of the cap. Everything was going inside. The exhaust was simply following the path of least resistance.

The chimney was B-vent installed through the basement wall and up the exterior of the house. It was a little oversized for the btu rating of the boiler and the weight/volume of the cold air in the stack was enough to overcome the rise of the lighter exhaust vapor. You might as well have just put a plug in the top of that chimney when the boiler was running with off periods of 2-3 hours.

We solved the problem by installing a mechanical draft inducer (Tjernlund) that came on whenever the burner fired.

A few questions for you.........How tall is the chimney? What diameter is it? What material is it made out of? Is it interior or exterior to the house and is it insulated?

BTW......your draft should probably be in the range of -.03 to -.06 wc". Check the owners manual that came with the unit.

I know that Windhager specifies stainless insulated pipe for a number of reasons but keeping the flue somewhat warm during off periods is one of them. The triple wall air cooled chimneys do not do that.

You know...I'm just musing here, but there are a lot of freshly minted techs and installers who have little to no experience with anything but forced draft appliances. The have little knowledge of natural draft and how chimneys work......how old was your installer?


----------



## flyingcow (May 13, 2014)

heaterman, you're post reminded  me of this.....I've seen people put a few pieces of newspaper in the bottom of chimney, light them off and then start a fire in the semi air tight wood stove. Thats how they started a good draft.


----------



## Karl_northwind (May 13, 2014)

flyingcow said:


> heaterman, you're post reminded  me of this.....I've seen people put a few pieces of newspaper in the bottom of chimney, light them off and then start a fire in the semi air tight wood stove. Thats how they started a good draft.


That's how I have to start my hearthstone from cold.  otherwise it won't draft worth a damn, and then it doesn't draft well till it starts to heat up.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 15, 2014)

heaterman said:


> I would measure the draft under various outside conditions, IE: temperature and wind velocity/direction and see if it stays stable.
> Would also recommend checking it with the chimney both cold and hot.
> 
> We ran into a situation where a customer experienced what is called cold "stacking" with a natural draft gas boiler and it sent him to the hospital. It took a little bit to figure out what was going on but basically when the chimney was cold [boiler off for an extended period of time]  there was enough ambient temperature air in the chimney to effectively put a lid on it and cause the exhaust to spill out of the draft hood.
> ...




We have stainless steel chimney which goes up the  mid basement another  2 stories , and another 4 feet above the roof. It is really tall. Looks 8-10" diameter pipe. 

Maine Energy Rep came down inspected top to bottom the boiler, no issues. We fired the boiler and all in agreement pipe leading to chimney leaking the smoke. we tried taping the seams of the pipe with foiled tape and that seamed to work for one day. 
This morning we have the same problem, basement full of strong smoke smell. the pipe leading to chimney was cold, so I fired up boiler and no smell coming off pipe, it's all blowing out a small fan on the back of the boiler. 
Maine Energy called again and they say it is a drafting problem. Our installer has done several Frohling and Kedel installs, but this his first Okofen install. He is locating a chimney installer now for help and looking into a chimney top draft inducer.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 15, 2014)

We have no problems with smoke smell when the boiler is running all day.  So I guess it is the cold air in the morning affecting the draft when the boiler fires in the morning to heat hot water. 

chimney top draft inducers look expensive. Are the automatics draft inducers placed in the vent pipe which are cheaper work just as well?


----------



## maple1 (May 15, 2014)

*it's all blowing out a small fan on the back of the boiler. *

This sounds like a red flag to me. What is that fan for? Is it not running when it should be? Is it running the wrong way? Seems to me that smoke shouldn't be coming out a fan even if your chimney isn't drafting well. I think I would inform the ME guy that came yesterday about that & see what he says. I know nothing about these units though...


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 15, 2014)

maple1 said:


> *it's all blowing out a small fan on the back of the boiler. *
> 
> This sounds like a red flag to me. What is that fan for? Is it not running when it should be? Is it running the wrong way? Seems to me that smoke shouldn't be coming out a fan even if your chimney isn't drafting well. I think I would inform the ME guy that came yesterday about that & see what he says. I know nothing about these units though...




Ok I will call them now.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 15, 2014)

Call to Maine Energy and they are sure it is a draft problem and recommending the draft inducer. 

So hopefully this works.


----------



## maple1 (May 15, 2014)

But what did they say about that fan & smoke coming out of it? What is the fan for? Is the fan running when smoke comes out?

As I said I know nothing about this unit - but I'm thinking that if a boiler has a fan, it should be running when it's burning.  And if it's running, it shouldn't be blowing smoke out. Just sounds way odd to me.


----------



## heaterman (May 16, 2014)

Good video about draft and combustion for all appliance, not just boilers.   



I'd like to clarify something I said..... my recommendation to test with windows open and closed is just for reference. Your boiler, or any appliance should always be tested under actual operating conditions. You don't have your windows open in the winter so your boiler should be set up to run accordingly.


----------



## sinnian (May 16, 2014)

Are your sills and joists spray foam insulated?


----------



## kopeck (May 19, 2014)

Not really the same but my Tarm does funny things when the boiler it's self is cold (room temp or lower).

When I start a fire I tend to get a few whips of smoke from any little pin hole (stack pipe) and if I don't close the door all the way smoke will get out there too.  Once the flue warms for a bit it's no longer a problem.  Warmer temps outside also compound the issue.  In the dead of winter with two fires a day I have zero problems.

K


----------



## bigbobs (May 19, 2014)

My old Tasso has down drafting issues when cold. I find if I open a basement window for a few minutes, it will reverse the draft and do not fill the basement with smoke. I have a 2 story exterior masonry clay lined chimney FWIW.


----------



## Letsburnwoodnotoil (May 22, 2014)

Sounds like you have a chimney that is getting cold as evidenced by the fact that everything is working correctly when the chimney produces the correct draft.

Let’s get back to basics (physics). When the temperature inside a chimney is the same as that outside of it, there is little or no draft! And if the temperature inside a chimney should become lower than the temperature outside of it, the chimney will create a downdraft or POSITIVE pressure at the appliance flue collar, period. During this time when there is a positive pressure, you are going to smell your chimney. When you re-ignite your appliance, this pressure situation will then require enough heated air introduced into the chimney to raise the temperature within the chimney until it is again warmer than the surrounding air and then you will again have a negative pressure at the flue collar of the appliance. Don’t shoot the messenger here, it’s just plain physics. And as this process is being reversed, depending on how well you seal up the cracks in the flue pipe, there will be some odor. Or you could install some sort of draft assistance to run just long enough for the boiler to warm the chimney, getting you to that point where you have all seen it working correctly.

After burning cord wood for 30+ years and switching to pellets, I have had a renaissance myself. The remarkably low flue gas temperatures of modern, high efficiency pellet boilers, especially the Okofen like yours, are simply not going to heat a chimney to the same temperature that other lower efficiency appliances will. Comparing your installers experience with other brands leaves out this important piece of the equation.

I feel for you, as the inside of a chimney does not smell as nice as a crackling fireplace! Just to make you feel better, we did have to tape our joints also and we have an inside masonry chimney that stays warmer longer which helps. Get in touch with someone that really understands chimneys experientially, like some old guy -}).


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 24, 2014)

Update: we continue with same smoke problems. Maine  Energy Is convinced we have a draft problem so we had a chimney expert come out and look at system and he said we do not have a drafting problem, chimney is good, no problems with trees. He recommended running Okofen boiler in Winter mode instead of summer mode, because temps at night are in 40's, and he thought we are getting so many cold starts maybe causing drafting problem. He suggested doing this for week and keep log. So we started this yesterday morning and by 5pm had to open basement windows again due to powerful smoke smell in basement. My eyes and throat burn, and clothes and hair all have smoke smell if in basement for just minutes. It is not just a faint odor. 
I still smell smoke coming from the back of unit to the right of the fan. There is insulation where smoke smell is so can't see smoke appearance with LED light. Will get installer back to open back of boiler and see if there is any loose fittings.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 24, 2014)

Installer has rescheduled building inspector and fire inspector for next week, but I am not sure if we should postpone again if the boiler isn't really working right. We need this inspection to qualify for the NH rebate.


----------



## TCaldwell (May 25, 2014)

what good is the rebate if the appliance is faulty, removing the skin where you smell smoke by the fan is a start. I would ask maine energy at this meeting if a problem is not fixed to swap out another boiler and observe for a week. If the problem persists you get your boiler back and persue a different flue vent option, if it does not happen with the new boiler, there is your answer. I would think in front of the fire marshal, they will do whatever it takes on there end. This is a safety issue at this point.


----------



## NHTreehugger (May 27, 2014)

5/27/14 Update: Running Okofen Boiler in Winter Mode since 5/23/14. Try to insulate the boiler room better and close all windows and doors, in case smoke smell was bad and prevent it creeping in to main living areas upstairs. Previous 2 days mixture of rain and sun with high and low pressures for weather. Absolutely no smoke smell! We were ecstatic!. Building inspector and Fire Chief came out around 1 pm to inspect boiler and install. I told them this inspection was rescheduled due to very strong smoke smell in basement when boiler was running. Explained chimney looked at and no draft problems. Explained since running in Winter mode for past 2 days no smell. They were not happy we had this problem and instructed installer to make sure this problem was fixed. Drafting measurements taken today all good. No sign off on project until Installer adds a sprinkler over the boiler. Installer also added today a part which was on order a $200 Barometric? drafting vent which looks just like the last one we removed because it leaked smoke. So at 5PM  go downstairs and basement full of smoke smell coming from the new drafting vent and the same place at the back of the boiler where it is insulated next to the fan.  So I cover it up with tin foil, call the installer again left him a message got the smoke smell back again. Do we need this flapping draft vent? We have paid this installer alot of money to install this boiler, and I can tell he is losing interest in fixing this problem. Our problem is taking time away from his other jobs. But we dont have a working boiler yet! 
Not sure if we need to press Maine Energy engineers to come down again or find a new installer. Can we press for money back on the job since it is not working right?


----------



## __dan (May 27, 2014)

IANAL, I am not a lawyer, but to have a valid claim for damages you might need to show negligence or fraud (or a code violation causing the damages). And having a valid legal doctrine and having something enforced and collected on are two different things. What's been posted so far indicates to me the vendors have been diligent about responding to your problem and attempting to mitigate. Other than that, your contract language would prevail and coverage for smoke damage may not specifically be in there. If the install meets code, smoke damage claims may go to the house insurer.

At the time that you see it making smoke, I am assuming the boiler is "off". For it to smoke, there has to be remaining unburned fuel in the burn chambers and  smoldering in sufficient quantity to produce smoke in excess of what the natural draft can remove. Where I would start is trying to diagnose the actual cause and once that is known, what repairs and damages claims may be indicated or not.

At the time it is smoking, is there still a natural draft at the chimney or has the draft reversed for any reason. Draft requires a fresh makeup air supply and if the house is too tight, the chimney can compete or be starved for makeup air by, for example, exhaust fans running at the same time. Do you have fresh combustion air always available.

The smoke, is it thick enough to see escaping and burn your eyes or is it only enough to detect by smelling. There should be a nearby smoke detector and is the smoke strong enough to trip the smoke detector.

If there is unburned fuel in the burn chamber when the boiler goes off, I would want to know if this is so and why. To me this would indicate either boiler setup or fuel quality.

Is boiler return protection required, installed, and working? Is the boiler maintained above the condensing temperature.


----------



## maple1 (May 27, 2014)

Seems to me a barometric damper would make things worse. Why was it installed if draft readings were supposedly good? Baros are used to limit or reduce draft at the appliance.


----------



## velvetfoot (May 28, 2014)

I will be installing a pellet boiler, a BioWin, in my basement with a similar setup as far as the house goes.  When the oil is off with just the wood insert on, there is a faint odor of smoke from downdraft down the oil flue from the insert's flue.  An automatic damper on the oil boiler helps some, I think, but dampers, aren't air tight and who knows, there is probably another exit path through the burner air intake or something.  As part of the pellet boiler project, I've changed the termination heights of the three flues, so maybe that will help too. 

I feel that negative pressure in the basement is just a natural thing that has to be overcome.  I've never had a problem with the oil boiler as far as smoke or odor or CO, coming through its barometric damper, and am hoping that I too won't experience excessive smokiness with the pellet boiler.  The pellet boiler might cool off periodically since I'll still be using the wood insert, so hopefully, negative draft won't be an issue.

As I noted, is there no such thing as a barometric damper with a real good seal, in case of positive pressure, even if only transitory, in the smoke pipe?  It seems the joints are siliconed and taped, but there's still that flap that can let out the smoke.  

I wonder if the location of the barometric damper could be a factor?  Maybe pictures would help?  I noticed that the Froling P4 manual seems to want it in a Tee in the flue below the smoke pipe, see excerpt below:

"The optimum position for the installation of the barometric damper (1) is in the chimney directly below the flue gas connection. If the chimney is a manufactured chimney, a tee can be use at chimney connection and the barometric damper can be mounted below the tee.
Installation of the barometric damper in the flue gas pipe is not recommended because dust and flue gases may escape into the boiler room."


----------



## maple1 (May 28, 2014)

If I've read all this right, this smoke issue was an issue even when there was no barometric damper installed.

This should be a fixable issue.


----------



## velvetfoot (May 28, 2014)

I think there was no smoke without the baro, but I could be wrong.


----------



## maple1 (May 28, 2014)

Well - maybe so. I was reading as it was added - but maybe it was a replacement.

If it were me, I would buy a Dwyer manometer & hook it up & keep it hooked up and watch the draft readings over a period of time under all conditions. I'm also still leery of that fan opening having smoke come out though - that still doesn't sound right even if there were insufficient draft.


----------



## heaterman (May 28, 2014)

maple1 said:


> Seems to me a barometric damper would make things worse. Why was it installed if draft readings were supposedly good? Baros are used to limit or reduce draft at the appliance.



Technically speaking the barometric is not a damper. It is a regulator which is designed to keep draft at a certain level in the flue regardless of outside conditions which can create high or low draft situations. It has to be in there just like it did on natural draft gas and oil fired equipment.

Maple has a good suggestion in connecting a manometer and watching it when you have the smoke situation occurring. You can fashion a simple water tube manometer from a piece of 1/4" I.D.clear plastic tubing. 

Drill a hole in your vent pipe below the barometric.
Get a piece of 1/4" O.D. tubing...copper. aluminum...whatever and insert it into one end of the plastic tube. Let the tube form a U shape and fill it halfway up with water. 
 Stick the metal tube in the chimney and observe, first with no fire and a cold chimney, then light up the boiler and see what happens. Observe it with all the windows in the house shut and all other appliances turned on. IE: dryer, any exhaust fans, water heater (if gas or oil fired)

The water will balance equally on each leg of the U and change when no draft is present. When you have good negative pressure in the flue the water column will move upward in the leg that is connected to the flue pipe. When you have positive pressure in the flue it will move upward in the leg open to the house atmosphere. 

If you have negative flue pressure and you are still getting smoke that would be a good indication of a problem lying elsewhere in the boiler/burner.

I wouldn't be to hard on the installer or threaten legal action. Just let him know that you expect him or the boiler sales people to get this corrected permanently.
Draft issues can be the devil to figure out because they can occur so intermittently.


----------



## sinnian (May 28, 2014)

I don't know sheet about anything, but on the surface it seems like a combustion air problem.  It doesn't happen when the windows are open............ why does the air intake do into a barrel outside ??? OP thinks to create a draft ???  and seems THAT draft is only happening when it runs a while.  

I'd play with the air intake if it were me.....


----------



## velvetfoot (May 28, 2014)

Looking at an old hearth.com thread, I found this link for a gas tight damper.  Not sure if it's sold here, but they do exist:
http://www.spx.com/en/tigerholm/pd-mp-draught-stabiliser-tigex50/


----------



## __dan (May 28, 2014)

NHTreehugger said:


> No sign off on project until Installer adds a sprinkler over the boiler



This makes no sense. I am not aware of a sprinkler requirement for single family residences. Sprinkler might be required for a different occupancy class like a group home or residential care facility but I've never heard of that for a one family house.

Other than this from the website, http://www.oekofen-usa.com/en-us/products/pellematic.html , there's very little detail on the unit to look at. It looks like a fan forced draft unit, which means pressurization of the combustion chamber and flue. Being a new unit and assuming it was installed according the the factory instructions, I would be looking to the factory or the dealer for support. It could be something as simple as a missing gasket, poor sealing, in the flue gas path.

I would also want to look at the shutdown cycle, how it burns and purges remaining fuel at cycle shutdown.

If it has cleaning doors and door gaskets, those will have to seal very well if the other side is operated at a positive pressure by the forced draft fan.

Since it's new, I would look at typical setup problems.


----------



## sinnian (May 28, 2014)

__dan said:


> This makes no sense. I am not aware of a sprinkler requirement for single family residences.



There are a lot of municipalities in NE going towards sprinkler systems for new construction ~ this is probably a local code requirement.


----------



## Fred61 (May 28, 2014)

I don't know if it's code or not but all professional installations here have a sprinkler head over the burner. I have one above my oil boiler.


----------



## heaterman (Jun 1, 2014)

__dan said:


> This makes no sense. I am not aware of a sprinkler requirement for single family residences. Sprinkler might be required for a different occupancy class like a group home or residential care facility but I've never heard of that for a one family house.
> 
> Other than this from the website, http://www.oekofen-usa.com/en-us/products/pellematic.html , there's very little detail on the unit to look at. It looks like a fan forced draft unit, which means pressurization of the combustion chamber and flue. Being a new unit and assuming it was installed according the the factory instructions, I would be looking to the factory or the dealer for support. It could be something as simple as a missing gasket, poor sealing, in the flue gas path.
> 
> ...





*"fan forced draft unit, which means pressurization of the combustion chamber and flue." *

_Exactly. Draft is critical in all types of boilers stoves and whatever but especially so when dealing with positive pressure in the boiler itself. _


----------



## velvetfoot (Jun 1, 2014)

Isn't the typical barometric damper a weak link since it doesn't have a positve seal?


----------



## heaterman (Jun 18, 2014)

Did this issue ever get resolved and if so, how?


----------



## peakbagger (Jun 18, 2014)

My inspector made me install a sprinkler head over my oil boiler in 1988. Its in the makeup water line.


----------



## heaterman (Jun 18, 2014)

peakbagger said:


> My inspector made me install a sprinkler head over my oil boiler in 1988. Its in the makeup water line.




Pretty standard procedure although I always questioned the inspectors as to why a hot water boiler needed a sprinkler and a forced air furnace did not.  Made no sense to me
As of late, neither the local or state guys are making a big deal about it and it's either off the books or else they are ignoring it around here. Was just in a boiler room with a 3.7MMbtu boiler, recently installed and it had no sprinkler in it. Code officials sticker was right on the boiler.
Personally I think a lot of the codes for boilers are leftovers from when the appliances used were actually "boilers" (think steam) instead of something that just heats water. 

Inspectors and other officials being what they are though, they try to protect their job and prove they are worth their cost of "upkeep".


----------



## NE WOOD BURNER (Jun 25, 2014)

did this ever get resolved?
I am assuming this is an exterior chimney?


----------



## thommymac (Dec 23, 2014)

NHTreehugger said:


> Hoping to get some help solving our smoke odor problem with new installation of Okofen PE 32 boiler. We have very strong smoke odor like a smoldering campfire in out basement which comes up into the kitchen under the door. The odor seems to be coming off the vent pipe which goes to the chimney. The pipe has many seams which have been sealed with silicone and a drafting vent which has also bee covered to try to stop the smoke smell. The chimney has been re-extended further above the roof. The venting pipe from the boiler to the chimney and is about 5 feet and the installer states correct drafting measurements when tested. The Okofen boiler is in front of our propane boiler and we have the propane boiler as a back up. We ran the boiler hard yesterday turned up the heat to 90, and opened the windows and did not get the smoke smell in the house. But this morning it is back again after closing the house up at night with a few windows open. Has anyone else had this problem? Would anyone have any ideas for solutions. Would a double layer 90 degree vent pipe with no seams be possible?'
> 
> Thanks



check that all transformers for fans are correct voltage, I have found from factory 12 volt  transformers  where a 24 volt was required  causing low fan speed,  poor draft.
there is an electrical ladder that shows the path way  for any modern furnace.... the key is that  they occur sequentially or you may have what you appear to have now.
simple enough to review schematic and check required voltage for each fan.   Pass it to a qualified electrician....
unfortunately  in manufacturing there are parts that get installed in the wrong position and  one can waste a lot of time with a product that has factory error.


----------

