Essential Boiler Maintenance Checklist for Every Homeowner
Ensure dependable home heating this winter.
How do you heat your home in the winter? If you’re one of the homeowners in Orient, Mattituck, Wading River or other towns in Suffolk County who uses a boiler for heat, your system works differently than “forced air” heating.
You don’t need to worry about cleaning ductwork or checking an air filter like a homeowner with a furnace, but there is still plenty of upkeep for a boiler. Here are some simple maintenance steps you should take this fall before the frigid weather arrives in Long Island.
TIP #1 — Check Your Water Level Gauge
If you have too much water in your boiler’s tank, it could generate heat less efficiently, and if the water level is too low, your system could overheat. Please take a moment to check your steam boiler’s glass vial gauge to make sure it’s at the manufacturer’s recommended level. Add more water to the tank or drain water out if the level needs to be adjusted.
TIP #2 — Flush Out Sediment
Sludge and sediment can easily build up in your boiler’s tank, leading to inefficient operation and speeding up wear and tear on the system. But you can easily flush out this sediment by shutting down the boiler and opening the drain valve until the water coming out turns clear. Be sure to refill the tank to the correct level after closing the drain valve.
TIP #3 — Test Your Boiler
If there’s a service issue with your boiler, it’s best to find out now instead of on a freezing evening. Turn the heat up in your home and make sure all your radiators are open. If your boiler doesn’t come on, make sure all power switches are turned on, no fuses have blown and no circuits have tripped. Ensure your heating oil tank is at least 1/8 full. (If it isn’t, you need to reach out to us for a heating oil delivery.)
Finally, you can press the RESET button on your system’s burner and hold it for three seconds to see if that solves the issue. Only do this once.
If none of these tips get your radiators to heat up, contact Burt’s Reliable for a repair visit.
TIP #4 — Schedule a Professional Boiler Tune-Up
Arranging yearly service for your boiler is crucial to keeping it running at peak efficiency. An annual tune-up also gives our technicians a chance to look for lingering issues and fix them before they cause a breakdown. Professional maintenance extends your boiler’s service life, and it’s also typically required to keep your manufacturer’s warranty in place.
Fall is an excellent time to arrange routine maintenance. We can take care of your tune-up before our technicians get really busy with winter heating repair calls.
EXTRA TIP — Contact Burt’s Reliable About Household Changes
If you’re on our automatic heating oil delivery schedule, we must know about changes in your household that could lead to changes in your fuel consumption patterns. These could include:
- A new baby or an older relative moving into your home.
- New construction that changed the amount of space you need to heat.
- Additional or new heating oil equipment
If you need to update us on a recent change — or you want to arrange a boiler tune-up — please contact Burt’s Reliable now.