Whiff of unburnt heating oil from CH (balanced) flue

Jan 06, 2011 2 Replies

There is an occasional whiff of unburnt heating oil (kerosene) from the CH (balanced) flue.



The burner is a Reillo 40. Please, what is the most likely cause:


  1. Worn fuel nozzle?


  1. Incorrectly set ignition electrode gap?

  2. Incorrect pump pressure?


  1. Something else?



TIA


We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the drugs began to take hold. I remember jim saying something like:

All of those.

Or air setting. Make sure the intake is clear, all the way from the wall to the fire chamber. To set it up properly, a decent flue gas analyser is necessary, but you can get to within 10% of optimum by eye. If it's just an occasional whiff, it might be transient conditions, such as a gust against the flue. What kind of flue? If it's one of those poke-out-of-the-wall stubby types, those are sometimes fairly s*it, it must be said.

When was it properly serviced? There is often a pulse of smell at the moment of ignition but a consistent smell suggests the nozzle/oil pressure/air supply require checking.

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