Riello oil pump - water in system - advice

[George744]

Hello All,
I'm having a nightmare with my Riello Oil Burner - pump. My own fault initially - I tipped the tank a bit as new oil wasn't coming for a few days - this caused the pump to fail - water and gunk into the system. Tiger Loop full of gunk too.
Replaced pump after 900 litre oil delivery and Tiger loop - ran perfectly for a few days - same symptoms returned. Checked for water in tank with Kulor Kut paste - 4 inches of water!! - Should have checked it before but had no signs as I had caused initial problem. 2nd Pump Failed.

Sucked out all water I could - down to less than 1 cm now.

New Tiger loop lots of gunk in it - cleaned it out in the Oil and put in an in-line filter.

My question is this: I seem to have to buy another Pump, yet it seems to run perfectly (I did take off the cover and clean it out and made sure cogs are spinning correctly) - very nervous now of another pump fail! Why are they failing so easilly? Can they be repaired? Running out of money for new pump, tiger loop, filters etc!

Any advice - greatly appreciated.

 

[Best]

Hello George. I assume you are not oil qualified. If you are doing this all yourself, how are you setting up the boiler etc?
The pumps can be carefully opened and flushed out thoroughly if only shortly after they have been water contaminated. Left a few weeks or months and they are badly rusted inside. Once water gets into oil pump, it will be in the oil line, oil hoses plus pipe leaving oil pump, plus nozzle which is normally then ruined.
Get a proper oil engineer in to repair and service your boiler. They would have checked for water and dirt, flushed out and replaced oil filters and set boiler with an analyser. You are wasting more money trying to save a boiler service fee probably

 

[George744]

Thanks for the prompt reply Best. I'm not trying to save on a boiler service and agree now that I will have to get a qualified guy in. The reason I haven't yet is because I had already replaced my pump myself last year and it ran perfectly for months until I tipped my tank and caused the fail - so it looked like the pump I got was perfecly set up on receipt, for my system.
I have had my boiler serviced by a reputable company in the past 12 months and he obviously "didn't" check for water in my tank and - dropped his Henry hoover and emptied it's contents of black soot all over my house.
New pumps run perfect for me (unless I put water through them - ha) and I didn't think I needed an expert to remove water and swap a pump. (I've already swapped my nozzle).

 

[Best]

You do need an oil engineer to fit oil pumps and nozzles.
Oil pumps need set with an oil pressure gauge and nozzles vary in output slightly and also from a worn nozzle.
A fact is an oil burner set up wrong often will run without problem for long periods of even years, but will cost you in oil usage

 

[Gazzt]

Any work to oil boilers must be carried out by qualified engineers ( oftec) because of the risk of death or injury caused by carbon monoxide and fire.
You should never prop your oil tank up at the back as it can cause weakness in the structure of the tank and can cause an oil leak at the pipe and valve.

 

[Gazzt]

Has the oil tank have a proper filling lid that is secure and wont let rain water in, and wont get blown off by the wind.

 

[Best]

Your experience with your previous boiler service shouldn't mean you assume all the service people won't be professional. But I must admit I know many oil services are not done right. You just have to keep searching for a decent engineer and quiz them on what the service will entail, plus keep an eye on them.
New oil pumps are not set for your burner and need set up by an oil engineer to a chosen pressure from manufacturers specifications, with option to alter slightly according to output taken with analyser reading.
Needs an oil gauge and an analyser to do the basics, trust me. (Usually £500, just to buy alone!)
If I have to only even very slightly alter a tad a burner when I service them, that boiler will save the customer in one year a lot more than my normal service and parts charge. Also will be safe.