i have a typical burnham boiler with a super stor. 3 zone valves including the water tank. the boiler is almost 3 years old, and i’ve noticed that the circ pump is constantly running. Is this normal. I’m a wood guy. If i shut the electrical switch to the boiler, then the circ pump is quiet, but when its on, it seems like the circ pump is constantly running. I tried all the diagnostic stuff, like turning all the t-stats down and things like that, but the thing keeps on humming. Could it be how it was wired? Again, i dont know exactly how long its been like that.
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IT's tough to tell from afar, but to answer your primary question, no, the circ should not be running constantly. Are you sure it is running? Canned pumps are tough to tell, mine is almost silent, I use a stethoscope to hear the whir. (I also have a panel with an indicator light that tells me when there is power to the motor, but I've seen enough pump failures to require physical evidence of operation, having a pressure gage on the supply and return headers will also provide indication, as the supply header may be higher than the return when the pump is running, assuming the circ is on the return header, as it most always is.)
I likewise have a Burnam boiler with hydronic heat (2 zones, air handlers) and the circ should cycle on when heat is demanded from at least one zone, and the temperature of the boiler is at some predetermined setpoint. When the thermostat calls for heat, the zone valve opens and the boiler starts. When adequate temperature is achieved, the circulator starts and the air handler starts (if you have one) when temperature at the aquastat is within setpoint.
If the circ is running continuously, then it might have been wired directly to the hot leads to the boiler, instead of being wired to the thermostatic control box located on the side of the boiler.
Do you have the manual that came with the boiler? It shows typical setups, including wiring diagrams. Mine has the blue wire to the circ terminated at the C1 contact of the Honeywell Immersion Control Relay, the control box near the tankless water heater on the side of the boiler. White is neutral and nutted with the boiler neutral wire in the primary control box for the burner. The leads for the circ usually come from the primary control box for that reason.
Good luck. If the circ has been running for three years, you need to write the manufacturer (Taco?) and let them know, maybe they'll put you in their advertising, like those VW's that have logged over a million miles : )
actually, my electrician just left the house. It seems that while the plumber was soldering, a "glob" of solder had dropped on the zone valve, and was jumping the #2 and #3 wires. Its been like that for 2 years. I cant believe it. I'm surprised the pump didnt burn out.
"Its been like that for 2 years. I cant believe it. I'm surprised the pump didnt burn out"
Glad you found the problem. But it is not surprising that the pump kept going. They ought to go for 10,000's of hours. But yours if now middle-aged instead of adolescent. <G>
David Thomas Overlooking Cook Inlet in Kenai, Alaska