Boiler replacement is not as easy as it sounds. There is proper planning that needs to go before even making the decision to do it. Sizing a hot water boiler becomes a task to do from scratch while replacing. Any wrong decision can result in wastage of fuel or an underperforming unit for the space. Whether it is the entire new unit or you need replacement of important boiler parts, we we will cover the replacement procedure in detail here.
Sizing a replacement boiler must not be done just on the basis of the old boiler rating. Your heating contractor must follow a detailed procedure which consists of heat loss detection, surveys, determining the bid price etc.
In this article, you will understand the procedure behind boiler replacement.
The steps to follow
- Conduct a job survey
To replace boiler parts, you need certain information. Information about heat loss, selecting an appropriate boiler and the selling price.
There has to be a job survey form which has all the information with some more details. There are a few checklists that you need to maintain that contains existing installation records details. Other boiler replacement worksheets are there in this job survey form. Details like Weil Mclain boiler parts, boiler usage, part maintenance etc. are also there in this job survey form.
- Calculating the total loss of heat
Next task in replacing the boiler is to calculate the total loss of heat. There are a few procedures to do that. First, you can check the amount of Insulation and type of construction. Also, you can check the total square footage that is heated by the boiler. There are different numbers assigned to different construction designs. Also, there are formulas that need to be used to calculate that heat loss for an appropriate replacement.
- Choosing the boiler
The next and the main step in the whole process is choosing the size of a replacement boiler. It is based on the total heat loss that the building has experienced.
The first step is the job survey form that contains the information with proper categorisation. Remember, the replacement boiler part can be higher in terms of rating but never less. The capacity must be measured before installation as the replacement is quite expensive and cumbersome.
- Figuring out the cost
The last step is to figure out the cost of the replacement of malfunctioning boiler part. Everything needs to be considered including labour, profits and the overheads and with the cost of the material. A checklist should be made which in turn helps the manager or the person in charge.
Apart from these four steps in boiler and its parts replacement, there are a few guidelines to be communicated beforehand. First, the installation instructions, then the cleaning process of steam boilers and water systems need to be told to the labour. They should also understand the galleries like the type of heating system, expansion tanks and the installation. One should also communicate how to check the vents, traps and walls so that they are in good working condition and if replacement is required for these parts.