NEW... Looking for Informaiton on This Hand Fired Boiler

I bought the boiler about a month ago and I'm looking into some information. I'm looking for make and model of this stove and some pointers on the installation in my old house. I bought this to try and help with heating cost in the big old house I bought in March.

Here's a few more pictures I took of the stove sitting in the basement after I had the crock in the flue fixed. Stove is all leveled and ready to go with a new draft controller and everything. I need to get it hooked up but its a slow process. Trying to by parts slowly to do the job. Can't drop all the money at once.
I'm thinking about doing a gravity fed system. Going to try it anyway and see if it works. If it don't work I'll have it set up where I can take out the unions and add a circulation pump in line.

Welcome to the forum, I don't recognize the model but you can bet someone in here does. Set back and be patient, information will flow!

Kevin

KLook wrote:Welcome to the forum, I don't recognize the model but you can bet someone in here does. Set back and be patient, information will flow!

Kevin

Thanks for the reply Kevin... Hope someone can give me some insight and help. I kinda have this feeling the stove may have been covered by sheet metal and isolation. I know I need to get this boiler finished because I can't keep burning oil, I'm going to go broke!!

It looks to be in pretty good shape overall. How are the ash grates holding up? Can you retrofit a stoker into it?

Many parts of the stove look like a marathon heater , but the handles and access plates dont. youd have to contact them to be sure.

lsayre wrote:It looks to be in pretty good shape overall. How are the ash grates holding up? Can you retrofit a stoker into it?

Grates look good to me but I'm not sure. Here's the best picture I have of the grates from when I brought the stove home. It needs a good cleaning that's for sure since the guy I bought it from only burnt wood. Don't think a stoker can be added, not that I know of anyway

I'll look into the Marathon Heater. Thanks

Welcome to the forum.

I'd not worry about the creosote in the firebox, that stuff will just dry out and fall off the metal. I'd do my best to get into any passageways between the firebox and the flue exit on the boiler. Those areas are most likely to have more accumulated creosote. The creosote acts as an insulation, so the cleaner you can get the steel, the better the boiler will transfer heat to the water.

It looks like a good, well built boiler, I'm surprised there isn't some form of markings on the steel vessel. It looks like a pressure-system boiler, so it should have a stamping on it somewhere..

I'd recommend a circulator pump, a gravity flow system really needs large diameter piping to flow well. and it looks like you have 3/4" piping.. which will need a circulator pump to work well.

Keep us informed..

Greg L

This looks like a field modified Marathon add on wood burner boiler. That flange in the center back is throwing me. Oil burner mounting put in aftermarket maybe?

Rev. Larry

LsFarm wrote:Welcome to the forum.

It looks like a good, well built boiler, I'm surprised there isn't some form of markings on the steel vessel. It looks like a pressure-system boiler, so it should have a stamping on it somewhere..

I'd recommend a circulator pump, a gravity flow system really needs large diameter piping to flow well. and it looks like you have 3/4" piping.. which will need a circulator pump to work well.

Keep us informed..

Greg L

There is a tag on the top of the boiler but it looks like there might have been a water leak at on time and the tag is pretty much rusted off. I can try and get a picture of another evening here in the near future.

As for needing large diameter pipe to do gravity flow. The whole basement has 3" or bigger pipe the whole way around the outside walls. I have a 2" pipe coming out the top of this boiler and 2, 1 1/2" cold water returns going into the bottom of the boiler. What I want to try is, 2" going into the bottom of the boiler on both cold water returns just drop to 1 1/2" where it goes into the boiler and have to 2" going out the top feeding the house. I want to use couplers and make it easy to add circulators if I need to. Just going to try gravity first for cost savings right now. Thanks guys!

Here is a few pictures of the tag that's located on the top of the boiler. I got to work on the insulation some today and have a list of pipe I need to pick up and the store tomorrow. Hope I can build a fire in it by the end of the week!

Hey that boiler looks just like a columbia hand fired unit minus the jacket. The only thing different on that unit is the gage. Mine is a round unit yours is square. van wert had a similar design as well as onieta. Keep looking for the tag. Those grates look just like columbia and Van Wert. Good luck.

What I believe you have is a Simplex Multitherm, the plate on the rear was for the installation of an oil burner. Casting #s on the grates could be E-1-15, E- 2-15, E-1-47, or E-2-17

I have two Van Werts and they look exactly like your unit. The large plate on the back is for a extension frame for an oil or gas burner. The tankless is obvious above it; the shaker handle on the lower left is the same, and the doors look identical. I am not a fan of gravity feed systems, however these boiler do produce excellent, long burn times and forget about the creosote, that will flake off in the first few hours of operation.

It looks as if your house was originally fitted with a gravity hot water system. With a few check valves you should be able to tie right in the system. Forced hot water systems did not appear until the advent of stoker, for quick recovery. If you decide you need a pump, I'd recommend one of the little 3 speed pumps from B&G, or Grundfos. Use the lowest speed. Otherwise you'll need to install a bypass loop. I do think you'll be alright as a gravity system since I think it was originally set up as one. Have your return split in two so one half return water goes into one side of boiler and the other half of the return water goes into the other side.
If you're using a oil-fired forced water boiler, you're heating a tremendous amount of water due to the size of your supply and return mains (from an old gravity system), you caan still use the oil fired for backup if the gravity system isn't enough when it's zero degrees out.
You'll be regulating the house temperature with the water temp. so when it's warmer out, you'll cut back on the water temp in the boiler.
I would insulate and skin the boiler with sheet meatal to keep the heat in the boiler, unless you want to heat the basement as well. Hope I offered some help. Good luck. PB