Lost My Fire Last Night in High Winds

Ka6 boiler fire went out last night after I went to bed around 11:00PM. Got up at 3:30 AM, house was cold, no fire. Winds blowing 25 - 40+ mph. Could that have put out the fire if it was on idle burn? It had been running fine since November. I have a metal chimney cap on that flue. Could that have acted like a wind diverter? When the winds blow out of the west or northwest, they have a straight shot at the chimney with no obstacles.

Do you think your boiler was at an idle a good bit of the time last night?

What does a manometer tell you when you get these gusts?
If not you may want to look elsewhere for cause of out fire.

When I went to bed at 11:00 PM, I did turn down the thermostat from 70 degrees to 67 degrees. So the boiler was at idle for at least an hour , if not longer.

Clousseau wrote:When I went to bed at 11:00 PM, I did turn down the thermostat from 70 degrees to 67 degrees. So the boiler was at idle for at least an hour , if not longer.

And is this your routine since startup in November?

Was the unit installed with a barometric damper? Is it possible that a combination of high draft and the secondary combustion air blower used up all of the coal on the burn grate?

Mike

Check your barometric damper and see if it is sticking. I have seen them get stuck open, and even stuck closed after getting banged around by the wind. Either condition can cause an outfire, but it seems more likely that you had a high-draft condition that burned up all the coal on the grate.

Another possibility is that the coal bridged in the hopper and didn't feed properly. This can happen if the coal is wet and/or contains a lot of fines.

Has a verdict been reached on the cause?

Mike