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11. Remove the pump and open the valve above it. If water flows freely, you
know that there is no blockage there. If good, proceed with next step.
12. Next, disconnect the Pex line at the pump output. Install a short piece of
hose or Pex pipe, about 4-6 feet long and insert the pipe into a bucket. Turn
on the pump by turning on the furnace (raising the thermostat if necessary).
13. Record the amount of time it takes to fill the 5-gallon bucket. Turn the pump
off. Compare that figure to the one you wrote down on the inside of the
furnace, near the valve, when it was installed. If the figures are lower you
know there is a problem with the pump.
14. At this point you should have been able to determine if the flow rate is good
at all points and where the problem might be or if there is a blockage.
15.
If you have a fire and the water is hot and circulating without restriction and
the furnace fan is on, you should have heat!
In many cases, air might be
trapped in the heat exchanger and the bleeding procedure below will
need to be performed.
NOTE: If you have poor draft or a downdraft, heat up the chimney by twisting
some newspaper into a torch and hold it up into the stove until the draft is
reversed.
If the water is boiling and excessive water usage
Simply close the cover more, on the side of the fan.
The fire should be blazing when the fan is on. It should be just smoldering if the fan is
off.
Quickly crack open the firebox door to see what the fire is doing. (Leaving the door open
any length of time will give you a blazing fire.)
If you have too hot a fire with the fan off, close the cover on the side of the fan a little
more. The water should never be boiling. If it is, the cover is open too far or there is a
downdraft problem.
If you still have a boiling problem or you are using too much water (and the cover is
completely sealed – page 22),
you can move the pump to the bottom of the furnace
(what is now the return line) and have the return line go to where the pump is
now.
