Observing the Build

Heating with a hot water boiler system is very efficient and provides hot water for the rest of the building, along with the radiant heat from hot water circulating through the baseboards in the building. While the system is typically very dependable, there are things that can fail in the system. Boiler pump replacement is sometimes necessary when the water is not moving through the system correctly. 

Water Circulation

The hot water boiler system can be set up in several ways, and often that means putting in several different closed heating loops that are controlled independently. Each zone uses a circulator or boiler pump to move the water through the loop to heat the area and then return cold water to the boiler for reheating. 

Boiler pump replacement may be necessary if one of these pumps fails, but a system with multiple zones will usually not experience a failure that requires the replacement of all the pumps at the same time. Each pump is independent of the others in the system, so the zones running the most often have the highest potential for pump wear requiring replacement.

Leaking Boiler Pumps

If you are experiencing a loss of heat in one zone in your building or home, you may have a pump that is not working correctly. The boiler pump may still be running but is leaking and allowing air to enter the heating loop. Typically this will result in banging noises inside the pipe when the heat comes on and having a heating technician inspect the boiler is the best option. 

If you have access to the boiler, you can check to see if there is water leaking from any of the pumps in the system, but it may be hard to tell if you are not familiar with the boiler system. Boiler pump replacement may be required if the pump is leaking, but the leak's location often dictates that. 

Replacing leaking seals is often an option, but if the impeller seal on the pump or the case develops a leak, a boiler pump replacement service will need to install a new unit.

Pump Failure

If you find one area of your house or business is cooler than the rest, but there is no leak or air banging to indicate a problem with the heating loop, you may have a pump that has stopped circulating water altogether. The boiler pumps in the system use electric motors to move the water through the heating loop, and over time they can wear out and stop working. 

A failure of the pump typically means a boiler pump replacement services tech will need to come and remove the old pump from the system, install a replacement, and bleed all the air from the loop, so it can work the way it was designed. The job is not terribly expensive, and can typically be completed in a couple of hours by an experienced tech. 

For more info about boiler pumps replacements, contact a local company.