riello rdb1 problem

[plumber1982]

hello my names antony and im really stumped with a firebird that ive just serviced, i was called to the property to service the boiler. after cleaning it and doing the normal routine , i was greeted by the burner not firing at all. all that happens is the fan runs and thats it. im getting no pressure from my fuel gauge so i replaced the pump and solenoid. no luck , then after chatting to a rather unhelpfull firebird technician i was told to change the photocell and control box. that being done also the problem remains the same, please any help or advice would be very gratefully recieved.

 

[snooky]

Hi mate, im new here ...if the fan is running next make sure the air pressure switch is made. Good luck.

 

[kimbo]

Snooky oil boilers dont have air pressure switches, A lesson to be learnt here on any call to a boiler to service it, make sure it is working before you touch it, many customers use the service ploy when it breaks down and then you are stuck with a problem which you think you have caused. Anyway, more information req,d age of boiler condensing or non condensing, rdb or mectron burner.
Sorry I see it is an RDB1

 

[kimbo]

Antony dont forget you may have more than one problem here. If you had no pump pressure have you suficient oil to the pump, is the drive dog ok. After putting on new pump did you get any pressure then.

 

[plumber1982]

hi the boiler was installed in 2005 and its a non condensing firebird external combi.i just came back from it today after being told to test for voltage on the white wire coming back from the motor to the control box. it came out at 230 but ive been told it need to be 50, but the motor spins beautifully. oil flows well out of the pump via the gauge port just nothing on the gauge itself. the drive dog is new also. when the new pump was installed i still had no pressure .

 

[kimbo]

First of all do you get 50v between the black and white wire to the control box, secondly if you get 240v the chances are that it has fried the control box, the 50v is to power the control box only. it sounds like you will need a new motor before you go any further. The continuing running is a classic symptom of faulty photocell,You should get 1/2bar washing pressure on the pump before the solenoid opens.If you had tested the motor first it would have saved you on a control box.
So the problem now is assuming you renew the control box and the motor and the photocell
you are getting near to the cost of buying a complete new burner I usually keep second hand parts I have had a few control boxes fried by not checking the voltage at the white wire first.

 

[dontknowitall]

Thank you, Kimbo. Couple of great tipes there.

 

[snooky]

Sorry about the APS confusion, new here didnt read post, So fan running, fuel supply ok , ie tank fuel filters clean, pump connected, nozzle clean ? Gauge connected to press port and not vent ? No by-pass screw and solenoid lifts? does not seem like electrical fault . Let us know

 

[plumber1982]

i know its taught me a huge lesson, apart from oil pumps ive never changed any parts in the rdb1 burners, always worked on bentones and sterling, yeah i'll get a motor next week and go from there, ill also check between the black and white wires and keep you posted, thankyou for your advice

 

[kimbo]

Yes the methodical approach is best you need to adopt a sequence to prove various components are working, once you have 50v coming back from the transformer which is in the motor then it is time to move on to the next stage of fault finding, with more than one fault you could be chasing your tail. I have to say the usual problem is too low a voltage from the transformer. If you go on to the riello website they have a fault finding chart which is good for a guide.