Boiler Inspection and Maintenance

By Stephen Kleva, Insparisk LLC

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Boilers can be dangerous if not inspected and main tained. Each
year, countless accidents, breakdowns, and shutdowns occur among
the approximately 43,000 industri al boilers in the chemical,
food processing, paper, rening, and primary metals industries
throughout the United States.
Boiler breakdowns can cost thousands of dollars in equip ment
repairs, as well as hundreds of thousands of dollars in property
damage and income losses. Accidents also can cause loss of life and
structural damage to plants, facilities, and equip ment. Compared
to one unplanned plant shutdown, the cost of boiler inspection,
maintenance, and repairs is minor.
While boiler safety devices are designed to prevent dangerous
conditions from turning into disasters, only proper maintenance
prevents the development of dangerous operating conditions in
the rst place. Proper boiler mainte nance, servicing, and inspec-
tion is not only a safety issue, it also can be an economic matter.
Downtime can shut down operations and production, and every
hour that its stopped can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
No plant wants emergency shutdowns or downtime, and the plant
manager doesnt want to be responsible if boilers (or other equip-
ment) arent serviced, inspected, and maintained properly.
Regular boiler inspection is the law, most often governed by the
state, but in some cases governed by a municipality and city. Boilers
must be inspected by certied inspectors according to a mandated
schedule. Te day-to-day boiler maintenance and service is the
responsibility of plant en gineers or plant managers. Remember
that most problems dont occur suddenly. Tey develop slowly over
a long time. So slowly, in fact, that the maintenance sta can grow
accus tomed to the change without realizing it has taken place.
Also, regular inspections provide optimal function and energy
eciency. Boilers are voracious energy users. Ineciency means
wasted energy and increased operating costs.
Regular inspections also can extend the life of the vessel. As every
plant owner and manager knows, industrial boilers are a major
investment, costing upwards of $200,000.
Key Boiler Safety Features
Boilers have a variety of safety features designed to prevent acci-
dents and keep them functioning at optimal eciency.
Safety valves are the primary safety feature. Designed to relieve the
pressure if other systems fail, every steam and water-heating boiler
must have at least one safety or safety relief valve of sucient
capacity to match burner output.
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Te ability of a safety valve to function properly can be
aected by internal corrosion or restricted ow. Internal
corrosion typically is the most common cause of freezing
or binding in safety/relief valves. Tis is generally caused
by slight leakage or simmering caused by an improperly
seated valve disk, and is a condition that must be corrected
im mediately. Its never recommended that a boiler be
operated too close to the safety valve setting because the
set pressure can cause the valves to leak slightly, resulting
in an corrosion buildup that eventually prevents the valve
from operating.
Water level control and fuel cutos have separate func-
tions, but sometimes are combined in one unit. Tey
provide a water level control function and a safety feature
of a low-water fuel-cuto device. Piping must be open
and free of scale or sludge buildup at all times. Properly
installed piping uses cross tees for easy cleaning and
inspection. Check low-water fuel cutos periodically for
proper operation. Because this test requires boiler water to
go to the minimum safe level, qualied personnel should
use extreme caution.
In addition to periodic tests of the low-water device, ush
the oat chamber on the water level control and the low-
wa ter fuel cuto thoroughly to remove accumulated sedi-
ment. Disassemble, clean, and check both controls annually.
Te water gauge glass on a boiler lets you verify the ac tual
water level in the boiler. If it is not cleaned and maintained,
the sight glass might show there is sucient water when
the boiler is actually operating in a low water condition.
A stain or coating sometimes develops on the inside of the
glass where it is in contact with boiling water.
If necessary, replace the glass even if the boiler must be
shut down to do so. Te piping leading to the glass gauge
can become clogged and should be cleaned and inspected
regularly to avoid false water level readings.
Stack temperature gauges monitor the temperature of the
ue gas. A high temperature indicates that the tubes might
be developing a soot or scale buildup. Also, the interior
baing might have deteriorated or burned through,
allowing hot gases to bypass heat transfer surfaces.
Boiler Inspection and Maintenance Continued
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Te fuel system, particularly the burner, requires periodic
cleaning and routine maintenance. Failure to maintain the
fuel system in good working order could result in excessive
fuel costs, loss of heat transfer, or even a boiler explosion.
Boiler log records are probably the single best method to
ensure a boiler is properly maintained. Te logs provide a
continuous record of operation, maintenance, and testing.
Because operating conditions change slowly over time, a
log is the best way to detect signicant changes that might
otherwise go unnoticed. Boiler log success is deter mined
by how vigilant you are in regularly updating it.
Efciency and Performance Tips
A boiler accounts for much of a plants energy budget,
and even a small decrease in eciency can cause a sharp
increase in energy costs. Tere are several key factors that
inuence boiler eciency.
Optimal air-to-fuel ratio is impor tant because a boiler
requires just the right amount of oxygen to ensure ecient
combustion. Excess air consumes energy because it is being
heated un necessarily and released up the stack. If there is
too little air, not all the fuel burns and this also wastes fuel.
Te unburned fuel continues to move through the sys tem,
and leaves behind soot. Additional ly, too little air might
cause a build up of carbon monoxide and smoke. Analyze
the ue gas to measure the amount of oxygen and the stack
gas temperature to calculate eciency. Make adjustments
to optimize the excess air and incoming air temperatures.
To measure the ratio, use a comput er-based distributed
control system (DCS), which automatically reduces oxygen
levels as needed, optimizing the air-to-fuel ratio.
Treat feedwater before pumping it into a boiler. Raw
water can cause corro sion or sediment buildup, both of
which reduce eciency. Impurities waste energy because
they necessitate routine blowdowns. Te cleaner the water
sup ply, the fewer blowdowns that are needed.
Clean heat transfer surfaces to re move the soot buildup that
acts like an insulator, and diminishes the ecien cy of heat
transfer between combus tion gas and steam generation.
Heat loss can waste a huge amount of energy. To minimize
heat loss, install an economizer to recover waste heat from
the stack. Te heat can then preheat the feedwater. Be sure
to have the boil er cleaned and tuned before installing an
economizer to obtain an accurate mea surement of stack
gas temperature. Additional heat can be extracted from the
ue gas (below 300 F) by use of a condensing economizer.
A stack temperature gauge indicates the temperature of
the ue gas. Te lower the ue gas temperature, the more
ecient the system. Approximately 1 % of boiler thermal
eciency is lost for a 40 F increase in stack temperature.
Collect condensate from steam traps for reuse as feedwater.
Tis reduces boiler operating costs and usually is more
cost-eective than using fresh utility water. It takes less
fuel to convert recovered condensate into steam than the
cooler fresh utility water. Te tem perature of recovered
condensate is high (160 F to 200 F), whereas the fresh
water temperature usually does not exceed 80 F.
Boiler Inspectors Can Educate You
Ask your boiler inspector for more information about how
your boiler functions and tell them about any problems you
are experiencing. Teir extensive knowledge and practical
ex perience can help you learn everyday procedures to
ensure a long lifespan and safe vessel operation.
Boiler Inspection and Maintenance Continued
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General Tips for Optimum Boiler Safety
and Maintenance
It is important that you regularly observe and check on the
status of a variety of boiler components. Some basic and
general tips include:
Test for proper functioning of controls, including the
pressure gauge, low-water cuto devices, thermometers,
temperature controls, gauge glass, and pressure relief valve.
Test drains and blowos to ensure theyre functional.
Check the fuel system for leaks and ensure that fuel
lters and strainers are replaced regularly.
Ensure that shut-o valves are leak-tight. If unsure,
perform a leak tightness test.
Ensure that the valves in instrument lines are
functioning properly.
Open the boiler vent valve or top tri-cock to vent air
and ll the boiler with treated water to its proper level.
Check that the expansion tank is properly lled.
Verify that vent valve on gas-red boilers is operating
as required and that the vent is not clogged.
Verify that the ame scanner or sensors are properly
connected and functioning.
Check instruments and safety devices for proper
setting. Ensure that the water pressure regulator
functions as required.
Ensure the recirculation pump works as required.
Conrm that there are no signs of overheating,
corrosion, or erosion.
Check that heating system isolation valves are
functioning properly.
Verify that there are no leaks from any part of the
boiler or external piping. Have a qualied contractor
repair cracked surfaces immediately. Bulges or other
deformities indicate defective controls, safety devices,
or improper burner operation.
Test safety valves on a regular schedule. Replace
leaking safety valves.
Inspect low-water fuel-cuto control for proper
sequence and operation. Verify that it shuts o the fuel
supply to the boiler as required.
Stephen Kleva is CEO and president of Insparisk, LLC
in Glendale, N.Y. He can be contacted by phone at (888)
464-6772 or by email at skleva@insparisk.com.
Boiler Inspection and Maintenance Continued