Gas boiler using too much fuel

[PLucas82]

Hi, first time home owner here.

I have lived in my house for two years. The first year, my gas bill was reasonable. The second year, we found out that there is a blockage in the chimney. Had it removed and had a stainless liner installed. Great. Boiler running again.

Then the bills started coming in. My energy company compares our fuel usage to other houses of a similar size in the area. I'm now using anywhere between 50% to 75% more natural gas than my neighbors of similar sized houses. I am trying to figure out why. The gas company says that my house should be running more efficiently with the liner.

The one thing I have noticed is that my site glass leaks pretty badly when the boiler is at temperature. I am looking to replace that. Could that be the entire reason as to why my gas bill is so high? I understand that it keeps having to bring the water up to temp when hot water leaks out.

Anything else I should look out for?

Thanks,

Patrick

 

[Reach4]

I'm now using anywhere between 50% to 75% more natural gas than my neighbors of similar sized houses. I am trying to figure out why.

Compare the snow on the roof of similarly sized and pitched roofs. Better insulation in the attic gives more time before the snow melts.

Better sealing saves energy. They have tests where they put a blower in a doorway and detect and seal air leaks. Keeping the thermostat lower saves energy. Maybe they wear sweaters in the house.

Those would be additional things beyond the heating system efficiency, which you are addressing.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[PLucas82]

Compare the snow on the roof of similarly sized and pitched roofs. Better insulation in the attic gives more time before the snow melts.

Better sealing saves energy. They have tests where they put a blower in a doorway and detect and seal air leaks. Keeping the thermostat lower saves energy. Maybe they wear sweaters in the house.

Those would be additional things beyond the heating system efficiency, which you are addressing.

Thank you for the reply. We are going to look into energy testing the house. I think the part that confuses me is that we spent next to nothing one year and then skyrocket the next.

 

[Wrenched]

Hello Plucas82,

Can you share the make and model of the boiler? Is it a hot water boiler or a steam boiler? Is this a heating boiler, or does it supply domestic hot water as well? Could you give us some pictures?

The change in fuel usage suggest that there is an issue with the boiler, though you do want to rule out any others differences (ambient temp, people in house, etc) before focusing solely on the boiler.

Do you know the boiler's service history? Gas appliances should be serviced regularly, and problems that cause reduced efficiency can also lead to other more serious issues. A partially plugged heat exchanger is a possible culprit, and can lead to spillage of combustion products.

I am curious about water leaking out of the sight glass - if this is the inspection port on the combustion chamber then the boiler should be looked at by a heating professional. There should not be water in the combustion chamber, and the sight glass should not leak. If it is a glass gauge you are referring to, it should still be fixed.

 

[Dana]

Unless you have large pools of steaming water on the floor 24/7 from the drip it's unlikely that the leaking sight glass is responsible in any way for increases in gas use/cost.

The price of natural gas varies year by year as does the seasonal heat load. Prices in New England have been creeping up, but IIRC in CT there is local infrastructure upgrades to the gas grid that have spike gas prices locally faster than the regional average.

The difference in comparison to the neighbors could be as simple as the fact that you're still running a low-efficiency steam system (probably 3x oversized for the peak load) whereas most of your neighbors may have moved on to pumped water &/or condensing gas boilers running at substantially higher thermal efficiency.

So, what is the boiler model, and the BTU-in/BTU-out (if it's even stated on the nameplate.)

What is the size, construction, and vintage of your house?

How much gas did you use in December, January, and February (separately, with the meter reading dates included if you have them.)

Got a ZIP code? (For 99% outside design temperature and weather data purposes.)