Navien NPE-240A NG Leaking

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Russell Esposito

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I have a Navien 240 combo unit for 3 years and have the same oily condensation now , exactly same as the pics on this forum. I read the last entry about the exhaust seal, but that doesn’t seem to be the root cause. Gas exhaust has no oily characteristics, and the oil is only on the black plastic as if the plastic is weeping. Shouldn't Navien want to analyze the chemistry samples of this oily substance that a few of us can send. Do we agree?
 
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Russell Esposito

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I have a Navien 240 combo unit for 3 years and have the same oily condensation now , exactly same as the pics on this forum.
 

Russell Esposito

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So the rubber seal was replaced and a new strait pipe installed. Now I will keep an eye out for oily residue.
As far as I know Many of these Navien units have this problem. Hopefully this will fix it.

View attachment 55268 View attachment 55269

I have a Navien 240 combo unit for 3 years and have the same oily condensation now , exactly same as the pics on this forum. I read the last entry about the exhaust seal, but that doesn’t seem to be the root cause. Gas exhaust has no oily characteristics, and the oil is only on the black plastic as if the plastic is weeping. Shouldn't Navien want to analyze the chemistry samples of this oily substance that a few of us can send. Do we agree?
 

Navien Inc

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I have a Navien 240 combo unit for 3 years and have the same oily condensation now , exactly same as the pics on this forum. I read the last entry about the exhaust seal, but that doesn’t seem to be the root cause. Gas exhaust has no oily characteristics, and the oil is only on the black plastic as if the plastic is weeping. Shouldn't Navien want to analyze the chemistry samples of this oily substance that a few of us can send. Do we agree?

For any concerns regarding your unit, please call 800-519-8794 option 2 and we will address it.
 

Aristoc

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I have a Navien 210a water heater on gas. It is 5 years old , no problems. It has internal recirculation turned on . No external features. I would hear the recirculation pump and burner kick on in the mornings before my shower, about 20 minutes before but I don't really hear that anymore. so not 100% sure if that is working. there are no error codes.
I have the same brown/greasy sticky stuff all over the black parts inside the cabinet! What on earth is this from? Why is it only on the black parts? I have a CO detector in the main floor and this unit is in the basement but no alarms.
There is also some corrosion on some of the pipes. The little red cap also was a bit loose and there was clear water around it. Really weird things.
I have maintained this unit yearly with vinegar flushes. I ph0ned Navien and they just said to phone a service tech.

I also looked into the condensate pump which pump the condensate fluid to the laundry drain. I tested it and it is working, but when i looked inside there is the clear condensate liquid, watery but also there is a collection of brownish residue floating around that looks about the same color as the greasy sticky stuff inside the tankless cabinet. So i am pretty sure there is condensate that is collecting on the plastic parts. How? I don't know.


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Navien Inc

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I have a Navien 210a water heater on gas. It is 5 years old , no problems. It has internal recirculation turned on . No external features.I would hear the recirculation pump and burner kick on in the mornings before my shower, about 20 minutes before but I dont really hear that anymore. so not 100% sure if that is working. there are no error codes.
I have the same brown/greasy sticky stuff all over the black parts inside the cabinet! What on earth is this from? Why is it only on the black parts? I have a CO detector in the main floor and this unit is in the basement but no alarms.
There is also some corrosion on some of the pipes. The little red cap also was a bit loose and there was clear water around it. Really weird things.
i have maintanied this unit yearly with vinegar flushes. I ph0ned Navien and they just said to phone a service tech.

I also looked into the condensate pump which pump the condensate fluid to the laundry drain. I tested it and it is working, but when i looked inside there is the clear condensate liquid, watery but also there is a collection of brownish residue floating around that looks about the same color as the greasy sticky stuff inside the tankless cabinet. So i am pretty sure there is condensate that is collecting on the plastic parts. How? I don't know.


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We recommend that you call into our tech support at 1-800-519-8794 option 2 so that we can have our team diagnose the issue and provide a solution. Our tech support is available Mon-Fri from 8am - 9pm EST and Sat-Sun from 8am - 8pm EST. Thanks!
 

Aristoc

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I got answer from the tech that it might be the venting exhaust is coming back into the unit. Makes sense to me. My tech will be repairing this shortly.
Thank you!
 
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I have a Navien NPE-240A heater with the same oil like condensation on the black cover/collector as per photos. I've had no alarms on the co2 detector. I am interested in what has caused this oils like liquid on this box. Is it exhaust venting?
 

Aristoc

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I have a Navien NPE-240A heater with the same oil like condensation on the black cover/collector as per photos. I've had no alarms on the co2 detector. I am interested in what has caused this oils like liquid on this box. Is it exhaust venting?
Hi Maurice, could you post some pictures?
I was told the exhaust is coming back into the cabinet. It could be from the exhaust that leaves the unit gets sucked back into the intake vent. Over time the droplets collect on the black plastic. Take a picture of your exhaust and intake vents too. If not installed properly it may be one of the reasons for the problem.
 

bnymbill

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So the Navien tech told the guy from the install company that the street Elbow that he used on the exhaust was no good. Needs to be a pipe. After I thought about this it makes sense the street Elbow was pinching the bottom rubber seal, damaging it in the process.
New rubber gasket coming soon. And hopefully they fix the connection properly.

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I am wondering if I have the same problem, the exhaust was piped with a 2” street hub instead of a 2” pipe. I have water on top of the unit from time to time but the inside appears to be dry. My guess is the exhaust does not have a great seal and condensation is escaping around the street hub going to the exhaust fitting. Does my theory make sense?

9C5768E1-76C9-40F3-8C33-48365E473ABE.jpeg
 
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Aristoc

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I am wondering if I have the same problem, the exhaust was piped with a 2” street hub instead of a 2” pipe. I have water on top of the unit from time to time but the inside appears to be dry. My guess is the exhaust does not have a great seal and condensation is escaping around the street hub going to the exhaust fitting. Does my theory make sense?

page 34 of the navien npe tankless water heater maunal shows you bnymbill that your exhaust pipe coming out should not be curved.
https://www.navieninc.com/products/npe-210a/downloads

i still have not solved my leaking brown oil on my unit from my earlier description. waiting for new exhaust vent fitting and exhaust ring to arrive and install.
 

TEch99

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Its oil used during their milling process to fabricate these heat exchangers. The oil is possibly corrosive on the electrical components, or changing resistance on the board, so ensure to wipe the boards clean with an appropriate electrical board cleaners. Navien needs to come out and give a public announcement on the issue to avoid homeowners calling private techs to investigate thus costing them unnecessary expenses and leading them on a wild goose chase. THEY ARE WELL AWARE OF THIS ISSUE and frankly there is no need to call a tech and not sure why they're advising home owners such. You will not see this oil again after a good wipe down and you should pay close attention for any future electrical component failures.

 
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TEch99

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Although knowing this $10 Korean sensor fails often on these units, they failed over and over to assist customers. Turning a $40 job into $400 by requesting a plumber on a simple task that many Americans can take on.


 

TEch99

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We recommend that you call into our tech support at 1-800-519-8794 option 2 so that we can have our team diagnose the issue and provide a solution. Our tech support is available Mon-Fri from 8am - 9pm EST and Sat-Sun from 8am - 8pm EST. Thanks!
Why not just tell him and everyone what it really is instead of wasting everyone's time?
 

Aristoc

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I keep having an oily residue sticking to the inside of the tankless Even after the tech replaced the exhaust housing / gasket. Now that more and more customers are being affected this oily leaking problem is now appearing all over you tube now. It's mainly a problem with leaking heat exchangers. very very dissapointed that is being blamed on other reasons. This fix is to replace the heat exchanger. Company responsibility.
 

Dana

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I keep having an oily residue sticking to the inside of the tankless Even after the tech replaced the exhaust housing / gasket. Now that more and more customers are being affected this oily leaking problem is now appearing all over you tube now. It's mainly a problem with leaking heat exchangers. very very dissapointed that is being blamed on other reasons. This fix is to replace the heat exchanger. Company responsibility.

Unfortunately (as Mikey Pipes has amply demonstrated in online videos) many or even most Navien replacement heat exchangers will leak exhaust even during their first minute of operation.

This is a design & /0r manufacturing quality control problem, not fixable by swapping one leaking heat exchanger for another potentially-already-leaking heat exchanger.
 

Teris

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Same oily condensation issue for me in California on my 5 year old NPE 240A. I called Navien and they told me absolutely nothing helpful and that I needed to call a plumber, which will cost me at least $600. Thanks a lot, Navien. Navien wrote in this very post: "It’s important that anyone else with this installation mistake gets it fixed." But then they give homeowners (who spent a lot of money on their product) no guidance about how to fix the issue.

Has anyone found a solution? Above, someone referenced changing the water pressure sensor, but I'm not sure that's the issue. I have no error codes, but my hot water is going in and out. Someone above also mentioned getting a new heat exchanger. Any further advice would be appreciated. I can't afford to have a plumber come and charge me $1k to fix this thing.
 

Aristoc

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To update I did have the exhaust outlet piping gasket replaced. And also my venting outside was raised at least two feet above the intake pipe. So there is no change of exhaust gases getting in through a leaking gasket or outlet pipe too close to the inlet. I still have oily residue collecting inside the Navien on all of the black plastic parts as seen above. I wiped all this off with a paper towerl. The unit is working normally except for this oily substance. I think the next step is to do a pressure test on the system to check for gas leaks by a technician if you can find one. Cutomers have been left to their own on this one.
 
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