Questions about an old boiler

[Sarek]

I'm leaving the house soon for a month to go to Europe and Egypt.

When i leave my boiler thermostat on 60 the furnace will kick in when the temperature drops but it won't automatically shut off, sometimes it does automatically shut off. I have no time to fix it before i leave.

I was wondering what will happen if it kicks in and doesn't shut off automatically while I'm gone.

Will the boiler break, or something else bad happen besides a huge gas bill?

If i leave the boiler switched turned off in winter 20 to 45 degrees outside, will the pipes freeze and burst?

Thanks

 

[Reality]

To be clear, I have no experience with boilers, but I had a furnace-based central heating system that would occasionally not cut off and all it took was replacing the thermastat.

Obviously there is no way to know for sure, but why not call an expert in and have them take a look to see what the problem is?

At worst, they can give you experienced advice on the best way to handle it while you are gone.

At best, they solve the problem quickly and cheaply.

Either way, you are only out the "check out" bill and the process should should not take that long.

 

[Creeper]

I'm leaving the house soon for a month to go to Europe and Egypt.

When i leave my boiler thermostat on 60 the furnace will kick in when the temperature drops but it won't automatically shut off, sometimes it does automatically shut off. I have no time to fix it before i leave.

I was wondering what will happen if it kicks in and doesn't shut off automatically while I'm gone.

Will the boiler break, or something else bad happen besides a huge gas bill?

If i leave the boiler switched turned off in winter 20 to 45 degrees outside, will the pipes freeze and burst?

Thanks

When you say it doesn't automatically shut off, does that mean ever? or it just takes a long time? As Reality said, it sounds like a thermostat issue and it could be something as simple as taking the over off the thermostats and seeing it the little mechanism inside sticks. Maybe its dust or something. But it depends on what type of thermostat it is. Older one has a little mechanism that moves back and forth with the temperature. Sometimes dust can prevent the mechanism from moving in one direction of the other so it may not going on at all or it may go on and not shut off. Pop the cover and use your finger to lightly move the mechanism back and forth and see if it moves freely. clean it if it is full of dust. If the problem is experienced intermittently then I suspect this is the problem.

As for the furnace. I don't think it will break if it stays on, but if it does not go off it will get pretty toasty in your house.

As for the pipes freezing, it depends on the location of the pipes. Pipes on outer walls might freeze if the temp goes below 20. A trick some people use is to leave the water running a little where the pipes are most exposed. Of course you will run up a major water bill in a month, but it does work to a certain extent. You could also consider shutting the water off at the point where it enters the house, then open the faucets to let the water in the pipers drain out. Leave the taps open until you get home.

These are just my opinions based on not having seen your system. But if you have a few days before you leave you should call in an expert just to make sure. Gas companies are usually very responsive to customers calls.

 

[Runwildboys]

If your pipes are in the basement, they should be fine, but as Creeper said, any in the exterior walls are less protected. I still think they'd be fine, but don't risk it.

As Reality said, it could be just a thermostat issue. Replace that and test it. That's also the cheapest fix.

I imagine if the furnace were to keep running, it would get hot enough in the house to cause condensation in the windows, which could damage the sashes, and possibly the walls.

 

[Sarek]

When you say it doesn't automatically shut off, does that mean ever? or it just takes a long time?

It does shut off, but yes sometimes it seems like a long time, possibly like it's not going to shut off.

I have a tenant and I'm going to have them go into the cellar to check my boiler once a day in the morning. If they see it keeps running nonstop and getting excessively hot i asked them to turn off the light switch on the boiler for a couple of hours to a day before turning it back on.

Thanks all.

 

[Runwildboys]

It does shut off, but yes sometimes it seems like a long time, possibly like it's not going to shut off.

I have a tenant and I'm going to have them go into the cellar to check my boiler once a day in the morning. If they see it keeps running nonstop and getting excessively hot i asked them to turn off the light switch on the boiler for a couple of hours to a day before turning it back on.

Thanks all.

That's a good temporary solve.