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Discuss Oil boiler cutoff valve leak, fuel has got into insulation lagging in the Oil and Solid Fuel Forum area at PlumbersForums.net

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Shannyla

Worcester Danesmoor 20/25, about 18 years old. B11 burner.

We came home a few days ago to find our boiler in lockout, and not wanting to restart, instead simply doing a pitiful whine. We called an engineer out yesterday who, after a quick diagnosis, worked out that the capacitor had gone. We replaced that, which fixed the lockout issue.

However, whilst he had the burner unit out we noticed that fuel was leaking from the fuel cutoff valve spindle, which sits on top of the burner box on these, which had been moved to closed for the first time in donkey's years and had just given up the ghost. Fuel from that had leaked into the insulation lagging that is fitted on the side panel and the jacket that surrounds the combustion chamber and tank.

He replaced the valve, but the end result is that our house now stinks of heating oil, which gets worse when the boiler is running and the insulation heats up. It's a smell that I find unbearably obnoxious, if you work with this stuff every day you have my complete and utter respect. It doesn't help that the boiler is located in the kitchen.

I've removed the lagging from the side panel and dried the lagging around the chamber as much as possible with blue rag. I've cleaned every accessible surface inside the boiler with white vinegar, but there is a strong smell of kerosene in the insulation glass fibre, which I assume has spread through it by capillary action.

My question now that I finally get to it is, will the kerosene evaporate off through normal usage of the boiler in a timely manner such as a few days, or am I going to have to replace all the internal boiler lagging to stop my house smelling of fuel? The lagging seems to be available.

At the moment I've got a steel pot of white vinegar sat on top of the burner box hoping to permeate the lagging as it evaporates off in the heat, so the kitchen now smells more like a chip shop than an oil depot.

Which is an improvement, frankly.

It's particularly galling as this boiler has never smelled, unlike most of our neighbours who seem to live in a perpetual fug of heating fuel fumes.

Any words of wisdom much appreciated.
 
The fusible wheel head valves are notorious for leaking and are no longer to be installed. Better off with a proper fire valve, either external or at point of entry of oil line.

If it's still smelling as strong after a few days then something is still leaking.

You can also buy products to help with the smell from somewhere like heating world of spares.
 

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