Why have your boiler checked?
The equipment deposits emissions into the atmosphere and unlike your car, there isn’t really a check Emissions light that illuminates on to indicate a problem situation with the combustion efficiency at which the currently equipment is operating. A combustion analysis will indicate what is going on within the combustion chamber by analyzing the gas components of the combustion process within the exhaust and indicate whether or not the Boiler is operating as well as it should and also whether it is operating within the efficiency curve indicated by the manufacturer.
Lets say the Boiler is operating at 81% efficiency and the manufacturer indicated that it should operate at 92%, you’d want to get it back up to that 92%, otherwise the Boiler may very well be consuming fuel and not completely burning it. You would be in effect wasting money twice, once on the purchase of that high efficiency Boiler and then wasting the fuel not being used efficiently.
Many manufacturers also indicate that you should have a qualified Factory Trained Technician look at your investment at least once a year to make sure all is well. They can void your warranty if something happens and you were not maintaining the equipment. While we will in fact set the Boiler to field condition settings, they will most likely be closely related to the Boiler Manufacturers requirements, which may or may not be directly related to the EPA requirements for emissions if any exists for that equipment at that location. We will perform an inspection of the other components on the Heating system at the same time thereby making sure the system is operating at its optimum level.
This is what Hamilton says about Maintenance in their manual.
“All high efficiency condensing appliances will require more regular maintenance (cleaning) than their non-condensing counterparts. Failure to do so may result in damage to the appliance that is not covered under warranty.
Periodic maintenance should be performed at least once a year by a qualified service technician to ensure that all the equipment is in safe, efficient operation. In the first year of operation, it is highly recommended that inspections of all connection points and the combustion chamber be done at three month intervals, any signs of fouling or leaks must be thoroughly investigated immediately as failure to do so may void warranty. Assuming no cause for excessive fouling is found, then the period of months from initial start up that it was found that cleaning was required, shall become the required future minimum cleaning interval, but at no time should it exceed 12 months. The owner MUST make necessary arrangements with a qualified heating contractor for proper maintenance of the heater. Installer must also inform the owner that the lack of proper care and maintenance of the heater may result in a hazardous condition and lack of warranty coverage. The installer should discuss the contents of the User’s Information Manual with the owner. ”