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Oil Furnace Error Codes

Discussion in 'General' started by SuddenBraking, Jan 9, 2022.

  1. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    TL;DR - my furnace is acting up and I'd love to know what a flashing green light on the Bennett pump means.

    Does anyone have a link showing what the error codes are on Bennet pumps in Carrier furnaces? Long story short, mine was installed in 2008 and has been fairly flawless in operation (as long as we have oil) since I've lived here (2013). The only time I've had to hit the reset button has been when my dumbass ran out of fuel, and it would flash red.

    Well, the last service was in late 2019 (before Covid, it was serviced every year) and in the past couple of months it's shutoff a couple of times and been flashing green when I go down to reset it. It seems like it's a "spark" type of issue and my guess would be dirty nozzles (they haven't been cleaned for two years), but not 100% sure on that.

    I'd normally just pay the couple hundred bucks for a service guy to come do the annual maintenance on it but there's some things going on down in my basement right now that make me want to try to troubleshoot this myself (to the extent I can).
     
  2. Spitz

    Spitz Well-Known Member

    Just cover the bodies they don't care that much.
     
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  3. lizard84

    lizard84 My “fuck it” list is lengthy

    That or harvest early
     
    auminer and SuddenBraking like this.
  4. StaccatoFan

    StaccatoFan My 13 year old is faster than your President

    Youtube thread post 19651 may help.
     
    SuddenBraking likes this.
  5. damiankelly

    damiankelly Well-Known Member

    Most technicians don’t care about your grow operation.. have it checked. Use the same company. Lol
     
    418 and cpettit like this.
  6. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    Timely bump as it went out again this morning.

    There's not like some sea foam equivalent I can add to it to just get through the next couple of months before having it serviced next year? Really just trying to buy a little bit of time.
     
  7. auminer

    auminer Renaissance Redneck

    Tell it to put the lotion on its skin and stfu while the tech visits or else it gets the hose again.
     
    SuddenBraking likes this.
  8. evakat

    evakat Well-Known Member

    Did you get it serviced???
    New inline filter? New tip/nozzle?
     
  9. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    Last service was early 2020, so missed last year (COVID) and this year (dead hooker in basement).

    Just looking for a cheat that gets me through the next few months without having to reset it weekly and then will resume having it serviced annually.
     
  10. evakat

    evakat Well-Known Member

    There really is no short cut... or cheat to keep it going... it needs cleaned
     
    SuddenBraking likes this.
  11. lizard84

    lizard84 My “fuck it” list is lengthy

    Haven’t read back the entire thread, is relatively simple process to replace the nozzle, has the been done?
     
    tdelegram likes this.
  12. GRH

    GRH Well-Known Member

    Do you mean a Beckett gun burner?
    First place I'd start is clean the electronic eye of soot, if it can't see the flame the controller will shut off the gun burner, next check that the spark electrodes have the right spacing, they wear down over time, usually good to change the spray nozzle while you are this far in, they are cheap, lastly it could be the controller, this one is pretty universal 7505A0000U - Beckett 7505A0000U - 7505A GeniSys Cad Cell Oil Primary Control (Replaces R8184G Relay Controls) (supplyhouse.com)
     
  13. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    I haven't done diddly except hit the button to reset it when it shuts off.

    I'd be shocked if it's the controller - it's got to be some combination of the soot in the eye and/or the spark electrodes and/or the spray nozzle.

    Any resources for a moron on how to do this? And what level of difficulty is it?
     
  14. lizard84

    lizard84 My “fuck it” list is lengthy

    YouTube is your friend, your nozzle is gpm & spray pattern specific, it should be marked on the brass flats of your nozzle. I’d replace the nozzle, the filter cartridge and your pump may also have a screen.

    This is always important but particularly with someone has insisted on siphoning sludge from the bottom of the tank by letting the tank run dry.

    Remember to pass the kouchie a little bit more often.
     
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  15. GRH

    GRH Well-Known Member

    Depending on the model # there is likely a screw in the front near the window you take out and flip up the hinged ignition module, sometimes the module is held on with more screws and not hinged. The electronic eye should be right there underneath and it's a 2 prong device that you can remove and clean. Pulling out the electrode/nozzle assy involves undoing the fuel oil line from the pump, 2 fast-ons (1 for each electrode) and like 1 screw, move the assy around and it should come out so you can work on it at a workbench.
    If you can work on a motorcycle you can work on this. Take a couple pics of the setup if need be with your phone as you take it apart.
     
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  16. JBraun

    JBraun Well-Known Member

    All of this is accurate.

    @SuddenBraking oil furnaces are really simple, but if they start to lock out they need to be fixed immediately or the issue will snowball. Here's oil furnace 101:

    The nozzle determines the capacity of your furnace by its size, measured in GPH at 100psi. The stamp on your nozzle will tell you three things: The first number is GPM, the second number is the angle of the spray pattern, and the letter is whether the nozzle is a hollow (A), solid, (B), or semi-solid (W). Example, .75 80º B means .75 GPM, 80 degree spray, solid. The brainiacs at Beckett do the math on what nozzle is best for your furnace, and that shouldn't be messed with unless capacity reduction is badly needed.

    You can replace an A or B with a W, but not an A with B or B with A, if that makes sense. If you switch from A or B to W, you'll have to make adjustments to the burner that require instruments that you don't have.

    If you call your furnace's manufacturer, you can find out what nozzle it was factory equipped with. That's not a bad idea because service techs are mostly incompetent and will install the wrong nozzle in your furnace before they'll drive to get the correct one. Sorry, I've been doing this long enough to be cynical.

    Your control is locking out because it can't prove flame. There are a few reasons that can happen:

    Your "electronic eye" actually isn't. It's a cadmium sulfide coated ceramic disk, with a conductive mesh overlay under a glass lens. In the dark it has very high resistance, but when it's exposed to light, resistance drops. You can put a meter on it and should get around 300-1k ohms when it's exposed to the light from a properly adjusted flame. Anything over 1600 is a problem. They're super reliable. I've never seen one fail in my 24 years in the business, but it can get dirty. @GRH did a pretty good job of explaining how to access it, but I would add that if it is dirty, you have a bigger problem with the way your burner is operating.

    The most common issue is a gummed up nozzle which isn't atomizing the fuel properly. It's simple to get to. Just open the ignition transformer at the hinge, remove the flare fitting from the oil tube where it turns 90 degrees out of the assembly and remove the jamb nut. The whole assembly can be removed through the top. Clean up the electrodes while you're in there and make sure they're aligned correctly with each other and relative to the nozzle. It will be easy to find a diagram online.

    Any time you replace a nozzle, you should also change the filter on the tank. Really simple. Just shut the valve, remove the filter from the canister, open the valve and bleed the air out of the filter assembly. You may have to purge the line at the bleeder on the pump as well. Just start the pump by initiating a call for heat, crack the bleeder, and bleed until the oil isn't foamy.

    Next, take off the two bolts on the right side that hold the motor in place. When you remove the motor, you'll find a coupling that connects the motor shaft to the burner blower wheel and oil pump. It's a sacrificial part called a Lovejoy coupling. It's supposed to strip out to protect the motor, but they sometimes fail from years of normal operation. Look at the ends and make sure the shaft isn't spinning freely. If your flame lights and then slowly disappears, that's a likely culprit.

    The last thing to check is the screen on the pump. You know where the pump is by following the oil line to the square thing that probably says Suntec on it. You'll want a gasket handy before you disassemble it because they're easy to tear. Take off the four small bolts that hold the pump on, and you'll find a cylindrical screen. If it's plugged with crud your pump won't build pressure.

    You can also check your ignition transformer by placing a screwdriver across the electrodes when the transformer is flipped open and initiating a call for heat. Leave one side of the screwdriver in contact with one electrode and slowly lift the shaft off of the other electrode. You should get an arc that's 3/4" long, give or take. Don't touch the screwdriver shaft. Or do, but make a video.
     
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  17. 418

    418 Expert #59


    Broome? Is that you?
     
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  18. damiankelly

    damiankelly Well-Known Member

    I’ll start simple— did you change the air filter?? Lol—- if the filter is dirty it will restrict airflow and overheat the furnace causing it to shutdown.
     
    Last edited: Jan 14, 2022
  19. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    Yup, definitely changed the air filter. I’d be surprised if it’s anything other than normal cleaning (or lack thereof) which is causing the issues.

    Going to give it a shot in the next couple of days.
     
  20. SuddenBraking

    SuddenBraking The Iron Price

    Gave this a shot today. To @JBraun 's point, it's simple to get the nozzle out - here's some before and after pics of what it looked like. Not sure about the electrodes and whether they're positioned correctly or not and/or if they need to be replaced.

    Didn't change the filter - is that a universal part? Didn't want to open it up without having the replacement ready. Now that I know what nozzle to get I figure I'll order that and swap out the filter and hope that gets me through this season without more lockouts.
     

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