School System Saves Old Boiler

By Steve Ogonek

In years past schools usually replaced heating boilers after 20 years or so. Things have changed. With the decline in local, state, and federal funding, financially strapped school systems are trying to save money any way they can.

This fall, Lincoln High School in the Gahanna School District, near Columbus, Ohio, decided their old boiler had to be replaced or repaired. To help them with the decision, they called in Butch Harvey, Service Manager for Aleron HVAC Systems Specialist, who has the contract for all of the system’s 11 schools. Harvey determined that, although the boiler was old, it was still in excellent physical condition and replacement was unnecessary. But, because there has been a great deal of change in technology, the combustion control system needed upgrading.

Harvey consulted Columbus Climate Controls, one of Aleron’s wholesale suppliers and the mid-Ohio dealer for Kromschroder combustion controls, about upgrading the controls for the boiler. Columbus Climate Controls recommended that Harvey use the Kromschroder BCU 370 Flame Safety control unit because of its all-inclusive components and flexibility. Kromschroder and Columbus Climate furnished the BCU 370 control unit as well as wiring schematics with point-to-point connections which made the retrofit simple and fast. After two months, the boiler is still operating flawlessly supplying hot water to the school heating system and keeping students warm.

This was Harvey’s and Aleron’s first experience using Kromschroder products. Based on the ease of the installation and successful operation of the boiler at Lincoln High, the Kromschroder BCU 370 is now Aleron HVAC System’s first choice for installation on boilers and heating systems.

Harvey commented “The flexibility of the Kromschroder BCU 370 allows it to be a universal flame safety control for our company. This has meant a reduction in inventoried stock, spending less time running back to our suppliers to get parts and happier customers that get heat or hot water when we make the initial service call. Return trips to finish a job have become a thing of the past.”

Butch Harvey checks the status history of the BCU 370 installed at Lincoln High School. Flame strength, configurations parameters, and error history can all be viewed via the included 2 digit display. Complete control history and trending can be obtained using Kromschroder’s BCSoft PC software.

Steve Ogonek is currently a managing partner at Thermal Products & Solutions. Contact TPS.