# How to fix baseboard heat (gas heat furnace) making GURGLING NOISE?



## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

You can hear the noise in this video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiFe92DUY7Q

I've just bought the house so this is the first time i turn on the heat. Before that, I changed the thermostat to a HoneyWell Digital one. There was only 1 Red wire but there was no metal jumper connecting R and RC slot (does it have anything to do with this noise?). The heat comes out, everything works but the annoying noise is there. How do I fix this?

Thank you


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

and the noise never stops as long as the heat is on.


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

The gurgeling noice is from air in your system which needs to be bled. You can post some photos of your boiler and the immediate valve controls so we can advise you how best to do this or you might want to get that boiler properly serviced.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

how much would it cost me to have someone to do the bleeding for me? The previous owner told me the bleed valve is at one side end of the baseboard in the video


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

Also, is this any serious problem that would damage the furnace? Thanks for your help.


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

If you get enough air into the system you can get air locks that prevent circulation of the water. This will cause overheating and possible venting out of your pressure relief valve depending on the integrity of your exp tank. It usually does not damage anything but can definately result in an unheated home.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

Your baseboard may have radiator ells/bleeder ells on one end. Remove the cover and check. if not, they should be a purge set up near the boiler. post pics of piping and boiler, and we may be able to tell you how to purge the air out, if you don't have bleeders on the baseboards.


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## TheBobmanNH (Oct 23, 2012)

Just a quick pet peeve but also something to help you when you call a professional to do this for you : systems that heat air have furnaces, systems that heat WATER (ie, yours) have BOILERS, not furnaces.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

beenthere said:


> Your baseboard may have radiator ells/bleeder ells on one end. Remove the cover and check. if not, they should be a purge set up near the boiler. post pics of piping and boiler, and we may be able to tell you how to purge the air out, if you don't have bleeders on the baseboards.


The previous owner showed me the ells/bleeder on one side end of the baseboard radiator in the video. How can I bleed the air out by myself? Do I need a pro for this job? I'm no handy man. 

Thanks


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## carmon (May 8, 2010)

after reading.... i suggest a service call.... should not be expensive to bleed air....:thumbsup:


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## REP (Jul 24, 2011)

Many companies have what is called a clean and check service.On this kind of call they clean byurners etc ,they check safty features .It is very comman to have the home owners ask all kind of questions about how their system works and what you should do in the event that something goes wrong.
It sounds as though your air vent is not working.It could also be that the boiler has lost a bit of water and the fill valve is shut off the way the instructions tell you to do.
I believe this would help you out now as well as in the future.


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## ben's plumbing (Oct 6, 2011)

thanks for being honest about your ability ..I would call for service its worth it ...ben sr:yes:


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

ChicityChicity said:


> The previous owner showed me the ells/bleeder on one side end of the baseboard radiator in the video. How can I bleed the air out by myself? Do I need a pro for this job? I'm no handy man.
> 
> Thanks


A dime or small screw driver is used to turn the bleeder open. Then you let it open until water comes out. Don't open it too far, let it slowly bleed out the air.

If it stops leaving air out and no water is coming out. Then close it, an see if your boiler has an automatic water feed, or just a manual. Add water to system until it reaches bout 12 PSIG, then go back to bleeding the air out.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

beenthere said:


> A dime or small screw driver is used to turn the bleeder open. Then you let it open until water comes out. Don't open it too far, let it slowly bleed out the air.
> 
> If it stops leaving air out and no water is coming out. Then close it, an see if your boiler has an automatic water feed, or just a manual. Add water to system until it reaches bout 12 PSIG, then go back to bleeding the air out.


Thanks. I don't think I have a boiler water tank. Please see this thread for the photos of my Heating system

http://www.diychatroom.com/f17/its-cold-i-dont-know-how-turn-my-furnance-157901/#post1016778

Q: Do I keep the heat running while bleeding or turn it off? It doesnt sound that hard, so I will give it a try first.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

For bleeding, you can leave the boiler on.


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

Boiler air bleeding is more effectively done with the pump/s off.
What is your psi read on your tridicator?


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

I don't know if there is a psi meter on my boiler. I will check tonight.

I think this is what I have to do.

http://www.ehow.com/how_5942264_bleed-out-baseboard-boiler-system.html


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

how said:


> Boiler air bleeding is more effectively done with the pump/s off.
> What is your psi read on your tridicator?


Wow, I just checked the psi and degrees. The boiler is running at 20 psi and at 170F. I freaked out and turned off the boiler. This is may be something more serious than I thought. I will have to get a pro to fix this. What do you think could be causing this?

The boiler for my floor is running fine, it's running at 10 psi and 69F. The one having trouble is for my tenants upstair.


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

20 PSI and 170 degrees is a normal reading over ride when the boiler temp controller is set for 160 . 
The pressure is low for your floor as is the temp you listed for it.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

how said:


> 20 PSI and 170 degrees is a normal reading over ride when the boiler temp controller is set for 160 .
> The pressure is low for your floor as is the temp you listed for it.


So is it running at high temperature because of the air inside the radiator?


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

You will have a temp controller on your boiler that allows the water temp to only go so high before it turns off the main burners till it cools down a bit. A tridicator temp of 170 is pretty common. The air in the lines might be slowing down the circulation a bit and so arriving at the max temp a bit faster but if you are getting the heat you want, where you want, it is still functioning well enough. Even after bleeding the air off the rads, it will still run at that same temp.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

I had a pro come today and fixed the problem. He change water in the whole pipe system and adjusted the psi to 12. The noise is not there anymore. $150 to fix is a bit steep though. Thanks everyone


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## carmon (May 8, 2010)

$ 150.00 is not steap ...... trust me....:thumbsup:


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

$ 150.00 for a Sunday repair? Keep his business card for the next time.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

Dirt cheap. I'd of been $125.00 just to tell you what was wrong.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

wow u Hvac pros make good money. I might be in the wrong business


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## how (Feb 26, 2011)

That pro never knows when he's going to lose his Sunday on repairs.
That money you are paying him allows him to carry a store in his truck so that everything was repaired in the one visit. Add truck payments & expenses/ bonding/ insurance/ training upgrades/ tools/ to the rest of his business expenses and it just ends up being a fair wage for a tech who probably has multiple tickets to do his job.


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

ChicityChicity said:


> wow u Hvac pros make good money. I might be in the wrong business


Switch businesses/trades. Go to schools to learn to work on window A/Cs chillers, oil furnaces, gas furnaces, Heat pumps, Electric furnaces, WSHPs, etc. Then go buy a truck and stock it. Pay for advertising. Then look how much money you don't have if you only charge 50 bucks an hour, and you have customers that decide to DIY the repair after you diagnose the problem.

A round trip for a service call may take 4 or more gallons of gas. So 50 bucks minus 15 for gas leaves 35 bucks. So you don't make much on diagnostics charging only a few bucks an hour. Let alone have money for more training as newer tech comes out.

I have more money in digital testers then what some systems install for.


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## ChicityChicity (Aug 30, 2012)

So I went on a vacation for 2 weeks. When I came back, the heat is making the noise again. I tried to bleed the heat myself resulting in the heat stopped working in a couple of rooms. The PSI dropped to 5 or under. I had the pro who fixed the noise problem for me before come to take a look. He said I need to change the gray container on the left of this picture

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/6/20120924204233.jpg/

He said something about that part is supposed to automatically pump cold water in the system when the heated water evaporates to keep the system full of water. That part is not working properly hence the PSI handle keeps oscillating and there is air in the system making the noise. He quoted me $300 including parts and labor to change it.

Does it look like a correct diagnosis and a good quote to you pros?

Thanks,


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## beenthere (Oct 11, 2008)

It provides a place for the water to expand to when its heated. Yes, it could be the cause of your problem.


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