Camelot 68 Report post Posted March 5, 2009 Ok...are you ready for this one? A few days ago, I'm using hot water on a concrete job when I notice a big puff of white smoke from the burner and all of sudden I'm getting no flame...I was nearly done, so I completed the job with cold water. I'm not the handiest guy in the world, but I took a crack at opening the casing and cleaning some of the debris out of the burner. The next day, I have another concrete job and the burner seems to be working fine. After 10 minutes, there's a big puff of white smoke and again there's no flame... There wasn't any gum, so I washed with cold and used some chems to finish up the job. I had a few days of washing homes and not needing hot water, so I didn't think much about it. I needed hot water again today, so I got on the phone with my distributor and had him walk me through some basics to fix the burner. I checked the ignition and it was REALLY clean, no carbon build up or anything. I opened the casing and there was no debris. At this point, I am covered in soot and completely exasperated. I've got several commercial jobs coming up and I begin to freak a little...I then notice that my fuel filter (which is clear) is BONE dry...my first thought is that the fuel line is clogged so I get the tools I need to take the fuel line off and check for a clog. The minute I touch the screwdriver to the screw it dawns on my dumb a$$ that I may be out of diesel. I check the tank and BINGO...I'm out...So now, I'm covered in soot, exasperated, pissed off, and feeling like a total moron...LOL. I add diesel and voila, everything is right as rain. Turns out that on the first job, I ran out of gas and the white smoke was the burner sputtering in it's final gas-starved throes...the next job, I was parked on an incline so I had enough diesel to get through 10 minutes before I sputtered again. Even after I saw the empty fuel filter, my mind went immediately to "clogged" instead of "empty". I guess the moral of the story is that sometimes we "overthink" things...more often than not it's the simple things that cause us problems. My intent in posting this is to save someone else the same aggravation. All in all it was pretty darn funny... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FullBlast 14 Report post Posted March 5, 2009 Ha makes us all feel good!!! I thinks somewhere along the way everybody has done this to something or the other!!! Bet you'll think of it the next time!!! Good luck!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Camelot 68 Report post Posted March 5, 2009 Yeah, sometimes this is the best way to learn...I guarantee I won't do that again... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul Kassander 26 Report post Posted March 5, 2009 Don't feel bad it happens more than you think. I have done the same thing and have had customers call with the same problem. Sometimes the obvious really isn't so obvious. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scott Stone 604 Report post Posted March 6, 2009 I hate when that happens. Not that it ever happens to me...:rolleyes: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RMedbery 26 Report post Posted March 6, 2009 Amazing how human nature likes to get complicated right off. KISS Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
big mike 14 Report post Posted March 6, 2009 Hey the same thing happened to me, kind of. I had diesel in the tank though, but was parked on an incline and the pickup was on the dry end of the tank. My wife pointed it out to me. DUH!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Camelot 68 Report post Posted March 6, 2009 oooooooh...and they don't forget, do they? LOL...That'll come back to you.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Douglas Hicks 128 Report post Posted March 7, 2009 Ok...are you ready for this one? A few days ago, I'm using hot water on a concrete job when I notice a big puff of white smoke from the burner and all of sudden I'm getting no flame...I was nearly done, so I completed the job with cold water. I'm not the handiest guy in the world, but I took a crack at opening the casing and cleaning some of the debris out of the burner. The next day, I have another concrete job and the burner seems to be working fine. After 10 minutes, there's a big puff of white smoke and again there's no flame... There wasn't any gum, so I washed with cold and used some chems to finish up the job. I had a few days of washing homes and not needing hot water, so I didn't think much about it. I needed hot water again today, so I got on the phone with my distributor and had him walk me through some basics to fix the burner. I checked the ignition and it was REALLY clean, no carbon build up or anything. I opened the casing and there was no debris. At this point, I am covered in soot and completely exasperated. I've got several commercial jobs coming up and I begin to freak a little...I then notice that my fuel filter (which is clear) is BONE dry...my first thought is that the fuel line is clogged so I get the tools I need to take the fuel line off and check for a clog. The minute I touch the screwdriver to the screw it dawns on my dumb a$$ that I may be out of diesel. I check the tank and BINGO...I'm out...So now, I'm covered in soot, exasperated, pissed off, and feeling like a total moron...LOL. I add diesel and voila, everything is right as rain. Turns out that on the first job, I ran out of gas and the white smoke was the burner sputtering in it's final gas-starved throes...the next job, I was parked on an incline so I had enough diesel to get through 10 minutes before I sputtered again. Even after I saw the empty fuel filter, my mind went immediately to "clogged" instead of "empty".I guess the moral of the story is that sometimes we "overthink" things...more often than not it's the simple things that cause us problems. My intent in posting this is to save someone else the same aggravation. All in all it was pretty darn funny... I cannot imagine anyone would do such a foolish thing. However, it is possible to put gas in the dsl tank. It is also possible to put dsl in the gas tank. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FullBlast 14 Report post Posted March 7, 2009 However, it is possible to put gas in the dsl tank. It is also possible to put dsl in the gas tank. I can't imagine anyone would do such a foolish thing!!!!:):o Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Joe Ortiz 14 Report post Posted March 7, 2009 that has happend to me too (the running out of dsl part) but it will only happen once Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mountain View 14 Report post Posted March 10, 2009 Overlooking the obvious, going down the wrong road to find the problem, slapping my head when it turns out to be a 5 minute fix......welcome to my world!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
