Thermostat with Oil Burner Timer

Ritetemp makes one that keeps track of runtime so you know when to change filters. You might check those to see if you can use it.

Piece of mind, and then what?

Your on a budget, look at what you can do to bring a immediate payback. Putting a film on the windows, heavy curtians. weather seals around the doors/windows

Is everthing winteried.

I think you want an "hour meter" whose voltage matches that of the burner motor. It looks and works like an odometer.

There are so many ways of doing this I don't know where to begin.

Aircraft are equipped with an electric Hobbs Meter. Some are activated off an oil pressure switch that closes the circuit the instant the engine starts running. Others are activated the moment the master switch is turned on. A Hobbs meter simply keep track of total running time. Most are drum type and accurate to a tenth of an hour.

You'll need to know the pump volume in gph. Mine has that data on a stamped plate riveted to the pump body where it connects to the burner.

Another device that makes sense for anyone who is energy conscious is a "Kill-A-Watt" model P3. This device is geared to electrical consumption and has digital read outs for Voltage, Amperage, Watts, Line Frequency and Kilowatt hour consumption over an extended period of time. They cost less than $25.

You merely disconnect the appliance from the receiptical, plug the Kill-A-Watt into the receptical and then reconnect the appliance by plugging it into the Kill-A-Watt. The KAW then measures whatever criteria you ask it to meaure.

It's very effective for establishing absolute electricity usage for any number of appliances. While fuel oil consumption is not its main purpose you can with some novel application use it to determine total total running time of the motor on the oil burner over a period of hours days weeks, etc and then, using the known pump volume of the injection pump, calculate the gallons burned and the grand total of BTUs consumed.

If you have the number of Degree Days available (an important and influential consideration when it comes to heating a home) you can then estimate how much oil consumption your home uses for given weather conditions and temperatures.

If you Google "Hobbs Meter" you are certain to get more hits than you will know how to count. In my opinion, a Hobbs meter is a worthwhile investment. While the "Kill-A-Watt" is a useful instrument for multiple electrical appliance energy estimates, Hobbs meters are task specific and valuable for tracking critical maintenance schedules. That's why they are standard equipment on long haul tractor trailers and required by law by the FAA on certificated aircraft to insure periodic inspectios of engines and airframes with a predictable frequency. It's not how many months or years since you last changed the filter or cleaned the jets but how many hours of running time they have seen since the last PM that is important.

This is a very simple device to install.

L.J.

The OP's unit would be hard wired.

I'd think a fuel flow meter would or that would be the measure I'd use plus a hard wired "kill-o-watt".

Hi there,

You are looking for an elapsed time meter, they are very cheap. it should be wired to monitor the activity of the oil valve rather than the burner, this will avoid it logging periods when the boiler is active but the boiler water stat is satisfied.

Happy New Year ,

Massey.

". . . . . it should be wired to monitor the activity of the oil valve rather than the burner,"

That's a good point, one I should have made. Thank you.

Splice a T fitting into the oil injector line.

Screw an oil pressure switch into that (Auto Parts stores have them)

Mount a 120 VAC Hobbs meter somewhere where it can read and run the ground circuit via the switch.

Wire as needed; a few minutes at best.

L.J.

I think the thermostat is just a 24 volt DC relay. Aren't there some hour meters that will work on 24 volts DC? That would monitor when the oil pump is running.

"Aren't there some hour meters that will work on 24 volts DC?"

Yes there are. 12 and 24 VDC.

However, thermostats operate off a transformer and AC power, not DC.

All the hobbs meters I have used are DC but that doesn'tr mean you can't find one for AC.

Push comes to shove run an old fashioned, gear driven appliance timer off the same 120 VAC circuit that fires up the boilers burner. It won't be as precise perhaps but at less than $6 at Home Depot. . . . what the heck?

L.J