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Consumer Reviews of WEIL-MCLAIN Boilers

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Number of Reviews: 14
Average Rating: 3 out of 5

The opinions expressed in these reviews are the opinions of consumers that visited FurnaceCompare.com. They do not necessarily represent the opinions of FurnaceCompare.com.

Review your WEIL-MCLAIN Boiler

Date created: 2009-01-02 Name: D. Sudermann
Location: Northfield, MN
Years owned: 24

Satisfaction Rating:

Very Unsatisfied Somewhat Unsatisfied Neutral Somewhat Satisfied Very Satisfied

Review:
I did most of the installation myself in 1984, replacing an ancient Bryant gas boiler. When I moved the boiler to a new location in 1998- 99, I took the flu collector assembly apart, since the silicon glue had deteriorated and re-glued with high-temp silicon. I cleaned the whole furnace and reinstalled. In 2000 the solenoid in the gas valve wore out and I replaced it with a used gas valve. Yesterday, 1 January 2009 the solenoid bit the dust again and it was replaced today with a White- Rogers 36c84-912 valve. Over the years the furnace has worked very well. No other parts, except a relief valve, were replaced. I have kept the unit clean and the blower motor oiled at least twice a year. Oh, I forgot to mention: our VHE(Series 2) heats the water in an Amtrol Residential Hot Water Maker, and that has functioned well, too. It is gratifying to be able to live with equipment that has worked so well for so long.

Date created: 2008-12-18 Name: Jacob family
Location: Chicago, IL
Years owned: 42

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
This unit has been going strong without problems for 42 years. The water circulating pump has been replaced three times. The boiler has cast iron burners and is serviced/cleaned annually. Today the service man said it was is great shape, though we assume it is not as efficient as modern boilers. He also warned that replacements for the cast iron burners are no longer available so we are keeping our fingers crossed and researching other boilers in order to be ready for an inevitable mid- winter breakdown.

Date created: 2008-12-11 Name: L. Holland
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Years owned: 3

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
My three year old unit just failed due to a cracked heat exchanger. It was fine when it worked, but now it's broken and the part to repair does not exist locally nor anywhere in the country or at the Weil-McLain factory, so now I'm waiting for them to make one, in the middle of a Minnesota winter as I enter day four without heat. And then I get to pay an extra $150 for them to ship it here "fast". The service from Weil- McLain and their representatives has been a disgusting joke. Multiple phone calls returned not at all or 36+hours later, no one wants to take action or accept responsibility, and to top it off, there are two of the exact same model boiler here, in my state, that could have been used for a swap out or part. Instead, assuming the part gets made and shipped when they say, I'm stuck six days with no heat. In my opinion, this is an absolutely unacceptable level of service from a company who claims to be one of the most reputable boiler manufacturers and from a product that is claimed to be superior with a premium price tag. What good is a 15 year warranty the company can't be bothered to stock parts or provide after-sales service?

Date created: 2008-11-20 Name: mp
Location: n. ma.
Years owned: 14

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
My boiler was installed before I got into the field by a plumber. That's where most problems start. The boiler is a 68 series. I would and will buy another. The key to any good install is having an oil co. do the install not a plumber. Your oil burner tech has the license to pull the permit, not the cheaper plumber.That's why he's cheaper! Plus the plumber wont be coming back to clean your boiler, so what does he care if the install is bad. The tech will be back to clean it so the install is smarter.

Date created: 2008-11-18 Name: Charlene Phelps
Location: Gloucester Massachusetts
Years owned: 1

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
We have owned this unit ( new to the house ) for just one year. It seems to work well, except for the ignition tips. They get fouled all the time. They have already stopped working 3 times. We were lucky to be home when this happened or it may have caused real problems... We are currently looking to get some information directly from the maker of the boiler to see if there is a remedy for this, other wise it may be a very regretted decision to have gone with this system.. I hope that they can give us some information to fix this problem. The heater itself seems to work well., however it is a new house so there is nothing to compare what it would have been like with another.

Date created: 2008-11-09 Name: JR
Location: New York
Years owned: 15

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
I've had my Weil-McLain oil fired boiler for 15 years and never had a problem. My dad has had his longer and no problems to speak of. The rental we own has one that's nearly 20 years old and will need replacement because it leaks water into the combustion chamber if it's shut down long enough to get cold. Not terrible for a 20 year old boiler. All in all, I've been very happy with Weil-McLain boilers. Very easy to work on if you do your own maintenance and reliable.

Date created: 2008-10-29 Name: Richard Mourino
Location: West Sayville, NY (Long Island)
Years owned: 18

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
Replaces an old repo back in 1991. Has run without any problems since. It is a cast Iron Water jacket design with a Riello f40 Burner head. The burner head is what really saves on oil. It uses a .65 burner head that produces 105 btu rather than using a standard .95 used on becket burners. Is noisy but cut oil consumption down by 45% from the repo used.

Date created: 2008-10-25 Name: OwnUltra230
Years owned: 5

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
My Weil McLain has problems all the time. It shuts itself off. It is barely more energy efficient than the 25 year old boiler it replaced. I deeply regret buying Weil McLain. Too much trouble.

Date created: 2008-10-22 Name: WantedEfficientBoiler
Location: Oshkosh, WI
Years owned: 5

Satisfaction Rating:

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The Weil McLain dealer totally butchered the installation. The boiler turned off several times in the middle of winter requiring manual re- start. Fortunately I was home or our pipes would have frozen. Despite the shutdowns and exhaust gas venting into the house, the Weil McLain manufacturers rep called the installation "good." After suing the dealer and having another contractor re-pipe the system, I wrote executives at Weil McLain's corporate parent, SPX. Weil McLain sent an engineer to check the boiler for damage. A Weil McLain rep promised to extend the warranty. He lied. I received a bill for $450 to extend the warranty. If a Weil McLain rep comes to your house, I recommend you video the visit.

Date created: 2008-06-26 Name: Gordon R.
Location: St. Paul Minnesota
Years owned: 20

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
20 years ago I replaced an old oil-fueled boiler with this natural gas unit. It is much smaller and quieter. I have had to replace about four hot-wire ignitors, usually on very cold days in Minnesota, but the system has performed very well for many years. The newer ignitors have a different shape so the frequency of replacement has gone down considerably. I have had no problems with valves (three zones) or controls (Honeywell). I would buy another Weil-McLain.

Date created: 2008-02-29 Name: Thomas Colardo
Location: Johnston, RI
Years owned: 1

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
Just had installed not to long ago. It seemd to run the same as the 30 year old boiler that was there. It also seems to be alot louder then the previous. Ca someone please tell if this is normal. other wise I am still reviewing the product for savings on oil.

Date created: 2007-10-16 Name: N. Clark
Location: Evanston, Illinois
Years owned: 21

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
In the first 8 or 9 years of life this boiler was fine, but over the last decade the control items (igniter, blower motor, gas switch, etc) have been extremely unreliable. It appears to me that Weil-MCLain uses cheap, poorly made and poorly designed control devices (Honeywell, for example) that really cripple the performance and reliability of what is a pretty good basic unit. I am about to replace this boiler, and I am hoping that W-M recognizes that the perception of the W-M name depends on the quality of the entire unit. When they start to lose business to a (Japanese or German?) manufacturer that attends to details they shouldn't squawk.

Date created: 2007-07-22 Name: timothy stafford
Location: unadilla n.y
Years owned: 17

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
i was happy with the reliability but my three section boiler is drastically leaking fire between the sections i felt it was kind fast started after fifeteen yrs and i am going to replace the boiler now. i am staying with weil mclain for the the break down factor is minimal.i would like to buy direct is that possible?

Date created: 2006-11-12 Name: W. Brooks
Location: New Hampshire
Years owned: 4

Satisfaction Rating:

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Review:
The previous owner of our house installed this boiler, and we have a contractor out each Spring to perform the annual maintenance. We've only had one problem with it in the 4 years that we've owned it. It wouldn't start one day, so we had a contractor come look at it. There was something wrong with the ignition system, and about $200 later it was fine.