Checklist
Boiler Inspection Checklist
A comprehensive boiler inspection checklist covering daily, weekly, monthly, and annual tasks. Keep your boiler safe, efficient, and compliant with this systematic approach.
6 min readUpdated July 2026
Daily Checks
- Water level: Verify normal level in the gauge glass. Blow down the gauge glass to confirm it reads correctly.
- Water treatment: Test TDS, pH, and chemical residuals (sulphite, phosphate). Adjust dosing as needed.
- Blowdown: Perform bottom blowdown (quick-open for 5 to 10 seconds). Verify continuous blowdown is operating.
- Flue gas analysis: Check O2 and CO. Adjust combustion if out of range.
- Visual inspection: Walk around the boiler. Check for leaks, unusual noises, vibration, or abnormal temperatures.
- Burner operation: Observe flame pattern, colour, and stability. Listen for unusual noises.
- Stack temperature: Record. Compare to baseline. Rising temperature indicates fouling or excess air problems.
Weekly Checks
- Test low-water cutoff: Perform an evaporation test or use the blowdown valve to drain water until the burner cuts out. Verify alarm and burner shutdown.
- Test safety valves: Gently lift the try lever on the safety valve (if fitted) to verify it moves freely. Do NOT gag or adjust.
- Check feed pumps: Verify standby pump starts automatically when running pump is stopped. Check for leaks, vibration, and abnormal temperature.
- Inspect water gauge: Blow down the gauge glass. Verify both upper and lower valves are clear. Check for cracks.
- Check blowdown system: Verify blowdown valves seal completely. No continuous dripping.
- Oil burner checks (if applicable): Check oil temperature, filter pressure drop, nozzle condition.
Monthly Checks
- Check all alarms: Test high pressure, low water, flame failure, and high TDS alarms.
- Inspect refractory: Visually inspect through inspection doors. Look for cracks, spalling, or glowing.
- Check combustion at multiple firing rates: Verify O2 and CO are within range at low, medium, and high fire.
- Lubricate pumps and fans: Follow manufacturer's lubrication schedule.
- Check motor currents: Record amp draw on feed pump, fan, and oil pump motors. Trend over time.
- Inspect insulation: Check for damage to boiler casing, piping, and valve insulation.
Annual Inspection
- Open and clean the boiler: Remove all access doors. Clean fire-side tubes (fire tube) or water-side tubes (water tube). Remove scale and soot.
- Inspect tubes: Visually inspect all accessible tubes for scaling, corrosion, blistering, and leaks. Measure tube wall thickness at suspect areas.
- Inspect refractory: Repair cracks and replace damaged sections. Refractory in poor condition causes hot spots on the casing.
- Inspect and overhaul burner: Clean burner, replace nozzles, check ignition electrode, calibrate flame scanner, verify combustion at all firing rates.
- Test safety valves: Pop-test or gag-test all safety valves. Recertify if required by local regulations.
- Hydrostatic test: If major repairs were made, hydrostatic test the boiler to verify integrity.
- Check all controls: Calibrate pressure controllers, level controllers, and temperature sensors.
- Inspect and clean economiser: Clean tube surfaces (fire-side and water-side). Check for corrosion and leaks.
- Water treatment review: Have a water treatment specialist review the chemical program and test results.
Document everything
Keep records of all inspections, tests, and maintenance. Regulatory authorities require documentation. PlantLogica's maintenance logging and compliance modules make this easy, with automatic audit trails and scheduled reminders.