As a quality/compliance manager at a heating equipment distributor, I review every Burnham unit—residential and commercial—before it reaches customers. That's roughly 200+ units a year. In 2024, I rejected about 9% of first deliveries, and most of those were spec deviations. So when a property manager asked me the old question—is Burnham a good boiler?—I didn't give him a brochure answer. I went and looked.
In mid-January 2025, I found myself in the basement of a 1960s triplex in Warwick, Rhode Island. The old steel boiler was already gone. A brand-new Burnham high efficiency gas boiler was on the wall—a 95% AFUE condensing unit, concentric venting, the works. The contractor had started it that morning, and the property manager wanted a second pair of eyes before he signed off.
Why I went to look
The first thing I noticed wasn't the boiler. It was a Hisense dehumidifier humming in the corner. The basement air was reading about 65% humidity, and the dehumidifier was doing its best. That matters for HVAC, by the way—humid air makes a heating system feel cooler than it is. The property manager had already set it to 50%, which told me he cared about the little things.
Now, a quick disclosure: I'm not a combustion engineer, so I can't speak to the metallurgy of the heat exchanger beyond what the spec sheet says. What I can tell you from a quality perspective is this: the unit looked right. The burner door was clean, the pipe hangers were spaced properly, the condensate neutralizer was installed. And then I saw the condensate line.
The first problem I found
The condensate line was looped up above the inlet to the floor drain. That's a classic mistake. Condensate in a high-efficiency burner is acidic, and it flows by gravity only. If you loop it too high, you create a trap that fills with water and eventually backs up into the heat exchanger. The contractor said, “That's how I've always done it.” I showed him the manual. He fixed it in ten minutes.
Everything I'd read about boiler selection says AFUE is the headline number. And sure, 95% AFUE is great. But right then, I realized that a 95% AFUE boiler with a bad condensate line is worse than an older 85% boiler installed by someone who read the instructions. In practice, installation quality and maintenance are what make a “good boiler” actually good. What I mean is, the efficiency rating only matters if the equipment around it is right.
In the garage, there was a Buddy heater on the workbench. The property manager uses it for the detached garage, and he asked if I could give an opinion on it. I didn't want to overstep—portable propane heaters aren't my product line, and I'm not a combustion safety specialist. Take this with a grain of salt: from a quality perspective, I told him to keep it on a solid surface, keep it away from combustibles, and put a carbon monoxide alarm in the garage. That's the kind of thing that gets skipped.
How to replace a bathroom exhaust fan
Before I left, the property manager asked about the bathroom exhaust fan on the second floor. It was noisy and barely moved air. If you're looking for how to replace a bathroom exhaust fan, here's the short version.
- Turn off the circuit breaker first. I'm not an electrician, and you shouldn't pretend to be one either.
- Take the grille off and unclip the fan motor from the housing.
- Disconnect the wiring, but take a photo before you do. Future you will appreciate it.
- Remove the old housing if it's nailed or screwed to the joist. Some are spring-loaded and just twist out.
- Put the new housing in and connect the duct. Make sure the damper opens freely.
- Wire it back up, slide the motor in, and test it.
Here's the thing: the old fan had a high CFM rating on the label, but the damper was flimsy and the duct had two sharp bends. The fan wasn't terrible—the installation was. Same lesson as the boiler. The most efficient machine in the world doesn't matter if the details around it are wrong.
Is Burnham a good boiler?
So, back to the question. Is Burnham a good boiler? In my opinion, yes—with a catch.
The Burnham high efficiency gas boiler I reviewed that day was spec'd correctly, had a solid warranty package, and the technical literature was clear enough to catch the condensate mistake. That last one matters more than people think. A boiler is only as good as the people who install and maintain it. Burnham makes that easier by being consistent and documented.
The catch is that “good” is not automatic. You need a qualified installer, proper commissioning, and annual maintenance. I do not believe in telling someone that any boiler is maintenance-free. Condensing gas boilers need their filters, traps, and venting checked. If you skip that, you're gonna have a bad experience with any brand.
I'd also hesitate if a quote is significantly lower than the others, because that usually means something got cut—like a condensate neutralizer or a proper load calculation. And I'd hesitate if the contractor can't answer questions about warranty registration. Burnham's warranty is solid, but it's not automatic; you have to register the unit. Per FTC guidelines (ftc.gov), advertising claims should be truthful and substantiated, and the AFUE rating on the spec sheet is a good example of a substantiated efficiency claim. Keep the manual and the proof of purchase.
From my side of the counter, the companies that win are the ones with efficient processes. The contractor who fixed the condensate line on the spot saved himself a return trip and kept a customer. The property manager who asked for a second set of eyes avoided a potential call-back. That's what I mean when I say efficiency is a competitive advantage—it's not about speed for its own sake. It's about catching the little things before they become big things.
The bottom line
If you're a contractor putting in a Burnham high efficiency gas boiler, or a homeowner trying to decide, my advice is the same: don't buy it because the name is familiar. Buy it because you've seen the spec sheet, you've read the manual, and you're willing to do the maintenance. That's what makes any good boiler good.
And if you came here for the bathroom fan advice—turn off the power, take a photo of the wiring, and don't let a cheap install ruin a decent fan. That lesson works for boilers, too.
