Copper Near Boiler Piping

nycpa

Hi, I have a Weil Mclain EG-45 steam boiler with copper heading. I wanted to replace the copper with steel piping. Thae manual for the EG-45 shows two different header options. The first one with PARALLEL flow piping uses one take off which looks exactly to my current header, which I want to replace exactly with steel. The second one with COUNTERFLOW piping uses both headers. What is the difference between PARALLEL flow piping and COUNTERFLOW piping and would it be better to replace it with two takeoffs anyway.

RobG

Can you post photos of what you have? Radiator and boiler piping. The more the better.

Rob

gerry gill

Parallel piping has the pitch of the pipe where the steam and the condensate go the same direction. Counter flow has the pitch where the steam and the condensate go against each other. Parallel flow is always better.

nycpa

OK thanks, its seems like parallel piping is the usual one pipe system while counter flow is two pipe system

Jamie Hall

Well not really. Out in the system one may have either counterflow or parallel flow for one pipe steam; there are slight differences in pipe size and pitch. Two pipe steam may also be counterflow or parallel flow, but the amount of condensate in the mains is so small as to make no difference.

Now. In the near boiler piping, one could pipe the header as either counterflow or parallel flow -- but parallel flow is almost incomparably better, and there is no excuse really for piping a header as counterflow.

BobC

Simply put, a parallel systems have the steam main above the boiler at the high point. The piping slowly drops as it goes away from the boiler and at the end of the main a return pipe works it's way back to the boiler lower than the steam main.

A counterflow main rises as it travels away from the boiler, and condensate runs back through the main against the flow of the steam.

In both cases there is a air vent near the end of the main (or the return) that lets air escape so steam can follow.

Bob