Latest round of air vent testing- thank you Barnes & Jones!

I too would prefer the O-Ring version. I don't see water being an issue and it sounds like pressure in ounces and maybe up to 2 PSI would be a more real world test on a one pipe system. A dab of RTV can't hurt either.

ChrisJ said:

Sailah said:

I made up at least 50 with the new Quattro O ring. Hopefully it'll even help you drive in the snow. I'll send them out to those that already have them as we discussed.

Please report back any issues or comments, if something isn't right, we'll make it right. I personally tested all the vents and verified they are 100% tight at 6psi. I am also including a spare o ring just in case.

I did not RTV the Oring in place after further reflection. It would be a pain to clean out that groove should the o ring need replacing and it isn't needed for sealing so I left that out.

One thing I did notice about the big mouth is the actual throttle restriction is in the inlet/tailpiece. If someone wanted to hotrod a big mouth, they could enlarge this opening as long as they stay clear of the mating surface between the trap and the tailpiece. I think even a drill would work. But I'll leave that up to you. It's 9/16 opening if I recall.

The Gerry Gill variable vent should be done next week and I think that will also be an interesting addition.

Perhaps you can do like a lot of gaming computer part manufacturers do and sell a "Superclocked" version.

I'll set one up in the Bridgeport and bore the opening to the flippin max and send it to you for the RTV suggestion, thanks!!

Sailah said:

All new parts were shipped Friday to those that already have them. I put return instructions in the box. Sent 15 to amazon.



@ChrisJ please send me your address I got a special port matched blue printed big mouth for you. ..

Awesome!
A port a polished vent!

Is there anyway someone could take a picture of a Big Mouth next to a Gorton 2?

I think it would be good to show the size comparison.

Abracadabra said:

How/where can we purchase these?

I'm going to send some to Amazon for single purchases, please contact me directly for 10+. I'll post the link once it's active

Sailah said:

Here's the Amazon link. Should be a few days before any stock shows up.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GQP0DQ8

just ordered one to replace my old Gorton #1 tree.

@MilanD , I have five of the Bigmouths and haven't seen any steam leaks out of them. Also, are you familiar with the Barnes and Jones Vari-vent? It was designed as a companion vent and it allows you to adjust the air flow so as to balance those shorter mains. (Pictured above) The vent you have that's leaking a bit, is it the one, on your other post that is placed between the two radiators or just ahead of the radiator? I'm wondering if the steam might be flowing into the rad(s) (I think one is huge) and it may take a little longer for enough steam to hit it to close it?

@Fred

It's the one between 2 rads. Left rad is on 1-1/4 nipple and the right one reduces to 1 inch. Riser is 1-1/4 to a bull tee thats 1-1/2 x 1-1/4 x 1-1/4.

This is why I think this one that seeps a little is just not getting hot quickly enough to close. I'll try removing the nipple an bolting it on straight on the tee.

After big mouth gets hot it closes fine. This setup is not that pretty to the eye, but I needed to get more edr there so it is what it is. Now I'm dealing with getting even more steam to it and I am there, almost. Had to slightly reduce venting to rads befor these two to push more steam their way. That 50 ft riser is now venting fast. Once we finaly 2-stage that lgb, I'm expecting to get better performance. This room is used for some kids classes with children running around, so I'll cover the rads, I'm thinking some kind of wood enclosure with a cover, with slats all around, wide enough to allow radiation and convection but protect from children getting burned by accident.

I'm having a few more issues I've dicovered since installing the water meter on the feeder, namely, water use is much higher than I expected to see - I'll post about that separately.

Pic of the rads is attached.

Vari vent link:
https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B01GQP0DQ8/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_awdb_FX7Gyb3TCVH45

Fred said:

@MilanD , most users/buyers don't go to "smile.Amazon" they just go to Amazon and type in Barnes and Jones Vari-vent and it doesn't come up. I'd hate for that vent not to get the sales it deserves just because people can't find it (unless I'm missing something, which is certainly possible )

Amazon Smile is the same as normal Amazon but a portion of the sale price goes to a charity of your choice.

You're almost always missing something.

@Sailah , sorry for your frustration on that bathroom. Demo is suppose to be a stress reliever ( even though I never found it to be. It just exposes all the other flaws that need to be addressed). Anyway, Erin added the vari-vent to the HH store but if Amazon only allows1, to a few, into their inventory, do you have another channel that may work better? Hard to believe Amazon would expect sales to pick up if they always show "Not currently available" and " We don't know if/when this will be available again". Those of us on HH know the situation but the casual user, looking for a good main vent won't.

@Sailah

I heard somewhere that the only thing working in an old house is usually - the owner. Hehe.

Thanks for the offer to swap it out. I'm going to try mounting it directly on the tee, without a nipple, bushing and coupler. This may get more steam volume to hit it quicker. My application of the vent is somewhat different from just on the main, as I have some really long risers for these 2 branches. I'm thinking more responsive disc may be needed for this particular case, but it could be that it doesn't seat. I observed the vent smoke then close. I also did notice some hot air escaping it during operation, but wasn't sure if that's normal due to install location, or if it needs to stay shut until it cools off.

If you judge it needs swapping, how would we go about it?

As to Amazon not stocking this vent, it's purely out of realestate on their shelves, I'm sure. I didn't know of the vari vent main vent until I read this entire thread (I actually did). Big mouth too- until read about it here on the wall.

Most people out there, including Midwest Mechanical that installed our boiler, usually just get whatever they can find at the local supplier, install it and move on. I actually didn't know about traps we have nor was anything mentioned to me until I started reading about it. I don't fault them either, they came to do what I asked them to do and it wasn't to optimize the system, but size and replace the boiler.

As to suppliers, big one here is Winstel Conrols. Whatever is stocked there is what contractors get. That's usually Hoffman 75. I'm not sure if you were to contact various wholesellers/suppliers nationally and offer them these vents, if they'd teach their contractors about it and pick them up. But again, most contractors probably are either not informed or can't spend time balancing systems. For most problems, solution is the "rignt turn only" screwdriver.

MilanD said:

@Sailah



I heard somewhere that the only thing working in an old house is usually - the owner. Hehe.



Thanks for the offer to swap it out. I'm going to try mounting it directly on the tee, without a nipple, bushing and coupler. This may get more steam volume to hit it quicker. My application of the vent is somewhat different from just on the main, as I have some really long risers for these 2 branches. I'm thinking more responsive disc may be needed for this particular case, but it could be that it doesn't seat. I observed the vent smoke then close. I also did notice some hot air escaping it during operation, but wasn't sure if that's normal due to install location, or if it needs to stay shut until it cools off.



If you judge it needs swapping, how would we go about it?



As to Amazon not stocking this vent, it's purely out of realestate on their shelves, I'm sure. I didn't know of the vari vent main vent until I read this entire thread (I actually did). Big mouth too- until read about it here on the wall.



Most people out there, including Midwest Mechanical that installed our boiler, usually just get whatever they can find at the local supplier, install it and move on. I actually didn't know about traps we have nor was anything mentioned to me until I started reading about it. I don't fault them either, they came to do what I asked them to do and it wasn't to optimize the system, but size and replace the boiler.



As to suppliers, big one here is Winstel Conrols. Whatever is stocked there is what contractors get. That's usually Hoffman 75. I'm not sure if you were to contact various wholesellers/suppliers nationally and offer them these vents, if they'd teach their contractors about it and pick them up. But again, most contractors probably are either not informed or can't spend time balancing systems. For most problems, solution is the "rignt turn only" screwdriver.

If the vent needs swapping just call me. Or ask Amazon to send you another one. I'll get the old one back eventually. That's honestly the fastest way to do it and they cover the shipping. The Vari Vent wasn't a big seller at all. I had One in stock there for months. Now it's getting a little more action so is a little more popular. But you are right it's simply a real estate equation for them and I understand. But it's annoying to ship one every 3 days when I'd rather send 12 for the same UPS Fee.

I sell to winstel controls. Not a lot but they can buy from me. Honestly for the Big Mouth I'm totally fine with selling them exactly as I am doing. I don't need or want to sell a bazillion of them. I enjoy that they are a word of mouth thing and that I know probably 90% of the buyers from this forum.

Thanks Bob, I have all the PPE for this job. I read the grinder method will make a hellacious dust tornado and my big 9" metabo is no kids toy.

The SDS hammer drill with flat chisel peeled all those tiles off clean in about 10 minutes. Other than the door area and the small hole I poked in it, the mudwall is in perfect shape. Any yes/no votes to tiling over that? I always feel better starting from scratch but maybe this is one of those times where I'd just be making life hard on myself. Plus think about how heavy it's going to be to haul all that concrete downstairs...lol somebody talk some sense into me.

As for the mudwall......punch a hole with the sledge......stick the hook of a crowbar in the hole, and start pulling it off. Like most of the jobs you're going to encounter, there's no gentle or neat way to do it. PPE is a must. Once you start getting it to move, it will crack and break up.

Btw, if you are leaving the footprint the same, no need to demo the walls and the shower stall, unless you are updating actual plumbing lines and can't access them from the other side. You can, if you are pulling up the shower pan, just wrap everything in shower wrap water membrane and throwel on the mastic over its overlaps. Something like this:
https://www.schluter.com/schluter-us/en_US/Membranes/Waterproofing-(KERDI)/Schluter®-KERDI/p/KERDI

For whatever reason, link above is broken. You have to select it all -with the 3rd line of the url- and copy/paste. I'm typing from my phone so some things don't seem to work correctly.

@KC_Jones

Yeah, I'm old school,... Still working with buckets.

@Sailah - if you can rent a diamond blade cutoff saw with a water feed it really helps to keep the dust down.