Best Of
Re: Makeup water causing boiler failure due to thermal shock
No. Only time I had it, was when boiler was running on empty. Boiler was cherry red and customer added water. Goodbye boiler
Re: Viessmann Vitocal AWHP for hydronic baseboards or retrofit floor heating?
R-1.7 floor, 20 btu/hr design, shows 108 AWT, so around 112-115° supply should do the job. That is comfortable for an A2WHP. 80% of the heating season you will be below that 115° requirement, better COP still.
Some key components with transfer plates, the thicker plates will not expand/ contract and make the crinkle/ oil-can noise. The tightness of the tube in the groove prevents the tube from moving, that is where the ticking noise comes from.
Radiant Design used to have ThermoFin and ThermoFin lite. The lite was narrower, a bit thinner gauge too I believe. I've found the lite versions work fine.
It's possible the extruded plates from various tube manufacturers are Radiant Design products re-labeled.
The key to RD fins are the amount of aluminum around the tube channel. The knock off missed that crucial part of the design. This is what gives the channel the holding strength.
It's good to check the output and COP at your expected outdoor temperatures. Down around 14°F COP drops.
hot_rod
Re: Viessmann Vitocal AWHP for hydronic baseboards or retrofit floor heating?
First step is to figure out your starting point. How many liner feet of baseboard you have and how much oil did you burn through last winter. Winter energy used in Therms*42 is about your heat loss. For more accurate number run the math here:
https://www.greenbuildingadvisor.com/article/replacing-a-furnace-or-boiler
AWHP likes to run at around 115F max, you can then see how much of the house heat your existing baseboards can supply at lower temp.
From there, you need to add extra emitters to make up for the shortfall. The easiest is oversized low temperature panel rads to replace sections of baseboard and a bit of floor heat where easier to get to without major demo.
Kaos
Re: Corroded connectors on new boiler.
And I'd say you can forget about the lifetime warranty.
Make sure the cap on the auto air vent is tight. Most SMART failures I've see have been because the air vent leaks and rusts through the outer tank.
Re: What To Look For When Replacing a Natural Gas Boiler
20 years is good. Probably would last longer but I hear parts are a little scarce.
Lochinvar, HTP, Viessman (maybe the best but $$$$)
others will comment. Stay away from Navien.
Re: Corroded connectors on new boiler.
Leaks at transition fittings is part of the reason I use unions when connecting appliances. Typically, Propress x male or female. Expensive, but they save time if there's a leak and the next guy that has to service the equipment will thank you, even though you may no longer be in this world.
Re: New House, New Problems- Introduction and seeking help on new to me steam
If your vapourstat shuts the system off when you trip it manually, it and its wiring is fine — but something else is wrong, like it isn't able to sense boiler pressure. Clogged pigtail. Clogged opening into boiler. Something…
Re: residential boiler outdoor temperature sensor how to test
If you have to replace it the correct control is a Honeywell T6031A1029. Supply House.com has them. $170. Temp range is -30—+90
Re: Getting rid of the old boiler sections
Any turns on the stairs? Open underneath? Can you add 2x4 supports, Hand truck and rope it? I've had to split many boilers to get them out, but I've never had to smash the cast iron. I have however been in a few basements where the old behemoth was just moved into a corner.
HVACNUT
Re: Want to add water to increase boiler system pressure but stumped
Correct. Black valve was closed. Open it so that the automatic fill valve can add the proper amount of water to whatever pressure setting it is preset for. 14-15 psi is normal. This should be done whether the boiler is running or not. If you are certain the auto-fill valve is working properly, let the system run a proper cycle and then bleed any air out of the system manually if you have bleeder valves out on the radiation system, baseboard etc. There should also be some automatic air bleeding mechanism near the boiler. Noise of air sloshing in the pipes is an indication that you need to fill and bleed. Also if there is no heat in the pipes during a call for heat to the boiler that also means there is probably no flow and somewhere the system is "air bound"— often at the circulator.
psb75