Best Of
Re: Many years of issues with radiant floor heat.
Ah, yet another Radiantec system that never worked. 3rd one this week. The 10* delta is not an issue and slowing the flow would make it worse. You can either turn the water temp up, or add more tubing and plates. Your finished floor and surface temp will determine which is the proper solution.
GroundUp
Re: Many years of issues with radiant floor heat.
The heat output of the floor is entirely determined by the surface temperature of the floor.
If you need more heat, you want to raise the temperature of the floor. The simplest way to do that is to increase the water temperature.
At a certain point the floor will get so hot that it's no longer comfortable to stand on. At that point, it's doing all it can. If the room is still uncomfortable you have to look to other heat sources like radiators, baseboard heat, convectors, etc.
If increasing the water temperature doesn't get the heat output to where the room is comfortable, it may be simplest to add another heat source like a radiator rather than redoing the floor.
Re: Adding a Radiator on a Gravity System in the Basement
@EBEBRATT-Ed @Jamie Hall @delcrossv @PC7060 @bburd @mattmia2
Thank you all for chiming in with your insights! I have decided to leave well enough alone and will go the electric route with a 240v 3000/4000 watt heater as it will be a lot easier with no risk to the main system. If I was a licensed professional and "knew" about this stuff I would absolutely try your suggestions. But even finding an old timer who would enjoy the job is a challenge. Heck, local HVACs I have had in want me to ditch my perfectly fine working boiler simply because "its old" so I already know that no one would even accept the job. It was nice to dream.
Re: Chimney question: what is this?
That looks like an old hot air heating supply stack head. When hot air heat was added to existing homes, ductwork to upper floors was often run alongside a chimney. What's puzzling is that it looks like piping was run through it later on.
How old is the house, and are there any other signs of a previous heating system before the hot water heat went in?
bburd
Re: Troubleshooting a mystery... leak/flow reported with no physical leak found. Expansion Tank/Indirect
Simple fix. Install a single seated spring check on your incoming cold water line. Then adjust the expansion tank bladder to the highest anticipated pressure. Anything above that will be absorbed by the tank and not back into the main. The flow sensor is looking for pulses from water movement and doesn't discern forward flow from back flow. Check valve will stop that. Ask your water department to check the presure regulator serving this area. Looks like it is "hunting", which it shouldn't.
Glad you got resolution on Kitek.
Thanks for getting back to the group.
ME
Re: A few different questions regarding EDR and venting
@ethicalpaul beat me to it on all counts…
Re: SupplyHouse Expands to Larger Fulfillment Center in New Jersey
7 miles closer to me! 🙌
Re: Need more consistent domestic hot water
Get a 50 gallon tank heater and put a pan under it piped to a drain or outside.
The pan is required in many areas under code now anyway. That solves your concern and gets you the hot water you want.
ChrisJ
Re: N/A
Sounds like that contractor does not understand steam. The piping has issues but I don't think that is youe problem. This is a one pipe steam system so pipe pitch is important, check all your pipes in the basement and see if they consistently pitch back to the boiler.
Does the water line in the sight glass jump around when it's making steam. If so there is oil in the water and the boiler has to be skimmed - drain and refilling it will not help, it needs a nice slow hot skim to float any oill out of the boiler. If that seems to work but the boiler starts to bang again after a couple of days it needs to be skimmed again.
Bob
BobC
SupplyHouse Expands to Larger Fulfillment Center in New Jersey
SupplyHouse Expands to Larger Fulfillment Center in New Jersey
SupplyHouse.com, a leading online supplier of plumbing, HVAC, and electrical supplies, is pleased to announce the relocation of one of its fulfillment centers from Cranbury, New Jersey, to Dayton, New Jersey. The new fulfillment center, located at 30 Apple Orchard Dr., Suite 1, Dayton, NJ 08810, will offer significantly more inventory capacity, a streamlined setup, and faster service for customers in New Jersey and across the Northeast.
