Pigtails and guages

Al Corelli

Nick L in Vt

pigtails and guages

it seems basic and i still don't get why a guage/pressuretrol on a pigtail runs fine but the same setup piped direct to the boilers fail. why do so many companies sell there products with guages piped direct?

Steamhead (in transit)

The pigtail

or "syphon" develops a water seal thru condensation that keeps steam from reaching the sensitive gauge and control.

Some manufacturers used to make gauges with internal syphons that could be screwed right into the side of the boiler. I never liked them cause you couldn't clean the syphon out.

Unknown

Good question

We never install the gauge directly into the boiler anymore - found out the hard way they don't last too long . We always install them after the pigtail , teed in with the pressuretrol .

Nick L in Vt

guages

what is the best way to troubleshoot pressuretrols? most all are pa404's and the guages run -30" to 10-15 psi and thats on a cold system. opinions are all across board from co-workers.

Unknown

On a cold system

you can , in a pinch and short on time , use an air pump to pressurize the system . And use a good gauge that spins on a boiler drain to check the accuracy of the pressuretrol and gauge .