New boiler-bullhead tee-Help

mike jones_2

but it is the clearest pic i've seen of a smashingly neat looking installation. problem is... i cant help with your questions, but if you re post i bet you'll be able to conjure up a nice helpful discussion.

this mite sound dumb, but, try a search on this site for a 0=5 guage in case your new gauge just isnt sensitive enough. watch for a pigtail so you dont blow your gauge.

ps. i am looking to understand these near boiler piping issues if you get some answers!!! thanx and good luck

Glen_7

I've heard the term bullhead tee several times on this site and never really understood what it meant. Now I know as I apparently have one in my new steam boiler installation. I posted a while back that the boiler seems to work fine other than the fact that the pressure never registers on the gauge. I have heat at all the rads and it doesn't take very long. In the interest of running at the best efficiency, I've been doing more reading and it looks like I have at least the following issues (see pics):

1. Bullhead tee
2. Risers only go about 22” before bottom of the header. I am told I should have 26-28 with this size boiler. (Peerless 64-12, 1600 sq/ft steam)
3. Close nipple on Hartford Loop is just at or slightly above water line. Most of what I've read says it should be below. Need clarification here.

There is a personal and business relationship with the installer so I need to approach this diplomatically. If the boiler works ok, am I worried about nothing? Is the bullhead the reason I don't raise noticeable pressure? Pressuretrol set at 1.5 but it never hits it. I don't want to make a mountain out of a molehill but if this is going to cost me a lot in lost efficiency or in boiler life, I need to address it.

If I had suggestions on corrective measure (if needed) that would help me sell this. The caps under the insulation on the top pipe are where the old boilers 3 risers originally tied in. Two were capped and the other used as shown.

I'm not sure about the room on the right side of the boiler to redirect the piping the proper way with the equalizer, etc.

Glen_7

I've heard the term bullhead tee several times on this site and never really understood what it meant. Now I know as I apparently have one in my new steam boiler installation. I posted a while back that the boiler seems to work fine other than the fact that the pressure never registers on the gauge. I have heat at all the rads and it doesn't take very long. In the interest of running at the best efficiency, I've been doing more reading and it looks like I have at least the following issues (see pics):

1. Bullhead tee

2. Risers only go about 22” before bottom of the header. I am told I should have 26-28 with this size boiler. (Peerless 64-12, 1600 sq/ft steam)

3. Close nipple on Hartford Loop is just at or slightly above water line. Most of what I've read says it should be below. Need clarification here.

There is a personal and business relationship with the installer so I need to approach this diplomatically. If the boiler works ok, am I worried about nothing? Is the bullhead the reason I don't raise noticeable pressure? Pressuretrol set at 1.5 but it never hits it. I don't want to make a mountain out of a molehill but if this is going to cost me a lot in lost efficiency or in boiler life, I need to address it.

If I had suggestions on corrective measure (if needed) that would help me sell this. The caps under the insulation on the top pipe are where the old boilers 3 risers originally tied in. Two were capped and the other used as shown.

I'm not sure about the room on the right side of the boiler to redirect the piping the proper way with the equalizer, etc.

bob young

solving a dilemna

for Christmas give your friend a copy of Dan's steam primer & the piping diagrams for your boiler. and a quart of chivas regal. let the chips fall....

Mitch_4

Bull head Tee

All tees have a bull connection. It is the base of the tee, where the medium in the pipe MUST turn 90°. The 2 openings that go straight through are the run.

So..if you connect on the straight through, you are connecting on the run.

If you connect to the base part of the tee, you are connecting on the bull.
Clear?

Unknown

My interpretation

of a bull tee is where the side branch is larger than the run of the tee.
Certainly not desirable for steam systems coming off the boiler as the medium(steam) will clash together before having a sense of direction to enter the distribution system.
And yes, the tie-in point of the Hartford should be slightly below the waterline as the returning condensate can flash back to steam causing water-hammer.(In your case, I guess you`re just lucky).

As bob & mike suggest,,read the manual yourself, then tandem a lower gauge to the pigtail.

Dave

heatguy

i think

bullheaded tee means that the bull or center of tee is larger then the run

Warren Worth

Bull headed tees adn bull headed engineers

I am the latter (bull headede engineer). What is significant about the bull-headed tee in your installation is that steam must come from two opposing directions to get into the tee (the steam tappings on the boiler go through 90 degree turns and into the bull headed tee). After entering at 180 degrees opposed, on both sides of the tee, the outlet to the system goes out the top. What is preferred is that both tappings out of the top of the boiler are joined in a straight line before entering the tee to the system that goes off the top.

We are looking for predictability in steam flow, good separation of water from steam, and good maintenance of water levels. The riser height and sizing is intended to provide room at a low steam velocity for separation of water (to fall back into the boiler) and steam (to go out into the system). In the system I described, with both risers coming together and pointing right at the equalizer, with the outlet to the system coming after the last riser, water can come right back into the boiler, because its vector is horizontal and its weight is greater than vapor. Thus water steam separation and water level is maintained. Pressure equalization is maintained within the boiler case, since the pressure on the boiling surface of the water is directed back at the equalizer. So steam goes out, water stays in (except for that converted to vapor), and pressure stays constant.

Other ways work sometimes, but this way works everytime, so it has become a standard of near boiler piping. I can't recommend enoguh Dan Holohan's book "The Lost Art of Steam Heating." not only does it expalin, but it amuses and captures your attention. Good luck!