Drop header and Black piping

Plumber7

Because of the "Wall" I installed a steam boiler with steel fittings and piping. And I installed a drop header. The sight of the system was very impressive when it was completed. It took a little longer to install with iron but it was worth it. The drop header is only a few more fittings. The old boiler was piped with the two tees between the two risers like 99% of the boilers are piped in my area. I made sure I explained to the homeowner the value of the drop header so a heating tech doesn't tell them that their boiler is piped wrong because he never saw one piped that way. I should have taken a picture, maybe when I go back in a few days to skim & clean it.

EF_5

Drop Header

What is the purpose of a drop header? One was installed on the new boiler installed in my building. Thanks.

EF_5

Drop Header

What is the purpose of a drop header? One was installed on the new boiler installed in my building. Thanks.

jim s_2

Drier steam

Due to the piping.

kpc_8

do show us...

I just did one and there are examples in the thread titlrd "steam conundrum" I won't do one any otherway...very slick. I am not sure who came up w/ the idea but....thanks!

Unknown

Not sure

who came up with the idea , but it was Noel Murdough who first introduced many of us to the practice , here on The Wall . He showed us a pic of a Peerless with a dropped header and explained the benefits of using it in detail .

I've been dropping the headers since then and even though this is just anecdotal , I truly believe it produced drier steam by giving any carryover water one more chance to separate from it before hitting the mains .

Here was my first drop header , April 11 , 2002 .

Stephen C.

Drooling

Just looking at that dropped header makes me want a steam system. Is there a case to be made for entirely new steam systems? Inspirational just the same.

Steamhead (in transit)

Sure there is

much better comfort than scorched-air, just as efficient as hot-water when properly installed and tuned, and they don't have all the pipes and radiators exposed to freezing in a power or fuel failure.

And if you're on Long Island, you can have Ron Jr. and his crew install your new Mega-Steam boiler.

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Stephen C.

Wonderful

Just by chance .. do you or Ron Jr. or Mad Dog or other great steam proponents travel?

Norm Harvey

Have steam will travel!

I travel out of my service area for steam system installs if its the right time of year. (summer)

Steamhead (in transit)

Yes, I'll travel

for steam- where are you located?

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Plumber7

Drop header

Ron, this is the picture that I printed out and used for reference for my first drop header job, Thanks. Tom

Stephen C.

Travel

Peterborough, Ontario. Bit of a trek maybe. Thanks for all offers.

Just a pie in the sky idea about converting a building.

Have the space and the rads just too many other projects to enjoy/endure in the near future.

Paul_11

I love fixing the old steam systems, but ...

I consider myself to be quite a good steam person. I love being able to make the old steam systems work again, but I would never say what you just said.

You are right about not having a lot of water in pipes that could freeze in the event of an electrical outage, if that happens to be the most important thing to someone, but

A radiant system or even a panel radiator system combined with a gas fired mod/con with a Tekmar outdoor reset control will be much more efficient to run and provide much more comfort to the occupants.

Paul Shay
A Real Good Plumber, Inc.


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Steamhead (in transit)

The key is

"when properly installed and tuned". No system will run efficiently if not properly installed and tuned.

We're starting to see some of the same results with lo-hi-lo firing on steam as with modulation on hot-water. I had one customer cut his fuel consumption 40% when we hooked up his lo-hi-lo, and I believe one of Terry Tekushan's customers saved over 50%- can't find your post on that, Terry, could you elaborate?

Sure some of the new mod-con hot-water boilers are nice, but if one of them turns around I bet it will see a steamer gaining on it.

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jay_40

Replaced Cast Iron Radiator with Slant Fin Baseboard 1 1/4\". Thi

I took out an upright multi column Cast Iron Radiator & replaced with Slant Fin Baseboard 1 1/4". This is a One Pipe Steam. The baseboard is on the Ist floor above the boiler in the same room as the Thermostat. The Baseboard Spits Water from the Air Vent: Gorton 54 or Hoffman 500 (now 508).

Had same problem with Baseboard on the 2nd Floor directly above. I have a short nipple coming up out of the baseboard with a valve like a Varivalve (it has on the upper part of the valve a perforated ring with holes that you can adjust by sliding the ring around.

What can I do to correct this?

Bring the air vent up higher (how high)?
or
Run a return line back to the boiler?
If so, which is better?

Running a return line from the end of the baseboard by putting a Tee (top of the tee for the air vent & the bottom the tee for the return line) or

putting a Tee in the Steam Supply line feeding the baseboard and running a line from the bottom of the tee back to the boiler?

What size pipe should be the return pipe?
Copper, black, galvanized?

Steamhead (in transit)

Either

run a return from the baseboard or put the cast-iron radiator back in. One-pipe baseboard doesn't work well unless the length is less than 3 feet or so.

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Peter Zelchenko_2

LO-HI-LO

Do they have a LO-HI-LO conversion for residential applications?

bob young

old technology

drop headers have been in use for a hundred years just not that popular especially for residential application. saw one in a hundred old church .....two large boilers tied into a common drop header. replaced the boilers & connected into the existing drop headers. jake myron helped lay out the job.

Steamhead (in transit)

Not yet

as far as I know. C'mon Beckett, Carlin, Riello, Wayne- we're waiting....

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