New boiler-Old system

clammy

Maybe the mix of heating elements is because the origanl system was added to maybe by seperating you can zone your system or stand a better chance of balancing and neating your system up ,a good perfectage of a heating systems eff is distrubition if the distrubition systems is eneff then a new boiler will really make everything else work like it new do yourself and your new boiler a favor us ethe find a pro listing a find a good heatingguy and have hime check your system out the money you save by installinga sytem yourself you might end up givingback to the ulities .peace and good luck clammy

Wes_3

New boiler Old system

I am installing a new boiler in a old system. The piping is a mess in the basement, galv. & black going to copper. Also the old installer mixed baseboard and radiators with only one zone? It seems my house is comfortable....but might be really in-efficent? I have to drain the whole system to install a new air purger & expansion tank. Should I take the time to run new copper throughout and try and seperate the radiators on a seperate zone? Any thought would be great.

Al Letellier_9

separating rads from BB

Wes, it totally depends on how the system is piped, how you want to live in the space and how much comfort you are looking for. A very hard question to answer as we don't have the eyeball on it. We can't tell from your description how things are with your system. Zoning is always a good thing for comfort and efficiency, but this is a question that needs up close inspection to answer. Consult a heating pro to get the help you need to make this decision

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Steve L.

Is the baseboard copper or cast iron? If your house is comfortable I can't really see the point of repiping everything.
A rule of thumb is that you never mix coppper baseboard/convectors with cast iron baseboard/radiators. The reason is that the cast iron will retain its heat for a longer period of time then the copper. So it is possible that during points in the heating cycle (when the circulator shuts down) the rooms with copper baseboard/convectors with cool down faster than the rooms with cast iron radiators/baseboard.
This being said, the piping that supplies the radiator/baseboard doesn't realy affect the "efficiency" of the individual radaiator/baseboard. It might be unsightly, but if it's not leaking I wouldn't change it.

RS_3

New Boiler for Old Steam System

My 1920 steam system is overdue for a new boiler. 2800 sq ft home. Although technically a 1-pipe system, there was originally a system of upper return pipes which fed through air line valves (aka "Pall" vents?). I was told these returns were only to drain back excess water vapor. They were entirely removed in '88 when determined they were non-functional and replacement valves were unavailable.

I also want to expand system into my 900 sf attic. It was originally piped (2 lines) but no radiators installed.

Any advice/warnings would be appreciated. What output boiler? I'm also looking for a knowledgable installer in the Grand Rapids, Michigan area. THANKS!

Steamhead (in transit)

The \"Paul\" system

is described in chapter 15 of "The Lost Art of Steam Heating". Whoever told you what those little air lines were for doesn't have a clue. They were routed to a vacuum exhauster to pull air from the radiators.

Or, it might have been an "Eddy" system which was similar.

Someone here on the Wall has resurrected a Paul system by using a small vacuum pump, but I can't remember who it was.....

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Boilerpro_5

And

Paul air vents are still available right from Hoffmann in Chicago.

Boilerpro

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