Rust on the water side of steam boiler

Steamhead (in transit)

you got the worst of the leaks, but there's probably still a very small one somewhere. Might be a vent that takes a while to close when steam hits it.

Those A-3 series boilers were built like tanks. What were you thinking of replacing it with?

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Ted Robinson

How to prevent rusting of steam boiler

I am retiring our oil fired AS A3-6 boiler that dates from the early 60's I was really shocked to see the heavy rusting condition on the water side. It looked like it has spent 5 years in the Great South Bay!
What is recommended to prevent similar damage to a new boiler? NY City now treats public water to be slightly on the basic side.

Will the PH value >7.0 and a tigher 1 pipe steam system to reduce the amount of makeup water prevent this future rusting? Is there a recommended water treatment process for residential use?

Ted Robinson

Photo of boiler rust

This is what it looks like with the tankless coil removed:

Steamhead (in transit)

That looks to me

like rust with some mud mixed in. We cleaned out the water side of a similar boiler about a year ago and found the same type of thing, though not as bad. Was that system taking on a lot of fresh water?

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Ted Robinson

Make-up water

A simple answer - Yes!
I manually feed the boiler and usually added water 1- 3 X per week during cold weather. This has been going on for 20+ years. Then I found two radiator shut off valves that leaked steam & condensate. Toward the end of the heating season the last leak was isolated and then the boiler needed a small amount of water, once every 2 - 3 weeks.

Ted Robinson

I am planning on going with the flow - out with the oil and installing one of National Grid's (NG?) Burnham 'atmospheric' units.

Steamhead (in transit)

You'll get better efficiency

with a wet-base, power-burner boiler like the Smith G-8. The thermal efficiency (before AFUE is calculated) of this boiler is roughly 6% better than the typical atmospheric, and it also seems to generate steam faster than an atmospheric. Plus, if gas gets more expensive than oil you can have a pro switch the G-8 to oil firing- this is much less expensive than replacing the entire boiler. The G-8 is factory certified for gas or oil firing.

A gas monopoly's preference for inefficient atmospheric equipment is not surprising- it helps them sell more gas. BGE does the same thing in the Baltimore area. Not sure what up-front incentives National Greed is giving you, but it's a stretch to think these would offset the relative inefficiency of an atmospheric boiler year after year.

It makes sense for you and your family to get the most efficient, most flexible boiler available.

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