lound banking noise on the pipes

nicholas bonham-carter

when properly adjusted, steam systems can be quiet, economical, and comfortable. when out of adjustment they can be the beast in the basement.

how do you know there had been no problem before-from the previous owner, or from the same tennant who now hears the noise? something must have changed to cause this new noise, and the job is to find out what it was.

you need a copy of "the lost art of steam heating" available here, so that you can become able to observe various characteristics of the system, and pinpoint the problem, or at least when it occurs.

post some pictures of your system [especially the piping on top of the boiler], and we can begin to advise.

another thing to check is the main steam line air vents [ they let the air out, so the steam can rise to the radiators].the smaller vents on the radiators will NOT be able to do this job alone.

check your steam pressure- it should be under 16 ounces. you may need a special gauge [gaugestore.com 0- 5 psi].

check your boiler water-is it dirty?

have your plumber have a look on this website, and become better informed himself.--nbc

debby

loud banking noise on the pipes

We just bought a 2 family home that did not have a heating problem before. Now each nigt around 2 or 3 in the morning the tenant in teh basement complains that there is a lound banging noise on the pipes. My husband checked the radiators and bleed them all. Steam came out from each and one had water coming out. It is a steam system. I had a plumber come in yestetrday and he was able to pinpoint the problem to one radiator where they had to change the pipe so it was more slanted towards the boiler. They broke open the ceiling and then changed all the pipes and did maintenance on the boiler. Noise went away. This morning the tenant complained again that the noise started again in the middle of the night. I need help becuase no one can figure out what the problem is.

Rusty Powers

Sounds like

the radiator w/water in it has a failed steam trap. Could be others also. I'd get a pro in your area to check that next.

debby

Thank you for your response. We have had teh house for a month and all the sudden it started a month a later. Tenant claims it was never an issue. So we are going by that. I will take pictures to post so you can see. We cleaned out the water and had the plumber even clean out the pipes attached to the boiler that had a lot of rust in it as well. Where is the main steam air vent? One thing that could have caused it was we were refinishing the floors and my husband turned off the valves to 2 radiators for about 1 week they were closed. Could this have triggered it?

debby

Unknown

Get Dan's books on steam heating. (See the bottom of this page -"A Steamy Deal" - Read "We Got Steam Heat" first.
They are easy reading, written for the home owner and gives you all the information you'll need to understand your home's steam heating system.

Questions:


1.Is your system single pipe steam? (A single pipe steam system has only one pipe leading to each radiators.)

2.When the boiler`is running, what is the (highest)reading on the pressure gauge?

3. When the boiler is running, how far up and down does the water`level in the glass tube bounce?

If you have a one pipe steam system, the valve(tap) on the pipe going into the radiator must be completely open. It operates either completely open or completely closed.

All this is discussed in detail in Dan's books. You answers here will give us a better idea of what your system's problems could be.

Merry Christmas to you!