boiler and domestic hot water

HenryT

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Is it true that for boiler that is being used to produce single pipe steam heat and domestic hot water that the water level in the boiler has to be full so it can satisfy demand?

Glass site guage is always full and low water cutoff is installed above the half way mark (guessing to keep boiler full).

Are there any drawbacks to this set up?



Thanks in advance.</span>

jpf321

untrue

i have seen it posted here that you may want to keep the water level for boiler UP in the non-heating season .. but during heating season you can keep it lower. the theory is, i think, that during non-heating season you want to make sure that the coil is covered with water since the space above it (the steam chest) presumably doesn't make steam during non-heating season. but during heating season, with all the boiling and the steam chest coming up to steam temps at least every now and then during the day, you don't need your coil covered in "hot medium" (high-water) ..



i run my boiler as low as I can assuming it avoids tripping of the LWCO when all the steam is out in the rads. the less water I need to bring to a boil, the less fuel I need to burn. keep in mind that i have an old boiler with a large water content .. the newer boilers of today have far less water than mine .. i DO have an 8GPH tankless DHW coil right now and I have no problems with my DHW supply

HenryT

Thanks.

Thanks.  During heating season if you were to keep the water level high, wouldnt this produce wet steam since the water may run the risk of entering the risers out of the boiler?

jpf321

would certainly

high water would certainly make wetter steam more probable.. saying that it definately WOULD may not be fair. alot has to do with the boiler piping arrangement.

Brian_74

running low

Hey, JPF, what you wrote about running with less water makes sense. I have an older boiler, too, and am thinking of trying it myself--especially since I just got the gas bill. I know you've been tracking lots of data points. Did you ever compare fuel usage at different water levels to see if what makes sense in theory holds up in practice?



What's the downside to running a little low? I assume that you'd have to be vigilant about checking the water level, but I do that now as I imagine you do, too.



I suppose I should ask: just how low are you running? If normal is at the midpoint on the sight glass, where's your level?

HenryT

Thanks

Thanks