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Can I "Zone" heat?

bankcardrep1
bankcardrep1 Member Posts: 7
in Strictly Steam
I have this new boiler which is doing great.  I am just wondering if I can turn off some radiators?



The north side of our house is heated by wood stove in basement.  I was thinking of turning off the two radiators in those two bedrooms.  They stay 70+/- without radiators.



If I turned them off would the others heat sooner?



Advantages or Disadvantages?



I asked my installers, a father and son team at different times and got different answers.  One said NO dont turn them off, the steam needs somewhere to go.  The other said "leave them open a little". 



Confused.

Comments

  • rcrit
    rcrit Member Posts: 74
    no zones

    Take this with a grain of salt as I'm no pro, but this is what I've learned from Dan's books.



    If your installer was worth his salt he measured the EDR of your radiators and sized accordingly. Now you're saying you want to disable a couple of them, making your boiler oversized. This may work ok but will be less efficient (perhaps a lot so).



    I'm not sure what they want to leave open "a little." If it is the vent then that is probably ok. You might be able to use a temperature vent to close it too. If he was talking about the radiator valve then no, it needs to be either open or closed.

    There was an error rendering this rich post.

  • djthx
    djthx Member Posts: 52
    Zoning 1 Pipe Steam Heating Systems

    http://www.bellgossett.com/literature/files/5501.pdf
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,312
    That's

    what I'd do.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • TomM
    TomM Posts: 233
    vacuum breakers?

    Whats the ideal location for the vacuum breakers in this situation?

    There was an error rendering this rich post.

  • Unknown
    Unknown
    edited March 2010
    TRVs

     To save on fuel I shut down parts of my house during the winter by using TRVs at their lowest setting. These keep just enough heat (42 degrees) in these rooms to stop the pipes in the wall from freezing. If you wanted to heat the areas with steam you'd just turn the settings on the TRVs to what ever you wanted.  TRVS or just shutting off the radiators is much less expensive/ hassle than using zone valves I would think. Just a thought.

    - Rod

    Edit:   With the Danfoss RA2000 1PS, a vacuum breaker is built into each TRV valve. Be sure you get the  1 PS (for one pipe steam) as this signifies it has the vacuum breaker.
  • Steve_210
    Steve_210 Member Posts: 647
    vacume breaker

    don;t you need a vacume breaker on every Trv.  thats what we do.
  • Steve_210
    Steve_210 Member Posts: 647
    vacuum
    1. just realised my bad spelling
  • Therm_lag
    Therm_lag Member Posts: 30
    TRV Brands

    What thermostatic radiator vent valve is best for 1-pipe vent control?  I have used Macon vent valves in the past.  Is there an established test for T-static vent valves?  Sometimes there are differences in tehnology that make a difference for certain applications.  
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