Plumber

BMK

I have installed a Burnham MagaSteam boiler in an old house replacing a Ideal round coal fire converted vapor boiler.  I did not realize what "It" was that Demoed out with the asbestos.  I researched and bought Dan's Lost Art Book to help with the start up of the system.  Now that fall is coming on I seem to have a few problems.  At 8oz the boiler is c\short cycling every 45 seconds the radiators have a metering ADSCO graduated supply valve and no radiator traps.  some new work was done when the coil boiler was converted to oil burner and at that time 2 wall convectors installed to replaced two CI radiators and 1 Supply valve was replaced with a standard steam radiator valve.   The radiators are all supplied with top connections.  The steam main starts out 4in and splits two ways 3in around the house. the dry return starts at one side of the split and travel around the house sloped down to the return.  At the end of the two steam mains they drop, with out main vents, to about 18inches off the floor and then rise up to the dry return.  Which carries on to pick up the other radiator return pipes on its way back to the boiler to a main vent 24in before the drop to floor and returning up to the hartford loop.   The water level in the boiler is about 36in  above the floor.  The mains return to the dry return at about 72inches  above the floor. I have tried the vaporstat setting from 6oz  to 14oz and it still short cycles.  Any Ideas

JStar

Sounds like...

...a venting or boiler size issue.