Insulating Steam Pipes

VinBom

I have a single-pipe, gas fired steam boiler system in my 70 yr old house. The boiler is about 10 yrs old. The previous owner removed all of the steam pipe insulation from the pipes he could see. The basement is extremely hot when the boiler is running. What kind of efficiency increase can I expect if I re-insulate the pipes? Is is worth the $300-400 investment in insulation?

Rod

Insulation

Hi - Insulating your steam pipes will make a big difference.

My steam mains were insulated but after the boiler was replaced the new near boiler piping was left bare. When I finally completed the insulation of the near boiler piping it made a noticeable difference in the speed it took to get the house warm and resulted in a fuel saving. Here's a good link on insulation.

- Rod

http://www.heatinghelp.com/article/11/Hot-Tech-Tips/300/Why-you-should-insulate-steam-pipes

Brad White

Yes, just do it.

For all of the reasons Rod mentioned and in the article.



Heating a space you do not live in (unless you misbehave and answer to "bad dog!"), is not recommended. Insulation can also quiet down a banging steam system, one that bangs on start-up in particular.  Works better than stuffing that insulation in your ears, but be my guest.



With a few particulars, a payback can be calculated based on heat lost to unwanted spaces, added warm-up time from a cold start (of no benefit to the heated space). But the time factor alone is gold. My first steam system (wish I knew then what I know now), took 40 minutes from a cold start. Insulating got that down to 15 minutes.



Besides, insulation is fuel you pay for once. Once your piping is snug (and do the fittings too, even though they take more time and are fussy to make look good), you will know you did the right thing.

crash2009

Insulation is

a good idea.  Our walk-out basement was 120 degrees without insulation.  Now its a comfortable 68.  The steam system runs quieter and the radiators work better.  This will be the first winter with the insulation on so I can't comment on dollars yet.  My gut feeling is that it will pay for itself by Xmas and I might see a profit by spring.