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Is it time for these snowmen to go?

I would like to replace three coal converted to oil converted to gas boilers for the three single-pipe steam systems in my Cambridge, MA three-decker.



Plan A: Replace the No. 2 boiler's upshot gas burner (low output problem) and hope the minor leaks don't get worse.



Plan B: Replace all three boilers with new steam boilers. Replace insulation on basement pipes. (Previous owner took it off "to warm the basement.") Fix a few leak and pitch problems.



Plan C: Abandon steam (just when we were getting along) and go to hot water, high velocity air, split unit heat pumps, or something else.



After fixing multiple problems (pressure, pitch, air valves, leaks), I think that these single-pipe systems are close to working really well. (Only one of the seventeen radiators has inadequate heat.)



Three new boilers seems like a good option, but it may not be cost effective.

Also, I've been told that there are no good choices available for new small boilers.



Any opinions?

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Comments

  • nicholas bonham-carter
    nicholas bonham-carter Member Posts: 8,578
    Abominable Snowmen

    can you replace the three with one? --nbc
  • mac_pro
    mac_pro Member Posts: 6
    Can that be done?

    That would be an attractive option, but I don't know if it's possible.

    (Way above my steam paygrade.)

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  • jim s_2
    jim s_2 Member Posts: 114
    No good choices?

    Who told you that?

    Anything would be an improvement over what you`ve got there and yes there are good smaller boilers out there.
  • Smaller boilers.....

    Well Slantfin, my favorite for most installs,  makes one down to 105,000 input and Burnham, who probably makes the best basic atmospheric unit, makes one down to 62,000 input.    You could go a single boiler, but would need zone valves and maybe a condensate pump.  Also, it would probably not run as efficient unless you could stage fire it so it would run at low output when only a single or 2 zones were running.  Gerry Gill has made this simple modification to the Burnhams successfully, so that would probably be the best choice.  I like the Slantfin Galaxy units because they are very easy to maintain, at a good price point, make very good steam and are very easy to install. 

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  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,386
    Is your 3-decker

    split into apartments that are separately metered? That trio of snowmen tells me it was probably built that way. If you want to keep tenants paying for their heat, you'll need to go with three boilers.



    We're actually replacing another snowman this week, using a Smith G-8- same swap-out we did last week though this one is oil-to-gas. The G-8 has a better thermal efficiency than the typical atmospheric gas boiler, so we expect both homes will save lots of fuel. The 3-section G-8 we're using has a rating of 283 square feet EDR, though, so unless each of your "decks" has close to that amount of radiation, even that smallest G-8 would be too big.



    If you post your EDR figures for each deck, we can make some more-specific recommendations.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • mac_pro
    mac_pro Member Posts: 6
    Here's a bit more

    Wow. Thanks for the great response.



    I don't have EDRs, but I might get enough information tomorrow to help with educated guesses.



    In the meantime, here's what's on the upshot gas burners (circa 1980):

    45,000 minimum input BTU per hour

    300,000 maximum input BTU per hour

    The EDR is what we really need, but maybe this can get us in the ballpark.



    Each of the three apartments is about 950 sq. feet.

    The apartments have insulation and new windows but there are still plenty of air leaks.

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  • Rod
    Rod Posts: 2,067
    EDR Sheet

    Hi - Attached is  a worksheet that will help you calculate the EDRs.

    - Rod
  • Separate metering of single steam boiler

    I believe that BTU meters are also available for steam, as they are for hot water, so a single boiler can be used but with separte metering.  However, I am not sure of the cost of the steam BTU meters.

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  • mac_pro
    mac_pro Member Posts: 6
    EDR is 170

    Thanks for the worksheet.



    If my numbers are correct, the EDR is 170 sq. ft. per floor.

    And, from the worksheet, 40,800 BTU load.

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  • jpf321
    jpf321 Member Posts: 1,568
    btu meters ...

    you might want to reach out to this company: http://www.istec-corp.com/
    1-pipe Homeowner - Queens, NYC

    NEW: SlantFin Intrepid TR-30 + Tankless + Riello 40-F5 @ 0.85gph | OLD: Fitzgibbons 402 boiler + Beckett "SR" Oil Gun @ 1.75gph

    installed: 0-20oz/si gauge | vaporstat | hour-meter | gortons on all rads | 1pc G#2 + 1pc G#1 on each of 2 mains

    Connected EDR load: 371 sf venting load: 2.95cfm vent capacity: 4.62cfm
    my NEW system pics | my OLD system pics
  • mac_pro
    mac_pro Member Posts: 6
    Runtime Meters

    I'd have no trouble building a device that could record the accumulated time each thermostat is on while the boiler is producing steam. Each floor's heating cost would be determined by the number of steam-hours per month.



    And, of course, as long as I'm building things, the next step would be constructing a Web page for the boiler. Then everyone could see the status of each thermostat, riser temperature, run times, etc.



    At this point I've obviously got too much spare time on my hands, so I might as well add email and texting. Now the boiler could send me a text message if the low water cutoff trips or if it was taking too long for the steam to come up or...

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This discussion has been closed.