Gotta love a small steamer!

Danny Scully

Our first this heating season, an IN4. This boiler is small, but still too big! National Grid doesn't offer the IN3, which would have been fine as well. As useful as the drop header is in making dry steam, it's also great for installations like this. Without the drop header, we would have never achieved proper height above the water line. We added a skim tapping on the right side of the boiler...also wish National Grid offered Slant Fin, ha-ha.

Moses

Moses

check your local code re: installing black pipe on the discharge of the relief valve, Here in NYC its against the code to install black pipe on the discharge of the relieve valve 

nicholas bonham-carter

wonder why that is?

if the code specifically calls for a copper pipe to divert the output from the relief valve, is there a reason for that? why not iron pipe?--nbc

JStar

Relief.

The relief piping can be black pipe as long as it is not threaded on the open end.

kcopp

some codes....

specifically do not want you to have steel on a relief line due to the problem that over time the inside of the pipe may become plugged w/ corrosion.

Jean-David Beyer

Relieve valve code...

I am told that around here, the drain line from the relief valve must come to within 6 inches from the floor (but not touch it). And it can not be threaded at the end. Someone published a page from the code and it said 18 inches. But the installers said 6" and the inspector said so too.



Now my boiler manufacturer says to test the relief valve at least once a year, but I cannot get a bucket under it. And the Service types will not test those valves, even though mine are just over a year old and do not dribble, so are probably OK. And if they are not, I would like to know about it. I even bought a spare relief valve so if it does not close properly after a test, it would be relatively easy to replace it.



It was installed in a dumb way, so if the valve did relieve the pressure, one would not know it, because it emptyed between the wall and the back of the boiler, so no one would notice unless it was a large amount of water. So I had a contractor re-route it so it drained in front. But still too close to the floor to get a bucket in there.



There is a horizontal pipe screwed into the output of the relief valve. It then comes to an elbow that does straight down to the floor: too close to get a bucket in. He put in a threaded elbow, so it is pretty easy (in principle) to undo the supplied pipe, replace it with a shorter one, test the valve, and then put in the longer one. Well it would be easy, but he put teflon tape and pipe dope there, so it might be more difficult. There should be no pressure in there, so a little teflon tape and no dope would probably be OK. Do you suppose this is legal?  Could I just shorten the existing pipe so the gap is no greater than 18 inches (in New Jersey)? It used to be like that for my hot water heater. For that, I did want a bucket, because the valve did not always shut off completely on the first try, but always did if I let a lot of water (less than a bucket full) clean the seat.



Do the professionals here believe in testing pressure relief valves? I could understand if a valve had been in there for 20 years and never tested, but for new ones, why not test it? And if it was untested for unknown number of years, should it not be replaced?

Charlie from wmass

Same code here in MA

None ferrous pipe only. Corrosion and blockage is the issue.

Danny Scully

WOW...

WOW...I gave up on this post after about a week of no responses. Now I come to find there's all these post, about the relief valve piping! Ha, I would have never thought. Well anyway, the boiler past inspection. It is perfectly legal in my area, in fact preferred over copper.