how to remove this pressuretrol?

iddelz

my boiler setup - with the pigtail and pressuretrol attached to the top of the water gauge - is done according to the boiler's instruction manual but is different than what is recommended in dan's book. i'd like to take the pressuretrol off in order to clean out the pigtail and ideally also add (somehow or another) a "t" so I can have a pressure gauge on the system as well (the one attached to the top of the boiler doesn't work). the sytem heats fine but for two problems; the radiators spit a lot of water and when the water glass fills with water it doesn't drain so I can't really see what's going on inside. i've removed the bottom valve and cleaned out the pipe to the water glass but i think there's a vacuum that keeps the water in the gauge even when the bottom pipe is clear. another reason I think there's a clog. i've been told "if it ain't broke don't fix it" and the automatic water feed works, but I don't want it to break and i'd really like to stop the spitting rads. how do I remove this pressuretrol? do i have to take off the entire water glass? also how can I add a "t" and pressure gauge to this? would it go above the pigtail or below it? thanks in advance and happy holidays

ed wallace

how do i remove this pressuretrol

you need to remove the glass gauge, then unwire pressuretrol, then remove lower gauge cook before spinning off the lower glass cock it would be better to find a differant spot to mount the pressuretrol perferable a bit higher 

ed wallace

how do i remove this pressuretrol

you need to remove the glass gauge, then unwire pressuretrol, then remove lower gauge cook before spinning off the lower glass cock it would be better to find a differant spot to mount the pressuretrol perferable a bit higher 

Jean-David Beyer

It looks worse than that to me.

Be glad I am not a professional, and hope that I am wrong.



It looks to me that not only will you have to remove the water gauge, but you will also have to remove the T soming out of the boiler to enable you to turn the pigtail. And to remove the T, you will have to remove the pipe to the header. I sure hope there is a Union in there.



It looks to me as though they screwed the pressuretrol onto the pigtail, then screwed pigtail into the brass T, then screwed the brass T onto the nipple coming out of the boiler, then screwed in the gauge cocks,  then the big nipple, then the Big T, then the riser to the header. Chinese puzzle.

BobC

Not pretty but it might just work.

There is a place in hell reserved for people or companies that assemble something like that.



JDB may be right about having to take that main off to get that thing out of there. But there is more than one way to skin a cat.



Think carefully before you start down this road unless you have a couple of mild days to work it because something might go wrong.  Whatever you do don't break that pigtail off inside the side thread of the cock.



I think you have enough room to swing a 1/4" elbow there. Saw off the pigtail leaving yourself a couple of inches to grab onto and then unscrew that stub from the top cock. Come off that cock with a brass nipple (long enough to get away from that steam output. and an elbow that is pointing straight up. Then use a 1/4" universal and a nipple long enough to give you room to swing a straight pigtail. Then you can mount a Tee and the pressuretroll off one side and a  low pressure gauge off the other (after a couple more nipples and elbows to get things vertical). Try and do everything in brass.



That should enable you to fit everything but i pray somebody else has a better solution.



good luck,



Bob

Charlie from wmass

Buy a new pig tail

cut bold pigtail with hack saw on horizontal piece. also buy a union and a 1/4" pipe nipple. Some times there is no saving the part. If you have a hex style 1/4" die you can take care and cut the pigtail and thread it but as a professional it is cheaper for my customers to just supply a new pigtail. See this all the time on boilers.

iddelz

if alexander the great were a plumber ...

... i guess he'd cut the pigtail too. the sad thing is, this is assembled exactly as per the directions on the boiler manual. it sounds like the best solution is to wait until after the heating season, then run an elbow out and up and a t on top for the pressuretrol and the gauge. tx for the help and happy holidays

Charlie from wmass

The pig tail is brass

It is not a big deal to cut it loose. the unit was assembled by the factory most likely. If you relocate it you need to buy a new pig tail and fittings. And rewire it to the new location. Occam's razor applies here.

BobC

Another way

If the part of the pressuretrol that the pigtail goes into is brass you can saw that off and couple the top of the pigtail to a nipple so you get above the top of the boiler you can do what I did on mine a while back. i would use a union above the pigtail so you can take things apart easily. i have a union that I'll install when i get around to it.



Certainly not perfect but it should be doable.



Bob

crash2009

I had a hard time to find a brass pigtail

in the style and size I wanted.  A couple of the guys here showed me where the motherlode is. 

 http://www.mcmaster.com/#pressure-gauge-pigtails/=ab2hld

If you wanted to use the same hole, you don't have to wait for spring.  Get your parts ready, wait for a warm day, shut it down in the morning, let it cool for a few hours, then knock it out.  Pressuretrol has 120VAC wires, shut off the boiler at the panel/breaker box. 

jpf321

as charlie said....

simplyplumbing.com had everything you need...

http://search.simplyplumbing.com/results.php?catalog=yhst-58098396986444&query=pigtail&submit=&list=



http://www.simplyplumbing.com/fittings-brass-nipples-1---4--brass-nipples.html



http://www.simplyplumbing.com/genericbrass-006380.html

iddelz

bob c yours is the set up i'm going for

thanks v much everyone for sharing the links for the various fittings. bob c i think i'd seen a post of your setup awhile ago and i'm so glad you posted it again. helps to visualize what i need. i guess one last question for now is what kind of pressure gauge do you have? happy holidays!

crash2009

I was just looking at your photo a bit closer.

 It looks like your water level is almost to the top of the sight glass.  Shouldn't it be even with the line?



You have a gauge on top of the boiler?  Would it be possible to move the pressuretrol up there too?

BobC

Gauge

I used a 0-3PSI gauge from - http://www.gaugestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=33020 ,that is a good choice for use with a pressuretrol. If you were going to install a vaporstat you might want a lower pressure (0-20oz) gauge. You sometimes see some pulsating on the low pressure gauges and you can get rid of that with a snubber that goes between the pigtail and the pressuretrol and low pressure gauge - http://www.gaugestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=32627



JPF's links to simplyplumbing are good to have because sometimes you can't easily find the hardware in brass; the brass clogs up a lot less than steel does. make sure get all the bits and pieces together before you start so you don't go nuts looking for an elbow or something afte you have the system open. I always tell the guy at my local hardware store I'll be back in a half hour looking for whatever it is that I forgot on the last trip.



Bob