Radiator vent extension

tsb

I have an interesting situation in a recently purchased home.  The vestibule radiator is a wall hung unit (American Radiator similar to the one on the top of page 130 in the EDR book).  It is hung by a bracket on the left side and supported by the pipe on the right side.

I have been replacing air vents throughout the house recently.  The present vestibule vent is a Gorton No. 4 and I bought a replacement - the radiator was not heating well (acutally not heating at all now since I rotated the vent to remove it).  The problem is this - the vent contacts the wall when it is rotated to remove.  Measurements show that the wall would have to be dug out about 1/4" deep to get the vent off.

Is it possible to put an extension pipe on the vent to avoid this problem in the future?  Or should I just put a neat gouge in the wall for future vent replacement?

Thanks. 

nicholas bonham-carter

does it really need changing?

my experience is that radiator vents are rarely to blame for venting problems. have you checked your main air vents? some of my radiator vents are 40+ years old.

if it does need to be changed, can you loosen the bracket and spud nut to give a bit more clearance?--nbc

tsb

Some vents were not working

Thank you for your reply.  I have already found a few radiator vents that had failed or were failing so I am simply replacing all of them so that I have a good starting point.  We did quite a bit of cosmetic work in the house (floor refinishing, etc.) that created fine dust so I have a feeling that some of the radiator vents became clogged.  The two main air vents appear to be working, but I plan on replacing them too in the spring.

I'm not inclined to mess with the bracket or connection.  Given the amount of paint on the radiator and piping it does not look like it was touched in the past.  Is an extension on the vent from the radiator feasible or could I potentially trap condensate in the vent?

BobC

Not pretty but it should work

Does the nipple on top of this valve unscrew?



If nothing else you could cut off the nipple with a hack saw so you can unscrew it, and then cobble together a couple of 1/4" street elbows so you could swivel the valve when you had to replace it. Just make sure it's final orientation allows any water to drain back to the radiator.



Have everything on hand before you start this and make sure the threads are all good - nothing worse than discovering a bad thread halfway through something like this.



Bob

Charlie from wmass

You take

the radiator off the wall, put on new vent, then rehang the radiator.