heating basement radiators

fud215

I m currently working on a steam system that has been neglected for years. I m currently replacing old bucket traps with f/t traps and puting radiator traps where there are no traps. Having very good results. reducing a lot of the banging in the returns, also customer used to run boiler at 7 lbs we are down to 4 lbs my goal is 2 lbs. The boiler is an H B Smith 45 mills coal boiler that was converted to oil.  The mains that are coming out of the header are 3- 1 1/4" pipe. The original boiler was for processing. the mills boiler was purchased from a factory that was being torn down.  

My question is about the radiators in the basement below the boiler, they are wall pipe radiators that are water loged. If we drain the water out of the radiator they get hot, until they get water loged again. It is the lowest point in the system. The only thing i can think of puting a condensate pump in the basement below the radiators and pump the water back to the boiler. Does anyone has any other suggestions.

nicholas bonham-carter

no traps

if there were no traps in the system, then there probably should be no traps in the system! there are some old systems which need no traps, as the inlet valves metered the flow of steam so that only that amount which could be condensed was let in. these old vapor systems worked extremely well on about 2 ounces of steam pressure.

show us some pictures of the boiler, and its piping, and the radiators, and valves.

as far as the radiators in the basement, if they are below the boiler, then they probably worked on thermosyphon/gravity from the hot water in the boiler, and they too need only a few ounces of pressure to avoid condensate backing up in the returns.--nbc

Steamhead

Where is the boiler's waterline

in relation to these basement rads? How does the water get back to the boiler from them now? Any check valves that might be stuck?