Taper on single pipe steam return

ctjomac

We have a 1953 Smith boiler in a 1933 house we recently purchased and are looking to replace it. Last winter we went thru 200 gallons of oil every four weeks! We only have 1200 sq. ft. of living area that's heated. Beckett burner with a 1.20 gal. per hr. nozzle. Boiler water surges 3/4 of the sight glass every time its making steam and no matter how much I skim it, it doesn't help. It's a one pipe steam system with one supply & return serving the front half of the house and the other supply-return on the back half. It takes along time (45minutes to an hour) to produce steam. After reading alot of responses here I still couldn't find my answers to a few questions. Bear with me please. 

Right after the last radiator feed on each main supply (with is about 20 feet from the boiler horizontally the mains take a turn back towards the boiler and at that point is the "Main vent" in a short nipple between 2 90 degree elbows. Is this correct ?

Secondly, the boiler drain is plugged and I'm worried that as the return pitches back towards the boiler that it may also be at least partially plugged (meaning new return piping also. So, if it is clogged can I run each main return more horizontally until I get closer to the boiler? Right now over the 20 feet foing back to the boiler it's tapered like 45 degrees. I thought if I just made a slight pith until I got closer to the boiler that we could gain more wall space.

Any comments greatly appreciated, Joe

Rod

Steam System

Hi Joe-  Not quite sure where to start.  Your description of your system was very good, however it would really help if you could post some photos of your steam system. Take photos of the main vents, the piping connected to the boiler and what ever else you think we should see. It is better not to take the photos too close as we can then see where the piping leads and if we need detail we can blow up the photos.

At what pressure is your steam system operating at now? A residential steam system should never operate at more than 2 PSI and most operate a lot lower than that.



If you don't have them already I would suggest you get Dan's books on steam heating available in the "Shop" section at the top of this page. Start with "We Got Steam Heat!

http://www.heatinghelp.com/products/Steam-Heating-Books/25/61/We-Got-Steam-Heat-A-Homeowners-Guide-to-Peaceful-Coexistence

and then read "The Lost Art of Steam Heating"

http://www.heatinghelp.com/products/Steam-Heating-Books/25/68/Lost-Art-Of-Steam-Heating

These books are humorous, easy reading and written so the homeowner can understand them. An evening or two of reading will put you light years ahead in your knowledge of steam heating.  They will save you a lot of money and have the advantage that we can refer you to a certain page number for an answer.



Return line- There is no need for it to drop at a 45 degree angle. It can return back to the boiler either up high along the ceiling ( with a pitch (slope) of 1 inch in 20 feet) or drop straight down to the floor level and return along the floor. If you have low ceilings, this second choice is probably preferable.

- Rod