need help for friend on new installation

ChrisJ

A friend of my wife asked me to come over to help her with a problem.  She had a new boiler installed a year ago and is having problem with it.  She has asked the contractor to come out several times because the system was banging badly.  The contractor told her it was due to physics and there was nothing he could do.



She had complained about the pipes and radiators banging so I had hoped all I needed to do was pitch a radiator or two.  Unfortunatly what I found was far worse.  The boiler is a beautiful Bunrham IN6 piped in with 2" propress fittings.

The riser comes out of the boiler makes a 90 degree turn around 25" above the water line then around 8" later makes another 90 degree turn upward.  Around 5" higher the equalizer is piped in.  It then continues vertically until it makes two 90 degree turns into the steam main.  The steam main has a bullhead which goes in two different directions and is original, while not prefered I doubt its even a concern at this point compared to the piping done to the boiler.  Tjhe hartford loop also has a nice long 4" or longer nipple on it and its 2 inches too low.



The issue is the boiler is throwing so much water up into the steam  main it shuts off due to the LWCO within minutes.  It then conitnues to cycle on and off very, very fast.  You would think it was a sump pump more than a steam boiler.

I wrote down what she had to have fixed and drew some diagrams.  I also showed her Burnhams recommended piping along with the warnings they have with it.



My question is because it has been a year is there anything she can do to get the original contractor to fix this? 

nicholas bonham-carter

"the laws of physics made me do it"

the first thing to do would be to get the burnham rep involved. he will no doubt fail the installation, and might be able to speak to the contractor, and the local supply house from which it came. with a letter from the rep, maybe a trip to small claims court would be possible. i would be important to get a price from another contractor for a complete re-piping to burnham specifications, and hopefully the small claims limit will not be exceeded

i don't think that there would be a problem winning this case as the installation instructions are so clear, and were not followed in the least. i also don't think that the elapsed time is a problem as she has made complaints to the contractor who has through his replies shown his incompetence, and dishonesty.

naturally, a copy of dan's books should be with her in court.--nbc

ChrisJ

pro-press

Whats the story with pro-press and steam. I remember a thread a while back but never saw a solid answer.



Are there actually pro-press o-rings rated for steam or is it 100% wrong?

crash2009

See Feel Hear

Your boiler would be a fine example for your friend to see, hear, and feel the comfort throughout the home.  Show her how its supposed to be.

Steamhead

Supposedly there are

but we've never tried them. Steam piping done right is black threaded steel.



From your description, the installer used the installation instructions as a knee pad. It will have to be repiped properly to work. She's better off getting a Steam Man to do it, and getting her money back from the knucklehead- with the help of a lawyer if needed.



Post some pics if you can get them.

ChrisJ

Update

The friend paid a contractor I recommended to her from this site to repipe the boiler (Gateway Plumbing and heating).  She now has to try and get the original installer to pay the bill.



She didn't want to wait any longer and decided to just fix it properly with someone she could trust even though it could end up costing her money in the end.  She is very happy with the new piping and the system runs great.

nicholas bonham-carter

one of the best

if you do a search here for his postings, you will realize how lucky you were to have found him. he may be able to write a letter of description of the problems with the first installation, remarking on the installation manual advice about copper piping and other obvious omissions. this plus a lawyer could help to recoup the extra cost.--nbc

ChrisJ

paper

The first thing he did for her was write up a paper describing all of the problems.



I have recommended him to two people so far but have yet to meet him. Seems like he does good work though!