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freezing and need steam boiler help!

kml
kml Member Posts: 5
in Strictly Steam
Greetings, I am researching and getting crazy stratospheric quotes on replacing a 75,000 BTU steam boiler. Can you advise on 1) brand and any add-ons 2) any contractors that would not insult us with an absurd mark-up, what we should expect? Can you help us? We are located in SF.We have been suggested a Peerless and a Weil Mclain, which is better?  Standing pilot or spark ignition? Is ther another brand we shoudl consider? Don't need to have a "Cadillac", just a "Toyota" steam boilerout situations:<ol><li>1200sq foot condo, floor above the garage</li><li>4 radiators (one pipe- no return): 1- 8 tube radiator, 2- 4 tube and 1- 5 tube</li><li>the backflow apparatus in tact</li><li>piping all there: supply, return, outflow venting...</li><li>gas there</li><li>electric there (maybe need a little thermo adjust)</li></ol>Thanks a million!

Comments

  • nicholas bonham-carter
    nicholas bonham-carter Member Posts: 8,577
    edited December 2011
    toyota vs cadillac

    what i suggest is to choose the cadillac steam man, and the toyota boiler.

    have you found either one yet? there is a lot of experience and work in the right installation, and that equals labor/money. why not post here the suggestions from the installers, and we will advise.

    in order to get anything done, there is always a choice between the crude results of the unskilled knucklehead [low price, until you want him to go away!], and the highly skilled and perfectionistic craftsman who charges much more.

    find the installer you can believe in, and follow his choice, as long as it follows the mfg's installation instructions.

    most likely, the supply piping will need to be redone to be correct.

    what happenned to the old boiler?--nbc
  • kml
    kml Member Posts: 5
    cadillac vs toyota freezing and need help

    The old boiler just died after 90 years (?) in service: house was built in 1920's, was original steam boiler. The quotes that we have been given are rather vague: supply labor and material to install a new Peerless steam heating boiler with new piping, flue, gas, and electrical to accommodate the new unit; no specific details or model numbers. There was one specific- Weil Mclain EG30 or PEG 30? However, when I looked that one up, it wasn't even the proper BTU size ( have been told we need 75,000 BTU). Any thoughts? How many days to install, and why new piping if all is there? These guys are quoting crazy crazy quotes and even those are a wide range, they aren't even around the same levels. Please inform me...
  • kml
    kml Member Posts: 5
    cadillac vs toyota freezing and need help

    The old boiler just died after 90 years (?) in service: house was built in 1920's, was original steam boiler. The quotes that we have been given are rather vague: supply labor and material to install a new Peerless steam heating boiler with new piping, flue, gas, and electrical to accommodate the new unit; no specific details or model numbers. There was one specific- Weil Mclain EG30 or PEG 30? However, when I looked that one up, it wasn't even the proper BTU size ( have been told we need 75,000 BTU). Any thoughts? How many days to install, and why new piping if all is there? These guys are quoting crazy crazy quotes and even those are a wide range, they aren't even around the same levels. Please inform me...
  • nicholas bonham-carter
    nicholas bonham-carter Member Posts: 8,577
    wild quotes

    the new boiler capacity must be equal to the radiation which you have; therefore the radiators you must be measured and their radiating quotient [edr] calculated. from that total, the boiler size can be selected. did your bidders measure your radiators? the new boiler must be installed with the steam piping arranged exactly as specified by the boiler mfg. at a minimum. all this takes a lot of work, by [hopefully] very experienced steam engineers. peerless boilers are top notch like weil mclain-all the bad one have been swept away. that is not the case with the installers, as there are many who have no idea how to make a proper installation. a competent installer, will not be cheap [compared to what], but will do the job right.

    if the new installation is done properly, the level of comfort may well exceed what you had with the old one, and the gas bill will probably be lower as well. ask the installers if they have ever done much steam before, or heard of this site.

    post som pictures of the old boiler piping, and we can tell you why it can't be used.--nbc
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