The adventures of a Steam Virgin

SteamVirgin

So after 12 years in a house with forced air, I've spent the last two years in a house with a steam boiler and haven't taken the time to figure out how it works or how to maintain it.  Shame on me.



I quickly learned my lesson tonight when i discovered that you are supposed to flush a bit of water every week to get rid of sludge....imagine two years worth of sludge :(



anyway, so glad i've found this site, i have a million questions...i'll keep adding to this thread and hopefully i can become knowledgeable.



so, questions:



after two years with no maintenance, is just flushing good enough or do i need to add something to the water to clean more thoroughly?



i noticed my pressuretrol (honeywell pa404a) was set at almost 8, what problems would this have caused me and where should i set it to?



my basement is hot as hell, can i wrap these pipes? if so, with what? will it make a difference to my radiator efficiency/my wallet....neither or both?



my pressure guage never moves, does that mean i have no pressure or does it mean my guage needs replacing?



can someone explain what the exact function of the damper is and what determines whether its open or closed?



thats it for now, i'll have much more by this weekend i'm sure.

Steamhead

Take some pictures

of your boiler and system, and post them here. Let's take a virtual look at it.



Where are you located?

SteamVirgin

Pictures

Thanks for replying, i'm in Chicago....not too cold right now but by the end of the month i'd like everything to be running as efficiently as possible.



here are some pics i took of the boiler (hydrotherm vga 175), the water sight and the pressuretrol and possibly faulty pressure gauge.



when reading the water sight, should it be done while the boiler is under fire or not? i noticed that i filled up to a level i thought was acceptable but when the heater kicked in it looked like i can overfilled



let me know if there's any else i should take a pic of and i can add it tomorrow.



as for my house, my boiler services the radiators on 1st and 2nd floor. 3rd floor is heated/cooled by forced air and vents also blow down to the 2nd floor from the ceiling.

Steamhead

Best thing you can do

is call Dave "Boilerpro" Bunnell. Here's his info, tell him we sent you:



http://www.heatinghelp.com/professional/105/Boiler-Professionals-Inc



If that boiler has not been maintained, you should have a pro check it over for safety reasons. Dave is the pro you need.



Is this a one-pipe or two-pipe system? Take some radiator pics and let us have a look.

BobC

Call Dave and buy the books

First I agree with Steamhead you should call 





Dave "Boilerpro" Bunnell to go through that boiler once so you get an experts opinion on what needs adressing. Steam heat is not complex but the devil is in the details. There are some good books available on this siye that do a great job educating you on steam heat http://www.heatinghelp.com/products/Super-Deals/14/129/A-Steamy-Deal  That money will be paid back many times with the money you will save because a lot of this stuff can be done by you after the system is gone through once by a pro.



If that boiler was operating at 8PSI some of your air vents may have been damaged by the high pressure. This includes the main air vents as well as any on the radiators (if it's a one pipe system).



All the pipes in the basement should have 1" of fiberglass pipe insulation on them to make sure the heat goes upstairs. The big box stores only carry the 1/2" (not worth the effort) so you have to go to a supply house for this. Start measuring how many feet of each diameter pipe you have so a list can be drawn up. You can ask whoever you hire to go over the system where to buy the insulation.



The pressure gauge could be defective or you could just be running at very low pressure if that boiler is sized to the system. The stock 0-30PSI gauges do go bad over time, a lot of folks add an auxiliary 0-3PSI gauge so they can see exactly what is going on at the low pressure this system should be operated - 1.5PSI or less. That low pressure gauge has to mounted on a pigtail to isolate it from live steam.



The sight glass should be between half and 2/3rds full on most boilers when the boiler is cool and the boiler should always be run after adding water so you drive off any oxygen in the water and preserve that boiler. When the boiler is firing that sight glass should not move more than +/- 1/4"; if its much more than that it may need to be flushed and skimmed.



How well does the system do it's job? Does it heat the house evenly without any banging or load hissing?



Bob

The Steam Whisperer (Formerly Boilerpro)

There do appear to be some piping issues too....

However, in this size boiler and with the very large 3 inch supply of the boiler, they might not cause as much problems as some.  The return piping sure looks....shall be say, not quite up to snuff.  I good going over of all the controls, etc.  would be a recommended.  I have found even on boilers that have been serviced regularly that usually nothing is done to  maintain the water side of the controls, so there can be issues that are not addressed...like plugged pressure control piping, plugged gauge glass piping, plugged return piping....etc.

SteamVirgin

More pics and questions

as requested, a few pics of my radiators, these pics are from the living room but they are typical in all rooms.  They have been painted in all rooms and have a cage that goes over them.  the valve is also typical (gortons) it is a one pipe system



bobc mentioned that my vents may be faulty due to the high pressure.  my question is 'are vents the same thing as the valves on the radiator? and if so, is there a way to check for damage?



boilerpro, what looks funny about the return pipe? why is it substandard? also, i sent you a quick message via email.



is a pressure guage a home depot product or more a supply house thing? any precautions i should take before changing one?

Jamie Hall

Boilerpro...

will surely get back to you, and he's one of the best in the business.



To your other specific questions -- the air vents are the silver can like affairs seen in one of your pictures.  In most cases, they either work or they don't -- if the radiator is heating, and steam isn't coming out of them, they are probably OK.  But having run at 8 psi isn't going to have helped their longevity, even if they are still working.



Pressure gauges are not a Home Depot item.  In general, they aren't even a good hardware store item.  They are a supply house or on line supply site item.  There are two things to be aware of if you should try to add a low pressure gauge on your own.  First, note that I said "add'.  Your local code may require a gauge on the system which reads to twice the relief valve setting; even if it doesn't, your insurance people almost certainly will.  Therefore, you need to keep the 0 - 30 gauge, and add a new one, rather than replacing the 0 to 30 gauge.  Second, the gauge should be protected by a pigtail or some other piping arrangement to ensure that it is not directly exposed to steam.  Some gauges have built in protection, but it's better to be safe than sorry...

SteamVirgin

thanks jamie

i wasn't aware of the gauge requirements, i thought i was just gonna swap out one for the other.....i'll wait now and see what dave says, turns out that we live in the same neighborhood, he could probably walk to my house!

Abracadabra

...

vents are the things halfway up the radiator.  The last picture you posted on the right.  the valves of the things that attach to the pipe coming out of the floor. Grainger sells a 16 oz gauge.  You can get a 0-5 psi gauge at Clark-Devon Hardware.  Not sure where in the city you are located.

SteamVirgin

dampers?

on question i had that wasn't addressed was about dampers.



from time to time i can hear it opening and closing.  can anyone tell me what triggers it to open and close, and what function the damper provides?

Dave in QCA

Automatic Draft Damper

The damper opens when your thermostat calls for heat.  Once it is open, the boiler should fire.  When the thermosat is satisfied, the damper closes and the boiler stops firing at the same time.

The purpose is to keep the residual heat in the boiler as well as heated air in your basement from escaping up the chimney.

Incidentally, it appears that I can see your damper mounted immediately above the boiler, beneath the draft diverter.  It is supposed to be installed at the top of the draft diverter.  Can't tell for sure where it is from the pics.