I had some time extra time on my hands

crash2009

and was thinking about you guys, and how bored you get when you don't get your daily supply of eye candy.  So I made a little video for ya.  Lots of heavy breathing with the lights going on and off.  After all, its just about Valentines Day.  The top line is my NWL (24") and the lower lines are 23" and 22".  Is this what you call a steady water line?  This old EG55 seems to like 23".

The 0-20 ounce gauge on the boiler shows a 1/2 ounce in the beginning and towards the end 3/4.  The other gauge (towards the end of the video) mounted up with the main vents shows the backpressure.      <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh2e6Zb3lYA&context=C3c99ca7ADOEgsToPDskIJxxA5VeiJJVDA0OvFc4xt">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh2e6Zb3lYA&context=C3c99ca7ADOEgsToPDskIJxxA5VeiJJVDA0OvFc4xt</a>

Rod

Video

Hi Crash-  Thanks for posting the video. You  have a nice steady waterline with very little bounce. I see what you mean about waterline dropping after burner shuts off. I was thinking about what you mentioned in another post about boiling water causing the waterline to register "higher". I would have thought in that case there would be more up/down movement of the waterline though if it is "foamy" with steam bubbles in it  in maybe that it raises the waterline the movement is absorbed by the foam. It would be very interesting to see where the water level was in the return at this moment.

- Rod

Hap_Hazzard

I haven't seen anybody have that much fun with a half an ounce

since I was in high school. ;-)

ChrisJ

Nice video

Your water line seems to move about the same as mine, though the longer mine runs the lower she gets.   If you look in your video you can see a film on the glass above the water line which bounces with the water.  I assumed this was an oil film on mine, or is it simply a reaction between water and steam in the gauge glass?

crash2009

manometer

Yes Rod, it appears that the waterline rises a bit 24.5", maybe 25" in the beginning, in the middle it drops down to about 23" and gets steady +- 1/8", then at the end it drops down to about 22.5" then comes back up right away.  I also have been curious, as to what the return is doing at the same time the sight glass is doing its thing.  I am going to act on David Nadle's suggestion to put together a manometer and hook it up to the drain valve on the return.  I might even hook the same thing up to my equalizer drain to see what I can see there.

Hap, This old hunk a junk has its moments.  If I don't capture them, nobody would beleive me.

Chris, mine does get lower when it gets colder.  That film is a mystery to me.  I have skimmed for weeks trying to get rid of it.  I think its in our drinking water.  It keeps coming back.  I might have some buildup in the upper part of the sight glass.  I never cleaned it perfectly when I had it apart.

Stay tuned for more sight glass (and manometer) adventures starring the 8 year old EG55 in a 30 year old skin. 

ChrisJ

30 years?

Crash is that block 30 years old or only 8? 



My guess was that film is oil which is trapped in the gauge glass and very hard to get out.  I've tried opening the drain on the glass and blowing steam through it, though not with much pressure.  I may try closing the king + return valves and build 5 to 10 PSI and open it and see if I can blow the junk out finally.  I've watched it in mine,  it drains down to the bottom but never actually comes out, it like clings to the glass just to annoy me.

crash2009

Back in 2004

the morons that owned this place, installed a brand new boiler in a 30 year old skin.

ChrisJ

Wow

So, they replaced the block and kept all the old trim and panels.  Nice.

crash2009

Part 2

I caught a bit of a cycle on tape yesterday. It surprised me a bit at the end when the water level started to drop.  I guess its hard to tell anything until things get rockin and rollin again.

Pressure in the boiler backs it up the return? or

Expansion of heated water appears to raise the NWL? 



This hose is only rated for 70 F, so its a pain to set up and take down.  I am going to get something more permanent. 





http://youtu.be/OsNm-u7qNXA