New V-stat Header

FJL

Asked my steam guy to put a low pressure gauge on the boiler.  When he did, he found that the piping for my v-stat was clogged with sludge.  I can't seem to load all pix in one post, so I'll do them one at a time. 



Here is a picture of the old v-stat header:

FJL

Clogged T

Here is the clogged T from the old header.  This is on a 4-1/2 year old boiler, mind you.

FJL

New Header

New v-state header:







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ERF

Nice new Header, but

ask your installer to turn the pigtail of the VAPORSTAT 90* so the doughnut hole runs front to back.

ERF

Nice new Header, but

ask your installer to turn the pigtail of the VAPORSTAT 90* so the doughnut hole runs front to back.

FJL

Toward Boiler?

You mean toward the boiler? I'll ask, but does it make that much difference?

Gordo

Looks Good

But as ERF says, the controls with Hg need to have the loop of the pigtail be in line so as the loop expands and contracts, it doesn't effect the level of the control from side to side.  It does make a difference.



I'd also suggest installing a cross-tee in place of regular tee and a plug to allow that section of pipe coming out of the boiler to be cleaned without taking the controls off.



Put the low pressure gauge on a 1/4" brass tee, nipple and 90 just under the vaporstat, so you can test the pigtail by removing the gauge and blowing into the 90 to see if it is clear.

crash2009

You have a mercury switch

 on your vaporstat.  The pigtail expands and contracts changing the level of your vaporstat.  Having the loop of the pigtail towards the boiler will reduce the possibility of pigtail swing causing the vaporstat to be inaccurate. 

Thanks for posting, I have been following your adventures with the vaporstat header for a couple years now, while deciding on how to do my own.  I like yours the best so far.   

Do you get any vibration with your set up this way? 

Can you see any advantage to double 45 ing the section from the boiler-out?  My thought is to allow some drainage.

FJL

Vibration

Funny you should ask. I got home after buying bagels this a.m. and noticed that the boiler had turned on so I went down to check on that and noticed some shaking. Perhaps it did affect the accuracy of the v-stat reading. We set the lever at 16 ozs and it turned off the boiler before the gauge hit 16 ozs. Maybe at 12 or 13 ozs, I really can't recall. We then increased the lever to a little bit above 16 oz -- I don't know if you can tell from the posted photo -- and it cycled off at 15 ozs.



I didn't really ask my installer about why he configured it that way. I am just a homeowner so I am not entirely sure what you mean by "double 45 ing" or what a different configuration would look like. He did mention that this configuration would allow for easy cleaning of the header.

BobC

Level when hot?

As long as the vaporstat is level when there is steam being produced you should be ok with that pigtail configuration. Who really cares where it sits when it's cold?



My mercury vaporstat is configured with the loop oriented towards the boiler and it does not trip exactly at the set point, these are not precision instruments. I notice there is a difference in my level (cold to hot) even with the pigtail oriented correctly. It makes no difference to me me because it cuts off at the same point - 12 ozs.



Bob

FJL

V-stat Settings

Actually, my v-stat is set closer to 16 oz than I thought.  Pictures below.  I wasn't paying too much attention to whether it shook while hot.  The boiler did not run very long.  Never got above two ounces before t-stat was satisfied.







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crash2009

Clarification

What Gordo was suggesting, was to have the gauge up top like this.  In the future, when it comes time to make sure the pigtail is working, all you have to do is remove the gauge and blow.  Also the pigtail can be primed with water before the gauge is put back on.  Gordo also suggested a cross T.  A cross T would have a plug in it.  Others have suggested to me, to also have T's on both sides, with plugs (End T)  At cleaning time, all you have to remove is the 2 End T plugs and the Cross T plug, run a brush through from left to right, and a brush through into the boiler.  This is an easy maintenance that you and I as homeowners can do.  The double 45 was just an add on idea that I had, I was hoping to get some input on that from a pro's perspective. 

FJL

Good Clarification

Thanks.  Now I understand.  I thought you were saying my configuration had a double 45.  And yes, I can see the advantage of a plugged tee as well as two end tees.  

nicholas bonham-carter

header

here is my setup, which uses the peerless tapping, and elbow below the outlet, which is a sort of syphon. above this you can see 2 pigtails in parallel, so at least one will be open. most of the upper piping is now brass. the extra outlet is for a second v-stat if i ever do a hi-lo gas train control. the multiple syphon should even out the pressure waves, as i have no snubber.--nbc

Hap_Hazzard

Brass Crosses

These are hard to find. I finally found a source online that only charges about twice what they're worth instead of four times.



http://www.plumbingfittingsdirect.com/brassfittings.html



Anybody know of any other sources? I've been able to find a surprising variety of brass fittings and nipples at a local Sears Hardware store, but they don't have the crosses.

Maine Vent

Brass crosses

http://www.mcmaster.com/#brass-pipe-fittings/=g4a7rz

Hap_Hazzard

That's one of those places

where they think $16.72 is a decent price for a 1/2" brass cross. And that doesn't even include shipping. This should be about a $4.00 part.



I do like their brass pigtails though. I like the way the 90s have 1 1/4 turns instead of 3/4 of a turn.

Long Beach Ed

Discounts

McMaster heavily discounts their trade accounts.  The discount is based on annual sales volume.