Radiator type question

petesgarden

Hi,



I'm becoming obsessed w/ my Steam system after pretty much ignoring it for the 7 years I lived in this house. After a recent leak due to many overly rusted iron pipes, and having pressure problems w/ the fix, I found this forum. Now I realize how many OTHER problems I have too. :)



Anyway, I've been trying to figure out what type of radiators I have. It is a two pipe system (Steam goes in top on one side, out the bottom on the other side). I can't find any traps and or vents. So I don't know what they are, or if they are just missing parts. Many of them don't get fully hot - only the top half gets hot. Some get barely warm. The ones on the 1st floor tend to be only warm, while the top 3rd floor ones are very hot to the touch.



I'd like to know what type they are and what TLC they may need.



Here's some pics of 2 of them. Any ideas?



<a href="http://imgur.com/a/JQqpe">http://imgur.com/a/JQqpe</a>



Oh, and I'm ordering the "we got steam heat" book today! :)



Thanks,

-Pete

Steamhead

From the looks of those return elbows

I think it's a Richardson system. You can find the Richardson on page 263 of "The Lost Art of Steam Heating".



The air vents on a Richardson were at the ends of the dry returns. These may be mounted high in the floor joists so look carefully. I don't think the Richardson design included steam main vents, but it's a good idea to add them.



If the dry returns have no vents, then you've found the reason the system is heating poorly. The air from the radiators passes into the dry return and is supposed to leave the system thru the dry return vents. But if some knucklehead has removed the vents, there's your problem.



Also, this system should have a Vaporstat instead of a Pressuretrol to control the boiler's pressure.

Hap_Hazzard

Partial heating of radiators

The question is, how well are they heating your living space? We're having a mild winter, so your radiators might not need to fill completely in order to satisfy the thermostat, but if you're finding that the heat goes off before certain areas of your house are getting warm, you need to get more steam going to those radiators and less to the ones that are turning off the thermostat. Balancing a steam system is not always simple, but the first step is getting the mains to fill as quickly as possible so all the risers and runouts get an even start. Also, if your pipes aren't insulated, they are acting as radiators too, competing with other radiators for steam and contributing to shutting off the thermostat. You can't very well manage your heat distribution via the radiators if your pipes aren't insulated.

petesgarden

vent

I can post a pic later tonight, but I believe there is one on the dry return. There is what looks like an upside down spraypaint can (a bit shorter and a bit fatter) that hisses when the heat is on - so I assume that's it? It's up in the joists in the basement.



I actually just had that replaced when I had the other work done as that was dripping and rather crusty/corroded looking. I have no idea how old the original was.

petesgarden

pressuretrol

I actually just had the pressuretrol replaced - but not at my cost. After the plumber did his original work I noticed it was leaking from it, so he came back and replaced it no charge because it cracked when he put it back on after cleaning the pigtail.



Is this what is referred to as a vapor system? Those seem to take very little psi - like

petesgarden

radiators

They heat OK, I can get the house as warm as I need it, but I don't keep it over 65. Even over the last few harsh winters (in Philadelphia) it worked well. My heating bills were not too much more than they are this year.



Some get totally hot, but the bigger/longer ones (which are in my living room) only get warm/hot on the first half and not the rest. But it's also possible that the heat isn't on long enough to fill them up w/ heat - but it was the same the last few winters too.



A few years ago I did put insulation on the steam pipes in the basement, but nothing extreme like in the walls and floors of the rest of the house. I also put the mylar-bubble wrap stuff behind each radiator to reflect the heat into the house and not into the wall.

Steamhead

Sounds good

looking forward to the pics. 

petesgarden

Vapor system radiators

Since this is a Richardson system, which is vapor, does it qualify as a Vapor Orifice system? Are those orifices something I should look into replacing or seeing if they are present in the 1st place in each radiator?

Steamhead

I think

the original Richardson valves may have had some sort of orificing capability. The ones in your pics are newer replacements and do not have this capability. 

petesgarden

valves

Are they something that could/should be added to the current valves?  Or should they be replaced all together?

petesgarden

vent

Here's two pics of the vent. There is only one, and it's brand new, on the dry return.



http://imgur.com/a/SIWSF

petesgarden

pressure

If this is a Richardson system, what's the PSI range (cutin-out) for the boiler? A max of .8?

Steamhead

Certainly no more than 8 ounces

and less if you can get away with it.