Badly corroded drain pipe off steam boiler

Chris75

Thanks in advance for your help. I have a 25ish year old Weil McLain EG series boiler with a badly corroded drain pipe coming off the boiler (the corrosion is right near the sheet metal). While I have a low water cut off etc,I'm nervous running the boiler without being able to watch it to make sure it doesn't burst or something. There appears to be a small leak, but it's right near the sheet metal, and difficult to see. Given the corrosion/rust, clearly the pipe needs to be replaced, but I'm concerned it will snap off while trying to remove it. If that happens, presumably I'm in tough shape. Any options? - I already had one guy come out that didn't want to do it out of fear he'd screw things up. Any ideas of who could help out in the western suburbs of Chicago?



Thanks for your help...

The Steam Whisperer (Formerly Boilerpro)

I'm in your neighborhood.....

but I do agree that working with pipes that close to the boiler can be iffy.  I have had some just turn right out of 60 year old boilers with no problem. If is does break off, hopefully the old piece will come out of the boiler and the threads are still  good.  Otherwise, the plot thickens.  Repairing a 25 year old EGH probably doesn't make much sense so it would be new boiler time, which, in most cases, ultimately will be of great benefit to you because nearly all boiler are over sized and incorrectly piped, greatly decreasing the efficiency.   A new section could be installed, however, if necessary.

Chris75

Follow up

Thanks for the reply. I sold the house and am renting back until my new house is done being built - most likely the end of January. Because of the rent back, I'm responsible for maintaining the house, but don't want to put in a new boiler as you might imagine. In fact, it is possible the house will be torn down next year anyway, as the land value is worth more than the (still nice) house on it. Do you think it is likely that the pipe could be replaced without requiring a new boiler, or am I better off just hoping it holds? Thanks again...

nicholas bonham-carter

rusty nipple

i think the pro method of dealing with this would be to cut the nipple off about 1/4 in from the face of the section; and then make a few very careful axial cuts on the inside of the nipple. finally one of the strips can be lightly punched in. this ensures no undue stress to the casting, as the final turning force applied is minimal. the cuts of course stop before touching the threads of the casting.--nbc

David Nadle

Epoxy?

I don't think it will "burst," because it's not under that much pressure. But it could make a big mess, and if you have an autofiller, a very big mess. You might want to fill manually if you're not already.



Since it only has to last a few months I would try an epoxy putty like WaterWeld or self-fusing tape before anything else. It might be worth cutting away enough sheet metal to get clear access to the leak.