Desperate- Kindly Help

BobC

Location of thermostat

If you not using the second floor, set all those varivalves to minimum and keep the doors to those rooms shut.



That round thermostat has a adjustment called an anticipator on it; it is supposed to shut the system down a little early so the system will coast to the desired temperature and if it's not set right the temperature can swing more than it should.. Do you have the instructions that came with it? does the thermostat sit near a radiator? That could make it shut the system down earlier than it should.



Bob

Rod

Glad Everything Went Okay

Hi - Glad to hear everything worked out okay and that you now have heat. Getting "the book" will be a big help to you as it will help tie together what you have already learned. On of the best things about the book is that it gives you enough knowledge to know whether the heating guy you are talking to really knows anything about residential steam heating.

The Hoffman vents are expensive but they are also very well made and will give you good service.

I think I mentioned earlier that I'm not a fan of the Vari-Valves. I have several collecting dust on my spare parts shelf in the basement. I not sure what type of vent the plumber planned to replace the Vari Valve with and "it wouldn't fit". Most radiator are about the same size as the Vari- Valve. Overtime you might want to get some Gorton # "C" vents to replace your vari- valves. The Gortons have floats inside which seal of the vent and prevent water escaping. You can get Gorton. Jacobus and Hoffman vents from Pex Supply on the internet.http://www.pexsupply.com/'

I may have mentioned this already - It's a very good idea to get a three ring binder and some 3 hole clear plastic sheet holders from Staples so you can save manuals and drawings and other info you gather about your boiler as it really comes in handy later when you have a problem and  wonder just where you got a certain part. I would also record when and what work was done as this gives you a history of the boiler and events that have happened.  The best time to have work done on your boiler is in the spring after it has warmed up. You  should have the burner cleaned and serviced once a year as that heads off any problems that might come up in the depth of winter.

I was going to send the attached drawing/saying to you the other day. It's a good way to remember which way to turn a bolt,, a radiator vent or a radiator valve -  any thing that has threads. Make a point of occasionally closing and opening the valves on the pipe going into the radiators. Like people, a little "exercise"  keeps them limber.

Have a great (and warm) Thanksgiving!

- Rod

NY7374

Just wanted to say.....

Thanks again and wish you and your families a very happy and blessed thanksgiving and holiday season.

Water lever remains the same:) All seems fine and operating better than the system ever has:)

I've begun my binder with the notes and photos posted and have visited the recommended site for parts:)

 If I may impose with one more question- what is your opinion of a "thermostatic valve"? I saw this while surfing the web some time ago. Seems to be an attachement to an air vent that permits regulating the radiator with its own thermostat= give each radiator it is attached to, "its own zone."

Rod

TRVs & Venting

Hi Again-  Attached is a pdf on main and radiator venting that I recently put together to help another person new to steam. I took other bits and pieces I was saving and put them together.  There's a section on TRVs in the middle which should be helpful to you. I have other sources if you would like more info.

- Rod 

BobC

Great job!

Rod, you have done everyone a great service by pulling all that info together in one place.



have a great thanksgiving all,



Bob

NY7374

All Continues to be Well

All seems to be well- and although it may be my imagination, I swear the hot water seems to be hotter!

Bob- Not only do I not have the manual to the thermostat presently on the wall-I cannot locate a programmable thermostat to fit the space where the current thermostat sits.

I called Honeywell, and was assured the programmable thermostat I purchased last week will work with a steam system., However, I cannot say I am confident that the customer service representative was all the familiar with steam heat.

Rod, thanks for phenomenal article on vents-very informative!!!!

Again, thanks to Bob and Rod- you guys are the best!!!!!!!!!!

BobC

Thermostats

Thermostats have to placed where they can sense the temperature of a room without interference. They should not be near a radiator (or a steam pipe in the wall) or right next to a lamp and they should not be subject to drafts when a door opens. An inside wall is usually best.



If your thermostat is the old round mercury type there is an adjustment you can make that determines how long the boiler will run when there is a call for heat, it is called the anticipator. There should be some embossing on that adjustment that says "Longer and Shorter" If you move that lever a notch or two towards Longer the boiler should run a bit longer and you should get a bit warmer. Don't go to far or you end up with wide temperature swings. The first part of this video shows the anticipator under his thumb when he is showing the thermostat with the ring off -  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHkdL2bjSd0  If you have a round thermostat that does not have mercury in it those are not very good from what I have heard and should probably be replaced.



If you can't get the existing thermostat to work right you can move the thermostat location by snaking the thermostat wire over to a better location where you can locate one of the newer styles. My Honeywell RTH6450 series is 5.75" long and i selected it because it was not expensive and it could be set to 1 cycle per hour and would work well with steam. It maintains the temperature within a degree or so and allows automated setback if you desire. Be careful with setbacks because to much of a setback may not save much money and steam systems can misbehave when coming off deep setbacks.



Bob

Dave in QCA

WOW

Rod,  Yes, thanks for putting this altogether in one spot. It is greatly helpful.  I have a few ides for you to consider....

At the end of each paragraph, you could put a line such as, "for more information, see, Publication, Page #"



Also, you might consider adding another section for two pipe.

Rod

Venting Info

Thanks guys for the complements!  I just slapped this together as a response to a recent email from a new Wallie who was having a problem understanding the relationship of main and radiator vents.  I need to “polish “ it a bit and will try to work in your suggestions.

 - Rod