Rattling, Maddening Pipe

S_Hart

I'm sure others have posted about rattling steam pipes, but I can't find a post that describes my particular dilemma. I live on the third floor of a four-story building. It is an overheated building, so I typically close all radiator valves (tightly). When the heat comes up, I hear a loud pop (normal, I think), but one pipe in particular that runs from the floor to the ceiling in my bedroom, feeding the radiator in the apartment above me, rattles incessantly. There's no sleep with this rattling (forgive random image): <a href="http://youtu.be/VBBEs6LmER8">http://youtu.be/VBBEs6LmER8</a>



Sometimes I hear the woman above me turn the valve on her radiator; I could be very wrong, but it *seems* that when she tightly closes the valve on her radiator, the rattling in the pipe that runs to her apartment stops. But if it's open (or partially open, I suspect... just a guess), forget it: it sounds a little like the shaking cover of a pot of boiling water. I wonder, too, if the rattling is actually water droplets on their way down the pipe. I can replicate the sound by opening the valve on any of my radiators just a little bit. But I can hear the sound clearly when the valves of my own radiator are only partially open; my upstairs neighbor says she can't hear anything at all from the valve on her radiator and the problem isn't with her radiator... which makes things all the more difficult to diagnose.



The valves on my radiator were changed to no effect. The radiator above is properly pitched. Debris clearing hasn't done a thing. The super has suggested it's my fault for closing the valves... but none of the other pipes near closed-valve radiators rattle and I hear the same noise if the valve is fully open. The noise isn't coming from my radiator itself in any case.



Any ideas? Thank you!

nicholas bonham-carter

A system wide issue

With everyone closing valves, surely the amount of condensate ending up being stored by the radiators must be considerable. Steam valves by design are not completely closed when closed.

This system needs help. No doubt the pressure has been raised up beyond normal, either by lack of maintenance, or by knuckleheaded adjustment.

Steam systems are, when properly maintained, silent and even.

For the moment, you could close the steam entry by turning the air vent upside down, without unscrewing it.

See if you can get the super to come here for help in reducing the pressure, or ask the owner to get someone more knowledgeable . Such a mismanaged system may be burning 30% more fuel than it should.--NBC