Water/Condensate and Two Cold radiators

The_Lieutenant

Hi, Just moved into a new house with Steam Heat in June. I've read through We got Steam and fairly comfortable with the way the system operates. Two issues though:

1. Water/Condensate leaking at 1st floor radiator on the radiator side of the valve connection. I suspect I could just tighten the coupling to eliminate the leaking or unscrew it and add some sealant. Any thoughts/advice?

2. I have two radiators on the second floor that refuse to warm up. The valves are in the up/open position and I can feel substantial steam/heat on the supply side of the valve but not in the radiator itself. I seem to have fixed one radiator with this issue with a new vent fully vented but that approach didn't work on this radiator. Thoughts?

Other (perhaps pertinent details):

Thermostat is located on the first floor.

Recently after coming back from a long wknd away from the house and adjusting the heat back up to 68F from 58F- all of the radiators in the house got piping hot (including the stubborn ones that don't currently heat in sustainment mode) and the condensating problem was exacerbated.

What are my options? I'm all ears.

Lars

MDNLansing

Issues

Regarding the still cold radiator. Do you hear / feel air escaping the vent when the boiler is running? If not, remove the vent and fire up the system. Does air escape from the threaded hole? When the rad is cold, is the fitting on the radiator side of the steam valve hot? do any portions of any sections get hot?



On some radiator valves (not the vents) there are lock nuts around the shaft under the handle. Make sure the lock nuts are loose and free and that the valve truly is fully open. Those lock nuts can make it seem like the valve is open, but its really only partially open. Open and close it a few times to make sure its traveling freely and opening and closing fully.



Check the pitch of the radiator. Make sure there is sufficient slope for the water to flow back through the steam pipe.\ to return to the radiator.



As for the leak, you might be able to back off the nut and seal it up. Wrap the threads in PTFE (not Teflon) tape. Make sure to start the wrap a few threads from the end so no tape tears off and gets into the system. Most people have found that the Monster Blue brand of tape works best. I personally don't use pipe dope on radiators, only tape, but some pros do. If you do use a pipe dope, make sure its a high quality, high temp, non drying formula. The cheap stuff dries like cement and makes it impossible for penetrating oil to work its way in years later and seizes up the fitting.



Also, what pressure is your system running at? What does the gauge say and what is the pressuretrol set at?

The_Lieutenant

Reply

Regarding the still cold radiator. Do you hear / feel air escaping the vent when the boiler is running? No If not, remove the vent and fire up the system. Does air escape from the threaded hole? Still No When the rad is cold, is the fitting on the radiator side of the steam valve hot? Only immediately by the valve ( I believe only due to heat transfer) do any portions of any sections get hot? No

On some radiator valves (not the vents) there are lock nuts around the shaft under the handle. Make sure the lock nuts are loose and free and that the valve truly is fully open. Those lock nuts can make it seem like the valve is open, but its really only partially open. Open and close it a few times to make sure its traveling freely and opening and closing fully. Tried this but locknut was already loose and still no joy. Could it be that the gate rusted off of the stem and the valve is not actually opening even though I'm lifting the stem?



As for the leak, you might be able to back off the nut and seal it up. Wrap the threads in PTFE (not Teflon) tape. Make sure to start the wrap a few threads from the end so no tape tears off and gets into the system. Most people have found that the Monster Blue brand of tape works best. I personally don't use pipe dope on radiators, only tape, but some pros do. If you do use a pipe dope, make sure its a high quality, high temp, non drying formula. The cheap stuff dries like cement and makes it impossible for penetrating oil to work its way in years later and seizes up the fitting. Used PFTE Tape- sealed up great. No more leaking! Thanks!



Also, what pressure is your system running at? What does the gauge say and what is the pressuretrol set at? Checked it twice while running- once at 5psi and once at 7psi. Pressuretrol is set at 2psi...

BobC

Pressure too high

Does the gauge read zero when cold? Remove the cover from the pressuretrol and make sure the white dial is set to 1.









Your gauge may be flaky or it's possible the pipe between the boiler and the pressuretrol is plugged. Unwire the pressuretrol (turn off the power at the circuit breaker) and twist it off the pipe, look at the base of the pressuretrol and make sure you can see the 1/16" hole at the base of the brass fitting. Try to remove the pigtail from the boiler and make sure it is clear. Sometimes they can be tough to remove, try steadily increasing pressure to get it started, you don't want to snap it off. If it's really stuck you can try to get a long skinny wire tie to go through to prove it is clear. Another trick is to see if you can blow air into the open end of the pigtail, if you can it's clear.



As to the radiators that won't heat. It sounds like you got them to heat once but now they won't heat. Check any horizontal piping between the steam main and each radiator to make sure there are not any dips in the piping. You need slope back towards the boiler so water can find it's way back.



Bob

steamedchicago

if the valve is hot

steam is getting to it.  if the valve is hot, and the radiator isn't, then the valve is closed, or the radiator is plugged.  It's quite possible for the valve to fail in a way that it won't open, even though the stem rises.



With the boiler set so it won't come on, you can take the radiator off the valve, and inspect.  Or call someone, if that's beyond your abilities.