One-Pipe Main Venting

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Living Room #2

Large radiator on the opposite side of the living room.



This is the first radiator on the main floor that is fed by the long steam main.

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Main Hall

Tall radiator in the main hall, right next to the front door.



The long main feeds this one as well.



The thermostat that controls the boiler is located on an interior wall opposite this radiator.  The hall is open towards the living room, the dining room, the back of the house, and the upstairs.

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Dining Room

Dining room - last radiator on this floor that feeds from the long main.

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Den

This long baseboard is in a den off the living room that we use as an office. 



The baseboard is not currently part of the steam system, but is hooked up to the radiant boiler, with its own circulator pump and thermostat.  We've been told that this setup cannot work at all because a baseboard like this needs hotter water than the radiant system supplies.  We tried to get the baseboard warm once, but shut it off completely when the supply valve started leaking badly.



If we keep the steam system, then I would like to put a steam radiator (or steam baseboard?) in this room if possible.  The alternative would be a real radiant zone.

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Bedroom #1

First radiator on the second floor off the short end of the main.



All of the radiators would need to be refinished.  Sandblast and powder-coat?

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Hall Bath

This crappy little baseboard for the hall bath on the second floor also feeds off the short main.  It does not heat well at all.  Note the copper piping.



I would want to replace this one with a steam radiator as well.  One problem will be that there is not a lot of room.

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Master Bathroom

Another useless baseboard, again with copper piping.

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Bedroom #2

As the only tube-type radiator, this is the odd man out among the real steam radiators on the first two floors.   It seems to work fine, though it would be nice to have the same style and size in all of the bedrooms.



This one is on the long main.

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Storage Room

This one also feeds off the long main.

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Master Bedroom #1

One of the two radiators in the master bedroom.



This one also gets steam from the long main.  It is an occasional hisser and spitter.

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Master Bedroom #2

This is no. 2.  It gets very hot in this room although the takeoffs for the two radiators are on the far side of the long main.

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Third-Floor Bedroom #1

Moving up to the third floor, which is just a finished attic.



This baseboard feeds off the short main.  It can get surprisingly warm, though not enough to keep the room consistently at a comfortable temperature.  Again, notice the copper piping.



We would like to get rid of the window seat and replace the baseboard with a steam radiator if possible.  The window seat also hides air conditioning ductwork, but we would not mind moving that as well.

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Third-Floor Hall

This radiator hangs from the wall, where it is poorly attached.  It is incorrectly pitched.  And it has copper piping.  The radiator can get very hot, but is it even designed for steam?

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Third-Floor Bath

A big, tall radiator for a small bathroom.  Piped in copper, of course.  It does get very hot.

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Third-Floor Bedroom #2

And finally, another crappy baseboard.  I am guessing this one feeds off the long main.



As with the other bedroom, the piping is copper, and there is A/C ductwork in the window seat.

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Steam Redux?

So what do people think about the radiator situation here?  It actually worries me more than the botched piping in the basement.  Perhaps the biggest concern is whether the reduction of the load on the short main that resulted when the kitchen was converted to radiant heat causes an imbalance that cannot be fixed.  And I imagine that replacing all those baseboards and the copper piping will not exactly be easy either.



JStar will provide the authoritative opinion, but I am genuinely interested in other people's thoughts as well.  Has anyone had to deal with similar issues?



Thanks.