Bad new gorton valves?

Dsisson

Just got a couple of new gorton valves from pex. A #4 & a #6. Both are spitting water and I can't tell if they shut off. Are they bad? I thought gorton were the best.

BobC

Take them off and test them

Try blowing through them when they are upright and again when they are upside down. Air should pass easily when they are upright but be blocked when they are upside down.



How did the air valves that were originally on there perform? make sure the radiators have a little slope so any water can flow back out of them and be sure the valve at the input of the radiator is open all the way. Next check any horizontal pipes in the basement to be sure they slope to feed any condensate back to the boiler.



If all that checks out post pictures of your boiler, the piping around it and one of the problem radiators.



Bob

Fred

What about the old ones?

Did the old vents do the same thing? Is that what prompted you to replace them? If so, something else is going on. I assume you are trying to use these as radiator vents and not as main vents, right? Are these radiator runs first, last or somewhere in the middle of your Main? What pressure is your boiler running? Are the main vents working? Has anything else changed on your system that might contribute to this problem?

Dsisson

yes

I took one off and blew into it, it's working OK per your recommendation.



Yes, the old ones were spitting water too - one of them near the base instead of at the vent hole, so I knew that one was bad



Pressure is 2 pounds down to .5 pounds.



Both radiators tilt towards the drain. All pipes are sloped the right direction.



Both of the old valves USED to work, haven't made any changes to the system.



Not sure about the main vents, will have to check them.



1 rad at the end of the run, 1 near the end of the run. both are on the same main.

Dsisson

what are they supposed to sound like?

Wondering what a gorton valve should sound like when it shuts off?



Some of the valves I have make a sharp click when they shut off.Others just kinda stop hissing. I can't tell at all if the gorton's shut off, or if the boiler is just shutting off when the house is up to temp. They seem to hiss all the time and then slowly taper off, I'd assume when the boiler shuts off.

nicholas bonham-carter

The sound of radiator vents

If your main vents are adequate, pressure low, and the boiler not oversized, then they should be silent.--NBC

Fred

Check the Main Vent

I suspect the main vent on that run is stuck closed  and the steam is pushing all the air to that end of the main and trying to push it out of the radiator vents. Those vents are never getting hot enough to actually close during a normal cycle. Do those radiators get hot? If so, that probably blows my theory but I'm guessing they don't?? Maybe just warm??

ChrisJ

Gorton sound

Gorton's do not click and should not click.

They slowly close during which they may start to hiss some as the valve is getting smaller and smaller.



Mine will start making noise around 2 or 3 ounces which rarely happens.  Another time they make some sound is if the system is running a lot and the piping is hot when the boiler fires up.  The speed the steam shoots down the pipes causes them to make a little noise even with a lot of main venting.

To be honest, even on a perfectly matched system with plenty of main venting and radiators vented fast I've yet to find a "totally silent all of the time" vent.  My vents chirp almost every cycle when it's cold out as they are venting.  It's not loud, it's just there.

Mark N

Spitting Vents

Is your boiler oversized? If so by how much. An oversized boiler will cause vents to hiss and spit.

Charlie from wmass

radiator valves

can you post a photo of the radiator valve. Spitting vents are sometimes caused by the use of hot water radiator valves on steam radiators.

kcopp

How is the water....

quality? Been cleaned? Had work done that needs skimming?