Oil to Gas Conversion

oil2gas

Hello Gurus. Apologies if I use not the perfect heating terminology. I have been reading the wall from some time but this is my first post. I am doing my oil to gas conversion. The EDR requirement based on my contractor's calculation is 332 sq. ft. He is suggesting Burnham IN6 that gives 450 sq. ft. He said the one below this is IN5 that gives 358 sq. ft, which is too close and if I have to add another radiator in future, it will take time to heat the house. Having read in the forums about problems of oversized boiler, I am not sure if I should go with IN6. Right now the oil boiler is Burnham V85 that gives 512 sq. ft steam. There is no banging or wet steam. Please suggest if I should go with IN5 or IN6.

vaporvac

Future plans...?

...

vaporvac

Future plans...?

Just goofed up my post. So the real ? is do you actually plan to add more radiation, and if so, how much? The smaller boiler already allows @26sq ft edr. If you truly do plan to add more than that the larger boiler may possibly be down-fired a bit in the interim. I also seem to recall that these boiler are the same except for the burners. Hopefully, the pros will read and verify this or correct me.



Bear in mind the larger IN6 is @35% oversized, which is quite a lot. As it stands now, the IN5 seems to be a perfect fit.

Colleen

Jamie Hall

Assuming your EDR numbers are correct

and, as vaporvac notes, you are not planning to add radiation in the future, the IN5 is the one to go with.  One of the things you want to avoid with steam is getting the boiler oversized.  It doesn't help any in getting more heat, and will cost you money not only in the boiler itself, but it won't run as efficiently.



Match your boiler to your radiation.

JStar

Sizing

When it comes to steam, there is no such thing as "too close". There is right and there is wrong. That's it. The IN5 is the better match for your current system. If you plan to add more than one radiator in the future, go for the IN6 with a two-stage gas valve. High/Low firing schemes will smooth out a little bit of oversizing.

ChrisJ

Size

If it was mine I would be choosing between an IN4 and an IN5. I'm against the 33% oversizing commonly done and feel it is completely unnecessary in most situations.



If you vent appropriately the IN4 could work beautifully and the IN5 will easily work even if you vent fast. I also think Joe's recommendation of an IN6 + 2 stage valve is a great idea. But an IN6 with a single stage valve? Absolutely not.

oil2gas

Thanks

Appreciate everyone's response. I don't see myself adding any more radiators. Every room and hallway already has a radiator. I feel comfortable going with IN5 now. It will be interesting to observe the efficiency of new system and level of comfort this winter. Thanks again.

KC_Jones

Just make sure....

The installer follows the manufacturers recommended piping at a minimum!  Way too many people come on here with the horror stories of bad installs.  Just make sure everything is written in the final contract.  Oh and no copper on the steam side!  Good luck and post back after it's done so everyone can hear how it turns out.

ChrisJ

I got one for that!

One of my favorites.





Yes, when in doubt please ask on here to make sure they are going to pipe it correctly. The piping is just as important as the boiler.