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Steam Radiator Not Heating Up
I have a steam radiator that is not heating up. It is a one pipe system. I have changed the air valve on it and changed the valve as well. When I was changing the valve I tipped the radiator up and water did come out so when I hooked it back up I made sure to put it at a 1 degree angle tilting to the pipe. Some times the first coil of the radiator will get lukewarm but the rest will be cold. Last winter I replaced the air valve in the basement on that pipe as well because water came out of it. I have only had this house for 1 year and a half and this is my second winter and the radiator has never seem to gotten hot. Luckily I can close that room off and keep it warmer in the rest of the upstairs. I'm not sure if there is a blockage or not. The pipe that runs to this radiator is the only one made of copper the rest are black pipe. Also since it's on the second floor not sure if I want to be ripping apart walls just yet to replace the whole thing.
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Bob
Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
3PSI gauge
Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England.
Hoffman Equipped System (all original except boiler), Weil-Mclain 580, 2.75 gph Carlin, Vapourstat 0.5 -- 6.0 ounces per square inch
Found some pictures of when I replaced the valvue. This first picture is pretty blurry but its after the old valve is off and the new one is about to go on.
Second picture is of the old valve.
Third picture is the new valve on.
I will take the other pictures tonight
Just FYI, no teflon on the mating surfaces of a union next time.
Second is of whole radiator.
Third connecting valve to radiator.
Fourth is valve connecting to pipe.
Second is pipes coming from boiler.
Third pipe going to rad in basement.
Fourth pipe continue to rad in basement.
Fifth second pipe that connects to pipe in other pics.
Sixth showing both pipes running side by side.
Seventh shows them connecting.
Eighth a valve and air valve.
Ninth pipe curving about to go into floor.
No hartford loop, but dry returns.
The third picture, the piping that goes to radiator looks like it has been changed and increases after coming off the takeoff off the main.
The fourth pipe, the pipe that has been converted to copper, looks like it has a valve on it? and there's some kind of tee? That area is confusing... can't see how condensate will properly come back.
Someone has seriously knuckleheaded your system there unfortunately.
Also, I can't tell from the rest of the piping but this looks like a counterflow system. looks like there may be a couple locations on the mains where they piping has been reduced and may also allow water to pool.
The vent in the 7th and 8th picture looks like it is leaking (based on the staining on the wood above it.
We don't like copper on mains and above the water line but it is what it is.
Finally it looks like the header, above the boiler is not as high as it should be (24 to 28 inches minimum). That will cause wet steam.
1 degree is not much pitch. How did you determine the 1 degree? Ideally, if that radiator could be pitched about a 1/4" from the vent end to the supply pipe end, it should be fine.
Pipes should be pitched about a quarter inch per 10 feet. more does not hurt anything.
A counter flow system is where the mains start out at thier lowest point, at the boiler ( pitched down towards the boiler (with appropriate drips near the boiler for condensate to drop to a short wet return at the boiler). Condensate then runs in the opposite direction to the steam going out from the boiler. Steam out from the boiler, condensate in the same pipe running back to the boiler.
In a parallel flow system, the mains start out at their highest point above the boiler and pitch downward from there so that both the steam and the condensate flow in the same direction and the condensate continues to run into a dry return, after the last radiator run-out off of the main. That dry return may continue in a loop around the basement and then drop down to a wet return before it gets back to the boiler or the return pipe may drop down to a wet return right after the last radiator run out and the wet return will run back to the boiler, below the boiler's water level.
Here is what I would try. Remove the radiator vent. Start the boiler. If steam gets to the radiator, then turn off boiler. The problem is likely the radiator vent. If no steam gets to radiator, then the problem is likely in the piping.
I'm not sure if I'd trust a phone app to accurately measure 1 deg slope.
Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England.
Hoffman Equipped System (all original except boiler), Weil-Mclain 580, 2.75 gph Carlin, Vapourstat 0.5 -- 6.0 ounces per square inch
EcoSteam ES-20 Advanced Boiler Control
Boiler pictures updated 2/21/15
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