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1924 Piping question

Dale_3
Dale_3 Member Posts: 58
in Strictly Steam
All - I ran across this today and it has me confused "my normal state". Why is the trap where it is and since they have a condensate line below why not trap it to it and let gravity take over? I'm sure there is an easy explanation but it has me slightly perplexed.



Comments

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,256
    Can't tell what is top or bottom in the picture. Whatever way I turn it it looks bad
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,253
    Me also....however I assume the tag is hanging down by gravity?
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,256
    @JUGHNE , your smarter than me I didn't notice the tag!!!

    For his sake I hope your wrong!!
  • Danny Scully
    Danny Scully Member Posts: 1,437
    edited September 2017
    Well, here is what I think. It looks like it's dripped into a return, and they put the steam trap there so it would vent essentially. If you didn't pipe it back into the dry return, you would have needed an air vent.
    EzzyT
  • EzzyT
    EzzyT Member Posts: 1,338
    It almost looks like the trap is acting like a crossover trap, air out of the radiator trap into the return.
    E-Travis Mechanical LLC
    Etravismechanical@gmail.com
    201-887-8856
    Dan FoleyPaul S_3MilanD
  • gerry gill
    gerry gill Member Posts: 3,078
    Its an air vent trap as the others have said.
    gwgillplumbingandheating.com
    Serving Cleveland's eastern suburbs from Cleveland Heights down to Cuyahoga Falls.

    Dan Foley
  • JUGHNE
    JUGHNE Member Posts: 11,253
    Ed, I become more aware of gravity with each passing year. :/
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,314
    Looks like a Webster trap and valve. We've seen this before on Webster Modulation systems where a Return Trap was not used. The drips to the wet return are probably all piped directly without traps, so they are "A" rather than "B" dimensions. And the traps are, as has been pointed out, just acting as air vents.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
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  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,256
    didn't see the other pipe. makes sense now.
  • Dale_3
    Dale_3 Member Posts: 58
    All - Thanks for all the information. With your help and re-reading parts of Dan's Lost Art of Steam Heat I actually understand what I'm seeing, why all the old radiators are at ceiling level in the basement and why the boiler tech is running the boiler at 12 PSIG (to get the steam back) Yes - 12.
    @Steamhead Is there any good information out there on the Modulation systems? I'm going back today to do more research.
  • Dale_3
    Dale_3 Member Posts: 58
    One other question. Is there anything special about this check valve?
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,256
    Looks like a regular swing check.

    The radiators are on the ceiling so they won't fill with condensate. They need to be above the boiler water line so they will drain (unless you have a boiler feed pump or condensate pump).

    Why is he running 12 psi??

    Because he doesn't know any better.

    If you run 12 psi without a condensate tank those basement radiators (and probably the floors above will never heat)
  • Danny Scully
    Danny Scully Member Posts: 1,437
    Yes 12 psi sounds wrong...

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