Losing water faster and faster

rjmxrjmx

We have a Weil-McLain SGO-5 boiler system that seems to be losing water at a faster rate as time goes by. When we first moved in, almost three years ago, it would need topping up perhaps once per day. Now, even though the outside temp is only in the thirties and forties, it runs out in a few hours. I don’t see any water leaks, and steam release from the radiators appears to be about the same. What can I do to fix this?

unclejohn

The rads should not release steam. Call someone who works on steam.

Jamie Hall

As @unclejohn says, you may need to call a steam man. Check "Find a Contractor" on this web site for your area.

In the meantime, though, the vents on the radiators should not release steam. If they are doing so, they are probably shot, and need to be replaced. But before you even think of doing that, check the pressure at which the boiler cuts out. It should be no more than 1.5 to 2 psi.

Also, and I hate to suggest this, step outside when the boiler is firing, and see if you see clouds of white "smoke" from the chimney. You may have a leak in the boiler, and I've never known a leak to get smaller with time.

JUGHNE

Do you have any piping returns under the floor?

STEVEusaPA

If you're putting that much water into the boiler, you're going to kill it.
With the boiler off you could over fill it up to almost the header and see if any water leaks, or as @Jamie Hall suggested, the "Pope/No Pope" method (White smoke signals Pope!-crack/leak in steam chest)
It's almost always either boiler leaking, or returns leaking.

New England SteamWorks

You need a steam man. Quickly.

rjmxrjmx

Thanks for the replies, folks.
Somebody suggested checking the chimney for steam when I had another problem a couple of years ago. So, yesterday, I made sure the boiler was running, then I went out and checked. Didn’t see anything (no smoke, no steam), so I don’t know whether we have a new Pope or not. (Boiler was still running when I went back inside. I checked).
Radiators all seem to emit a little steam when the boiler is coming up, but that lasts for less than a minute. No (obvious) steam after that.
Anyway, we’ll get somebody in to look at it.
Thanks again.

rjmxrjmx

Forgot to mention: where I come from (Australia), I never lived anywhere that had internal heating. Air conditioning, yes, but no heat. I’m still a bit bewildered by all this.

unclejohn

Whats bewildering to me is that any one lives in Australia when these things also live there.

Fred

Was the boiler running long enough to make steam, before you went out to check for white smoke? If it just started running for a minute or two, it may not have been making steam yet. Also, there should be no steam out of any radiator vent or supply valve, at all. If there is, the vents need to be cleaned or replaced or the valves need to be repacked (around the valve stem)
The water has to be going somewhere and a lot of fresh makeup water will take years off of the life of a boiler. Find the leak(s) and fix them.

rjmxrjmx

unclejohn: "What does not kill me makes me stronger" -- Nietzsche

Fred: Boiler had been running for a while, so I think it should have been ok, but I will check again.
As for steam leaks, they've been doing this since we moved in, so we assumed it was normal (my wife is American, so I assumed she knew about these things. I certainly don't). I don't think much has changed there -- we get a few whistles for a minute or so and that's all.
But, as you say, the water must be going somewhere. That's the bit that has me puzzled.

Grallert

Another way to find a fault in the boiler sections is to get a very cold polished steel or chrome object like a wrench and put it into the flue path for a second then look for condensation on it

EBEBRATT-Ed

Do you have any steam return lines run under your basement floor??

rjmxrjmx

No, I don’t seem to have any steam return lines. That has me puzzled too. There’s one and only one pipe going to each radiator, as far as I can see. So where’s the steam supposed to go?
I’m an electronics/computer guy, so please forgive me if I don’t know much about heating...

JUGHNE

Pictures of boiler showing piping from floor to ceiling, several angles would help those here help you.

Fred

Sounds like a one pipe system. There is only one pipe to each radiator. Steam goes to the radiator, once it condenses in that radiator, the water returns to the boiler through that same pipe. I'm assuming there is a larger pipe (The Main) that those radiator run-outs branch off of. The Question is does that larger pipe, the main, (1) loop back towards the boiler and then drops down or (2) dead end elsewhere in the basement and then drops to near/at or below the floor and that lower pipe runs back to the boiler or (3) Is that larger pipe (Main) pitched lower at the boiler and has a pipe off of it, right at the boiler that drops back into the boiler. If number 1 or 2, it is a parallel flow system (water returns to the boiler flowing in the same direction as the steam). (If #3, it is a counter flow system (water returns in a direction counter to the flow of the steam).

JUGHNE

Fred, some pictures would have saved you all that typing.

Fred

JUGHNE said:

Fred, some pictures would have saved you all that typing.

I know but we still need the pictures. Some Posters are bashful, thinking we will jump all over their near boiler piping.

JUGHNE

Well, it was an excellent dissertation on steam systems.
However IMO, I don't think this poster is concerned about any NBP commentary.

EBEBRATT-Ed

Yeah, @Jughne, first we gotta keep water in it. Then we get to NBP and then pigtails and vaporstats 0-5 lb gages and air vents. All the things to make it work right.

maybe I got the sequence wrong LOL

rjmxrjmx

Actually, I am interested. I like to know how things work, and I was wondering why there was only one pipe to each radiator. Thanks for the explanation.
I’ll try to get some photos tomorrow.

Fred

So there @JUGHNE

JUGHNE

Fine Then!! ......Fred

CapeCodOilGuy

Don't forget to let us know on here how the problem got solved-that's how we learn!