Help slow heating

senate8293

Hello everyone this is my first post been reading for a few years anyway I’m having trouble with my steam heat I had 3 different guys come out over the past 3 years and it seems like every time they do all my problems get worse so I feel it’s up to myself to figure this out so I just have a few questions
1 about how long should the boiler run for to reach the set temp my boiler runs for about 40 mins to reach the temp just seems very long as my house is small about 1400 7 rads
2 how long should it take to fill the mains with steam mines taking about 9 mins witch again seems long
3 how much water bounce is ok in the sight glass I’m getting a lot after the last visit from the so called pro
4 how much pressure so it take to fill all the rads mine seems ok for the first 30min of run time like 1 ounce then at 30 min it starts to raise till the thermostat shuts it off
5 How long should it take to heat the radiators all the way across I changed all my vents and now it seems it taking much longer to heat could it be venting to slow or should it heat the radiator slow

Some of the things I did this winter was had the boiler serviced by a so called pro after he was done seems like I had water hammer and pressure was running higher then before I myself then repiched all the pipes and Insulated them that got rid of the water hammering but but then I had 2 vents that where leaking so I replaced all the vents now that’s when I really noticed how long the boiler was running for and that the radiator especially on the first floor are taking a really long time to heat
Sorry for being all over the place with my question I just had it with this problems the time and money wasted and I still have problems

nicholas bonham-carter

Do you have adequate main venting? Has the boiler ever been cleaned, after installation, (see skimming)?
Are you running at low pressure, ie. under 1.5 PSI max? A low pressure gauge along side the supplied 0-30 psi gauge will tell you a lot.
It is best to fill the main supplies quickly by having generous main venting. After the air in the mains has escaped with very low resistance, then the risers and the radiators will all fill simultaneously. The radiator vents should be slower than the mains, and to start with, all the same size, such as Hoffman 40’s.
What sort of thermostat is installed, and has it been configured for steam heat, (1 or 2 cycles per hour)?—NBC

senate8293

Good morning I think my main vent is too small but the first guy that came to look at it installed Gorton 1 on each main I’m thinking getting a big Mouth for the long main and using the two number 1 on the short the boiler has been cleaned so many times a can’t count and skimmed I installed a 0 to 3 Gauge it reads 1 ounce for the first 30 min then creeps up till the thermostat shuts it down around 1 1.5 psi I noticed last night my Pressuretrol stopped working I got one coming for tomorrow I have no idea what kind of thermostat I have it’s a Honeywell How can I tell

JohnNY

There are no solid answers to your questions. Every system is different and there are too many variables. The system has to be considered as a whole and small changes create big results in steam. Addressing one thing at a time is legit, albeit conservative, way to deal with maximizing performance but it's a good idea to find a trusted contractor who can follow a methodical approach to getting it all right.

BobC

What color is the water in the sight glass? Someone may have put something in the boiler water to clean it. If they did the boiler has to be flushed out good to get all of that out of the system.

Increasing the mains venting is a good idea, how long are the mains? What kind of radiator vents did you install?

Bob

senate8293

The water in the boiler is a little rusty I don’t think they put anything in there the long main is about 55ft the short is about 30ft both only have a Gorton 1 each as for the rads I installed Gortons

nicholas bonham-carter

If that pressure is really accurate, which I doubt, then 1 ounce for the first 30 minutes would indicate the main venting to be ok, even though with smaller Gortons such as you have they are not big enough.
Your boiler may not be firing at its correct BTU rating, so I would clock the meter, using a stopwatch, and the smaller dial on the meter. If it is an oil boiler then the tech can tell from his combustion analyses.—NBC

senate8293

Can I check firing myself or I need to call someone

KC_Jones

You definitely need more main venting. With proper venting you should be able to vent those mains in 3-4 minutes not 9.

On the short main I would do a Gorton #2 at a minimum and on the longer main at least a big mouth or 2 Gorton #2 vents, the big mouth would be a more economical option.

Fred

The main venting has a lot to do with how long it takes to get steam to the end of those mains. If it were me, I would put two big Mouths on the 55 ft main and one Big Mouth on the 30 ft Main. You can't over vent a main but you certainly can under vent them.
There should not be more than 1/2 to 3/4" bounce in the sight glass water. If it's more, you may benefit from a good skim.
You really can't balance the radiators until the mains are properly vented but typically you do want mains to vent fast and radiators to vent more slowly to evenly heat the radiator. It is not unusual for radiators to not heat all the way across. They should put out enough heat to make the room comfortable. Outdoor temps affect boiler run times and that affects how much of the rad gets hot.