I had a big water hammer announcement every time the steam started up for a half a minute

acl10

I had a big water hammer announcement every time the steam started up for a half a minute. I just put a main vent of the baseboard return pipe that is attached to the boiler. The vent is right next to the boiler. I extended the pipe up so water woudnt enter the vent and now I dont have the water hammer announcement when my steam starts. Thats beside the other main vents I have.
Anyone care to figure out why that would be?

acl10

Picture of new vent next to boiler on the baseboard return line. The other silver vent is for the baseboard.

Jamie Hall

Where is that horizontal bit of pipe going off the bull of the T you put the vent on in relation to the water line of the boiler? I wonder if there was air trapped in there when the boiler was cold, and somehow when steam got to it perhaps it condensed and pulled water from somewhere? I'm guessing...

Fred

@Jamie Hall , he has that vent on the wet return, below the water line. We've tried to tell him that you don't vent a wet return below the water line, it does nothing but he still wants it there. He has now raised the vent, Hoffman 75 up on a stand pipe but it is still a wasted vent.

Jamie Hall

I know where it is, @Fred. And I also know that it seems like a wasted vent. But he says that it has eliminated a water hammer, and who am I to argue? I'm not there. It may not be that it's a vent -- it occurs to me that that vertical pipe may be acting more like a surge arrestor... for some reason.

acl10

Thats not on the wet return of the steam. Thats on the return of hotwater from the baseboard. The wet return is on the otherside of the boiler. See picture of vents on dry return connected to wet return.When I just had the pipe and a Taco vent on it, it was still hammering. Now I put a steam vent on and it stopped. I also raised the pipe by a foot or more so I woudnt get water surge in the vent.
Here is a picture of my other vents on the dry return.

acl10

Its definitely releasing a little air. I checked it

BobC

@acl10 Exactly what is your problem? You are using, and perhaps abusing this boards time with multiple posts that appear to be parsing the number of angels that can fit on the head of a pin.

If I'm wrong I apologize but it seems a little strange, read the answers before posting another variant of the same question.

Bob

acl10

I am sorry. I was having problems and as I found them I posted so I could get answers and now that I solved them. I put up the solutions so maybe others can benefit.

acl10

Actually I didnt put it there to get rid of that water hammer. I was just experimenting with the venting to see what would happen if I put a vent them and after I put it there I noticed to my surprise that the initial water hammer when the steam came on stopped.