Noisy Radiators Driving me NUTS!

William138

Any idea's?

JUGHNE

Did you find where the 2 return pipes connect to the steam system? Usually at the end of the steam main.

Did the lower pressure setting do anything for the whistle.
As stated above the pigtail loop is maybe plugged.
The returns might not be insulated. BTY it looks like you may have asbestos on your main piping. Best not to knock it around any.

William138

JUGHNE said:

Did you find where the 2 return pipes connect to the steam system? Usually at the end of the steam main.

Did the lower pressure setting do anything for the whistle.
As stated above the pigtail loop is maybe plugged.
The returns might not be insulated. BTY it looks like you may have asbestos on your main piping. Best not to knock it around any.

Yes they both returns connect at the bottom of the system near the floor.

I just need to know what parts to buy so I can get the main vent installed. Do I just need a 3/4" main vent? Which one is the best?

brandonf

A video chat with one of the pros on here at this point would be much quicker. Any takers? 😎 Also I highly recommend the book.

William138

brandonf said:

A video chat with one of the pros on here at this point would be much quicker. Any takers? 😎 Also I highly recommend the book.

Yes that would be a lot easier, If you have android we can duo or I have skype.

Fred

William138 said:

JUGHNE said:

Did you find where the 2 return pipes connect to the steam system? Usually at the end of the steam main.

Did the lower pressure setting do anything for the whistle.
As stated above the pigtail loop is maybe plugged.
The returns might not be insulated. BTY it looks like you may have asbestos on your main piping. Best not to knock it around any.

Yes they both returns connect at the bottom of the system near the floor.

I just need to know what parts to buy so I can get the main vent installed. Do I just need a 3/4" main vent? Which one is the best?

Buy the Barnes and Jones Big Mouth vents from Amazon. They work great. I still would not expect that to completely resolve your problem. Pressuretrol must be set low and pigtail cleaned out. Main vents will be a big help because, as it is, you are pushing all the air out of the system through those small radiator vents.

William138

Okay so I buy this - https://www.amazon.com/Barnes-Jones-Big-Mouth-Vent/dp/B01F26P13C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1539733235&sr=8-1&keywords=Barnes+and+Jones+Big+Mouth&dpID=51Xan9l0yjL&preST=_SX342_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

Screw it in and nothing else?

Fred

William138 said:

Okay so I buy this - https://www.amazon.com/Barnes-Jones-Big-Mouth-Vent/dp/B01F26P13C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1539733235&sr=8-1&keywords=Barnes+and+Jones+Big+Mouth&dpID=51Xan9l0yjL&preST=_SX342_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

Screw it in and nothing else?

Yep, that will do it.

JUGHNE

That plug we see in the boiler room is on the smaller of the return pipes. A vent there can not hurt.
However the larger return needs more venting than the smaller pipe.
That was why I asked if you found the other end of these returns out in the basement, above the ceiling or wherever, where they are connected to the end of the steam mains.

William138

JUGHNE said:

That plug we see in the boiler room is on the smaller of the return pipes. A vent there can not hurt.
However the larger return needs more venting than the smaller pipe.
That was why I asked if you found the other end of these returns out in the basement, above the ceiling or wherever, where they are connected to the end of the steam mains.

No I have no way of getting anywhere above where I filmed. How would I add a vent to the main return?

Jamie Hall

If you truly do not have access to the steam mains outside of the boiler area, it does make things rather difficult -- and more complicated. For one thing, you really can't tell which radiator is the last one on a main, nor the length of the main -- nor indeed whether there is just one or several mains.

However, you may be able to make a wild guess as to which radiator(s) are the last ones on their mains. While it is certainly not the best way to do things, you can add vents to the risers feeding that (those) radiators before they connect to the radiators themselves. This will not substitute for the vents on the radiators! But it will vent the mains. Depending on the piping arrangement, this can be moderately simple or, frankly, fiendishly difficult.

William138

Jamie Hall said:

If you truly do not have access to the steam mains outside of the boiler area, it does make things rather difficult -- and more complicated. For one thing, you really can't tell which radiator is the last one on a main, nor the length of the main -- nor indeed whether there is just one or several mains.

However, you may be able to make a wild guess as to which radiator(s) are the last ones on their mains. While it is certainly not the best way to do things, you can add vents to the risers feeding that (those) radiators before they connect to the radiators themselves. This will not substitute for the vents on the radiators! But it will vent the mains. Depending on the piping arrangement, this can be moderately simple or, frankly, fiendishly difficult.

The last radiator i'm 99% sure is this one in the spare bedroom. It's the last one that heats up. The dining room/living room heat up first, then the master bedroom then the spare bedroom is the last to get heat.

I can get to any of the steam pipes on top of the drop ceiling (as the video is shown) but I can't rip open the walls to see anything passed that...

Fred

From all of the pictures I see, there is only one Main that leaves the boiler. Can you see, from the ceiling if it branches off anywhere ? Can you count the pipes that run out to each of your radiators? If the radiator run-outs total the number of radiators in the house, and they are all on that one main, then that's the only one you need to vent, either at the end of the main or on the return that runs back to the boiler. If there is a branch off of that main that leaves the boiler, then that branch should also be vented. See if there is an old vent or another plug on that branch (if there is a branch)

AnthraciteEnergetics

I had whistling vents too. Fixed the main venting, was still making some noise. Solved the problem by setting up a two-stage setup that backs off the firing rate once the pipes are hot. Also prevents radiators from filling all the way on ever cycle which stops the loud sucking when one vent (bedroom of course) opens on burner shutdown. Pressuretrol has no effect on this, as that is simply a cutoff once the system is hot and fully pressurized.

One pipe steam is a nice system but with overpowered oil/gas burners and frequently cycling it can be annoying and needs some tweaking (bigger vents, etc)

nicholas bonham-carter

Remember the main vents are there to let the air back in as well as out.
If you have whistling radiator vents, I would say you need more main venting.—NBC