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I’m confused steam one pipe

Snowmelt
Snowmelt Member Posts: 1,405
I do have 2 questions

1. It’s a one pipe system but in the garage there is an over head fan with a steam heat coil. Almost looks like what we see in garage shops for heat, the thing I was confused about is that it has a steam trap. It didn’t get hot right away. I’m thinking some main vents are clogged. The supply going into the coil was high and the return was low.
2. In the gym there’s steam coil right under a few blower motors shouldn’t there be some type of filter, the coils are going to get dirty, also there was a pressure trol up there. I’m going to assume when the pressure trol gets hot the blowers kick on.
3.

Comments

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 15,455
    #1 sounds like a steam unit heater. Steam traps are supposed to let air and condensate through and close when steam gets to the trap. Unit heater sometimes need air vents depending on the type of steam trap used and how it is piped.
    #2 Blower coils yes they normally have filters. In garage or industrial enviroments sometimes filters are omitted (unit heaters don't have filters either) the coils usually have wider spacing between the fins so they can be cleaned and don't trap as much dirt. I would expect the blowers to start with some type of control pressure or temperature. Unit heaters usually use a strap on aquastat to start the fan on temperature. This is so the units do not blow cold air
  • DanHolohan
    DanHolohan Member, Moderator, Administrator Posts: 16,513
    Is there a condensate pump or a boiler-feed pump on this job? If not, there should not be a steam trap on that heater, just a large air vent.
    Retired and loving it.
  • Snowmelt
    Snowmelt Member Posts: 1,405
    When you say boiler feed, you mean an automatic feed from hydro something, then yes, it also has a condensation pump on other side of building.
    The blower coil I think may have big enough spacing so they don’t neee air filters, how are you suppose to clean the steam coils with out getting water on the floor, or do you clean them out with an air compressor.
  • DanHolohan
    DanHolohan Member, Moderator, Administrator Posts: 16,513
    Sorry, @Snowmelt. Let me put it another way. Where does the pipe that leaves the heater in the coil go? What does it connect to? Where i
    Retired and loving it.
  • Snowmelt
    Snowmelt Member Posts: 1,405
    I didn't trace it out all the way i only traced it to in the room, when i go back i will take a few pics. there was i believe a 2 inch line feeding from the top, then it had a return that was at the bottom of the coil, it may have been smaller but i know for a fact it did have a trap on it and when into a 1 inch return , i don't think that was going into a condensation pump i think it attached somehow to the return pipe of the system. also had its own thermostat feeding the fan the "garage"
    i just had the boiler working yesterday to provide heat ( had to replace the damper that wasn't working correctly) I also have to cont and take measurements of the rads to determine if the boiler is over sized or undersized. i am working on two steam boilers , one is 280,000 other is bigger, the other 2 are water boilers in the same building. YES I said 4 boilers in 1 building .