Friend’s steam system

ethicalpaul

When you find out your friend has a 19th century two-family home with steam, you make him show it to you, am I right?

- Pressuretroll cut-in set above 8
- 4 mains, 3 with Gorton 1’s, one no vent at all, just a plug. One of the Gortons apparently failed closed due to cold main pipe at the vent.

He started to think I was magic when I told him he must have some cold radiators.

- and then, the steam supply pipe is like 1-1/2” copper 😭 but it goes to a nice big 3-1/2 or 4” iron header and the water level was steady and I heard no surging so he’s lucky there but I told him a good steam guy could fix it easy if it started to give him problems or leak.

ChrisJ

The boiler piping : https://youtu.be/ca9GuwuOVZc

KC_Jones

That installer didn’t earn their money, they stole it from the homeowner. Truly sad.

EBEBRATT-Ed

All true but they sometimes work....against all odds

Intplm.

@ethicalpaul if and when your friend needs help with his system? I hope that he will follow your well educated advice.

Steamhead

KC_Jones said:

That installer didn’t earn their money, they stole it from the homeowner. Truly sad.

This. That Weil-McLain boiler has a 3-inch tapping but the guy was lazy and bushed it down to 2-inch. Fortunately replacing that copper with 3-inch black steel shouldn't be that hard.

ethicalpaul

> @IamNotLost said:
> As I/We ponder after all you have learned , accomplished and excelled . . your restraint.... Humility ? Economics ? it's complicated ? .... and how you're planning to subtlety share with your friend some information , perhaps a book from the Store..

Oh I wasn’t stingy with my opinions! We turned down his p-troll and I advised him what main vents to install/have installed, and I told him about this place and that his installer and service tech are dangerous