Super loud air vent on stand pipe help?

countdown621

Hi, I wanted to get some advice/confirmation on this INCREDIBLY loud vent on a stand pipe in the corner of my kitchen on the 3rd floor of a multi-unit building. Like so loud that I cannot carry on zoom conversations in the living room. Visible steam/sometimes spitting water from vent. HOA plumber tried replacing vent with same type of valve but otherwise has been very unhelpful, and I cannot stand this any longer. I saw another entry saying to turn a vent upside down to turn heat off - would that work with this kind of valve? Should I replace it with something else (and if so what)?


Thanks!

ethicalpaul

What floor are you on? You can try rotating 180 degrees and it may seal, but that might make units below yours stop getting heat.

the problem is likely that they are running the boiler at way too high a pressure and you are likely to get a lot of friction trying to get them to have their system looked at.

they are wasting lots of fuel $$ too probably. Does it hiss all day? Or does it come and go?

countdown621

It comes and goes; when it does come it tends to go on for a long time and is very, very loud. There is a full on radiator like 15 feet away in my unit, and presumably the ones beneath mine. I turned it upside down for now and it has been quiet since then (thank the lord); would a different vent make a difference?

Jamie Hall

Leave it upside down, if things are heating well enough. As @ethicalpaul says, odds are good that your super is running the pressure much too high, and any vent is going to protest.

countdown621

My only concern is the kitchen does get chilly there, thanks to a fire escape door and a drafty window; if there were a valve that would make it less horrible I could use it sometimes, maybe?

ethicalpaul

You can enable the vent whenever you can stand the noise. Some vent out there might be quieter or you could throw a towel over it to see if that helps.

my wife has been rotating our bedroom vent up and down for a year not due to noise, but to moderate the heat. I’m going to install a 1/8” npt valve in front of it to make it easier

Don't keep turning it in the same direction. Turn it down one way and turn it up the reverse way

SlamDunk

If you turn it upside down, the floors below you wont receive heat. The super will be knocking.

CantabHeat

SlamDunk said:

If you turn it upside down, the floors below you wont receive heat. The super will be knocking.

Just flip it right side up before answering the door 😉.  

Seriously though it sounds like the system pressure is way too high. Steam vents should be silent or almost silent. Anything other than that and the poor system is, literally, screaming for attention from someone that knows that they’re doing. 

SlamDunk

If the O.P. was adventurous, they would install a zero-15psi pressure gage for one cycle to see what is going on in the boiler room. Should see 2psi or less.

mattmia2

You could install a couple tees and a couple large vents, but you would need to find out what the pressure is first and make sure it isn't going to damage the new vents. That is a lot of air to push through that tiny vent. You can get a 1/8" npt gauge for a couple bucks so that might be the place to start.

countdown621

I 100% would like to find out. Do I just screw a gauge in where the vent is now? Do I need to wait for anything in particular to do the switch (i.e. certain outside temp or just 'vent not actively venting')? If the HOA is wasting a ton of money on fuel, I want to know!

countdown621

Also, is 'dry pressure gauge' with a steam vent or is there a different one I should get? There's a PIC Gauge on Amazon (PIC Gauge 102D-158C 1.5" Dial, 0/30 psi Range, 1/8" Male NPT Connection Size, Center Back Mount Dry Pressure Gauge) I could try this weekend.

mattmia2

You will have to wait until the boiler is firing to read it, probably want to try to put it in when it isn't firing so you're not dealing with hot steam. Large steam leaks can cause asphyxiation by displacing the air in the room or burns so leaving it open if it is under fairly high pressure isn't the best of ideas.

Neild5

Yes, you screw in a gauge where the vent is.  You need a gauge that has a 1/8 npt fitting on the back.  As long as the pipe is cool enough to hold your hand on for 60 seconds you can remove the vent and screw in the gauge. 

mattmia2

You probably want a 0-15 psig gauge or maybe even a little less. Properly set up systems need a 0-3 psig gauge to read accurately, but it sounds like the proessuretrol on this system is set for way more than that.

Neild5

countdown621 said:

Also, is 'dry pressure gauge' with a steam vent or is there a different one I should get? There's a PIC Gauge on Amazon (PIC Gauge 102D-158C 1.5" Dial, 0/30 psi Range, 1/8" Male NPT Connection Size, Center Back Mount Dry Pressure Gauge) I could try this weekend.

I would do a 0-15 psi gauge since the PRV on the boiler should open at 15 psi.  If it pegs the gauge there are more problems than just a noisy vent. 

SlamDunk

countdown621 said:

Also, is 'dry pressure gauge' with a steam vent or is there a different one I should get? There's a PIC Gauge on Amazon (PIC Gauge 102D-158C 1.5" Dial, 0/30 psi Range, 1/8" Male NPT Connection Size, Center Back Mount Dry Pressure Gauge) I could try this weekend.

That will work.

nicholas bonham-carter

I would put the accurate 0-3 psi gauge on the pigtail, graduated in ounces. Gaugestore/Wika used to be the source, but they may have changed ownership.
0-15 psi is only slightly better than 0-30 psi.—NBC