Welcome! Here are the website rules, as well as some tips for using this forum.
Need to contact us? Visit https://heatinghelp.com/contact-us/.
Click here to Find a Contractor in your area.

Steam Vacuum

EBEBRATT-Ed
EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 16,488
in Strictly Steam
If you want to see the power of steam going into a vacuum check out this U tube video

Steam Vacuum/making

Comments

  • Pumpguy
    Pumpguy Member Posts: 698
    I can remember watching Mr. Wizard (Don Herbert) on TV way back in the day take a screw top box shaped gallon can, fill it with steam from a tea kettle, then screw the top on and run cold water over the can. The induced vacuum from the condensing steam just squashed that can.
    Dennis Pataki. Former Service Manager and Heating Pump Product Manager for Nash Engineering Company. Phone: 1-888 853 9963
    Website: www.nashjenningspumps.com

    The first step in solving any problem is TO IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM.
  • SteamingatMohawk
    SteamingatMohawk Member Posts: 1,025
    1700 cuft steam to 1 cuft water!!
  • Jamie Hall
    Jamie Hall Member Posts: 24,862
    Do I correctly remember a Mythbusters experiment where they did that to a regular railroad tank car?
    Br. Jamie, osb
    Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England
  • SteamCrazy
    SteamCrazy Member Posts: 100
    Hello, My Fellow Steam Family. Thank all for all great adviçe, I just wanted to comment on how great this Site is. Just aTruck, Car Tech I like this stuff! I Got my System  up and running with new piping. Still Insulating! SMH... About 80% in now, but it's crazy how what Mr. Hololhan talks about in his book Pocket ful of Steam Problem's are spot on. As I'm Testing my system in these Cold Month's go by and I'm experiencing first hand what happens when not fully insulated. As I went on insulating the noise and uneven heat gets better.  One of the other challenges I face was with Two cold Radiators. My 2nd, 3rd to last Rads on my longest run. I believe that I may had created a vacuum lock. I decided to take off a rad vent while feeling it for the heat thru the rad then put the vent in just as steam gets there. And bam I got heat. Both Rads have been hot every day since.  Maybe I'm "bitten by the bug" or just Steam Crazy, but I find this steam stuff interesting!  Thanks again.
  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,669
    There is no vacuum lock in a 1 pipe system (I am ignorant of two-pipe systems). Regardless of the pressure in an otherwise well-operating 1-pipe system, the steam will condense and the condensation will flow back to the main.

    Your radiator vent might be failed closed, or some other explanation.

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
    Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
    See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el

  • SteamCrazy
    SteamCrazy Member Posts: 100
    Hello, EthicalPaul. The reason I said I may have created vacuum is because I was trying to make sense of what happened. Reading Dan's book he talks about how Partially Insulated pipes cause Steam to condense quickly and creat pockets in the system. At this time I'm using Veri vents on rads although fairly new I plan to replace them with TRV's once I'm fully Insulated.  Thanks for your feedback.
  • SteamCrazy
    SteamCrazy Member Posts: 100
    ( Pockets of vacuum ) 

  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,669
    OK. Uninsulated pipes aren't great, but any pockets of vacuum would dissipate quickly and wouldn't prevent steam getting to your radiators. I had completely bare main pipes for years after the former owners had the asbestos remediated.

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
    Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
    See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el

  • SteamingatMohawk
    SteamingatMohawk Member Posts: 1,025
    If you can balance the radiator vents to make every room "happy", you don't need to spend more $$ on TRVs.

    If you are using Heat Timer Varivalves, they may have too much capacity for your system. In the event you didn't know, those valves are adjustable upwards from about a #5. They cannot be set less than that.

    Check this out, especially the tables.

    https://heatinghelp.com/systems-help-center/balancing-steam-systems-using-a-vent-capacity-chart/
    ethicalpaul
  • SteamCrazy
    SteamCrazy Member Posts: 100
    Good info. Thanks guys. 

Categories