Dead Men Tales: Heating John Lennon’s Apartment

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Heating John Lennon’s Apartment

In this episode, Dan Holohan takes us to NYC’s Dakota Apartments, where John Lennon once lived. It has a circa-1880 steam heating system and was home to one of the world’s first co-generation systems.

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SteamCrazy

Another great story Dan. Thanks for sharing.

Bigb

Thanks for the interesting history lesson.

ReLoGal

Love the story and the telling. “Double hung zone valves” made me laugh out loud.

detroitslumlord

Another great steam heating story from the master !

TomP

Great story. A man's gift makes room for him, and brings him before great men. Thanks for taking us along.

ChrisHawkins

Great story again. One little tidbit about the Dakota that always intrigued me was under the pump room that I worked in was the large reservor for the steam driven water elevators that were long gone. My boss would tell stories about repacking the pumps with steam blowing all over the place. There are many very interesting old building in the city.

zeppyfrog

Steam comes from big pipes from street?

Any pipe bangin goin on here? Do corks need replacing alot? So is heat thermostatically controlled?

Anthony Menafro

I always love to hear your tales. Reading them myself doesn't have the same effect! Thanks for sharing!!

TimothyLynch

Great Story

kbob12

Great read! Thanks for sharing! Cheers!

TAG

Was this an old article -- or part of one of the books?

I know that building well .... they rented from Robert Ryan .. may have even been a sublet. She still lives there

DanHolohan

Thanks to all of you for listening! 

Trey

Great read!

DDDennis

Fantastic experience. Imagine…………

markdelzell

the pumps for the 3 story waterfall heats up the water, needs a small chiller to cool water to allow moisture in air to condensate into the water. recycling it back into the system.

jblum

The Dakota brings members when I used to tag along with my father in the early 1970s. My father, Donald J Blum PE, designed the boiler plant that was shoehorned into the Dakota's cellar to replace the cogen power plant that stood next door. I remember see the project drawings that were done meticulously in ink. They were a work of art suitable for framing.

My father's father was also a mechanical engineer in NYC and the namesake for my company, Joseph K Blum Co. He was a combustion engineer with a specialty in the design of devices to automatically pulverize coal and feed it into the boilers of the day. My father converted those heating plants to oil and I later got to convert them to natural gas. In another generation a lot of buildings are supposed to convert gas to electricity.

Jim Blum PE
New York.

DanHolohan

Thanks for sharing that, Jim!

Mad Dog_2

I've always admired The Dakota. Never had the pleasure of going in.   I've been to Strawberry 🍓 Fields on his anniversary  December 8th 1980, right?  I was 12. One of the great Plumbers that I learned under, John J Nolan (US Navy) did a renovation in John and Yoko's Apartment...mid 1970s,  I'd Say.  John would greet the workmen every morning stark naked, smoking 🚬 a cig and always offered them ☕ Coffee.  A real regular bloke, he was.  Mad Dog 

tim smith

Dan, do you have any photos of the radiators in the Dakota. Just interested in seeing what they put in.
Thanks
Tim

DanHolohan

I don't have digital photos, but they were Reed radiators. Just like this one.