Dole Radiator Bleeder Valve?

nz

Hello,

I'm getting acclimated to the hot water heating system in my new house. While I have experience with steam, hot water is fairly new to me.

I have been going around and bleeding the baseboards and radiators that I can...many have coin valves. However I have found this Dole valve in many places, and I have no idea how to bleed it. The cap sometimes comes off on some of them, or it has been removed entirely. Pressing it, turning it doesn't do anything. I'm thinking it might need to be replaced, but I thought I would ask the group first before trying anything.

Does anyone know how to bleed using this type of valve or should I just replace them?

Also, I have found that you can purchase a automatic air vent, but they seem much larger. Is there such a thing for baseboards?

EBEBRATT-Ed

Yes you can use ato air vents. Taco is pretty good. Only use auto air vents if you have a bladder type expansion tank. Do not use them with a steel compression tank

mattmia2

Looks like a fiber disc type of automatic bleeder valve. I think if the cap is a little loose the disc is supposed to swell when it gets wet and seal off the valve but if there is only air there it opens up and lets the air out.

nz

Yeah that's what I was wondering...if they are automatic, they are certainly old. Some of the radiators are stone cold, so they clearly aren't working. 

Also I have a large, what I think is steel expansion/compression tank embedded in the ceiling above the boiler. So I guess that means I can't use an automatic bleeder valve? 

mattmia2

that is correct. If it is still hooked up you can't use automatic vents.

I think that is an old version of this type of vent:
https://www.supplyhouse.com/Watts-0590713-1-4-HAV-Auto-Air-Vent

MaMa

My house (1956) also has these. They are not "automatic bleeder valves." They are simple, plain old manual bleeder valves, counterclockwise to vent, clockwise to tighten (as indicated by your second shot). In my house some took a little force with a wrench to loosen, I don't think they'd been touched for a long time, but once they unfroze, mine worked fine for me; the two baseboards which were not warming as much on my top floor hissed air for a few seconds, then water came out.

I hope you resolved your issue, but I just wanted to answer the Q for anyone else who might stumble on this in the future (this was the only reference I could find to these anywhere).

nz

Thanks, that helps to know. I have since replaced half a dozen of these with coin valves, but there are another 30 or so in the house, and it is disruptive and messy to replace them...so this will help in case I need to bleed some others.

Much appreciated! 

MaMa

Ah, you are still here! I had idly thought maybe the reason yours might not function was because they were installed very differently than mine, at the end of a length of copper tubing, and somehow that tube was plugged with gunk, it wasn't the valve itself that failed. But if you had success simply replacing only the valve then that might not have been the issue. Mine are installed in a manner that I perceive is more common for all valves, based upon internet reading, attaching directly to the main water pipe

nz

Nice. I have a bunch like that too. The one pictured above was inside a wall unit in a bathroom, the rest of mine are on baseboards installed on a tee.