Old Steamer & Water Heater

EzzyT

I went to to take a look at this single pipe system and they still have the original boiler connected to the system.
The original coil fired water heater and storage tank which aren’t in use just in there original placements.
Plus they had some nice Bundy Style Rads.

mattmia2

Are those brooms what they've been using to sweep up the asbestos as it falls off on the floor?

EzzyT

@mattmia2 I have no idea.

pecmsg

Holy Asbestos abatement 

JUGHNE

Which Star Wars robot....C3PO or R2D2 ???? I always get their names confused.

Steamhead

JUGHNE said:

Which Star Wars robot....C3PO or R2D2 ???? I always get their names confused.

R2D2, minus its arms.

@EzzyT , what's running that system now?

EzzyT

@pecmsg yeah plus 95% of the piping is also covered in asbestos. 

EzzyT

@Steamhead
The current boiler is about 30% oversized along with with virtually no main venting.
The original mechanical room where the original boiler sits is in a different location from where the current boiler is. The rooms are about 50’ away from each other.
The original part of the house was built in1836 with 2 additions at later dates that where no later then the 1920s. Plus the structure was originally about 2 blocks away where it currently is. From what I was told it was moved before the additions where done.

EBEBRATT-Ed

The header and piping is unconventional but it looks ? right. Guess if the risers are 2' above the water glass it will work

Larry Weingarten

Hi, Looks like the water heater still has its relief valve. Nice find!

Yours, Larry

EzzyT

@EBEBRATT-Ed the steam main off of the header are 3” & 4”. The 4” splits off into 2 separate 3” mains about 10’ away from the boiler. The 3” main off of the heater  runs about 50’ with no radiator take off and into the original mechanical. Where it ties back into one of the other 3” steam mains. 

EzzyT

@Larry Weingarten yeah it’s a great find. If I end up getting this job I definitely want to get it cleaned and have it as a fixture in the house. 

Steamhead

@EzzyT , the Bundy rads date back to the latter half of the 19th century. If you know when the house was moved and when the additions were built, you should be able to determine the phase of the house's life when they were installed.

What other types of rads are in there?

EzzyT

@Steamhead yeah I tried to find out as much as I could when I was there, hopefully I’ll get the chance to do the boiler replacement along with the other work that’s needed and I’ll do my best to get more details on the history. Along with more pictures. There assortment of rads that date from as early as the Bundy type and to present day Ocs rads.
Most of them are from the turn of 20th century.

BobC

I like the chairs by the old water tank, looks like they held a wake for it. Maybe the used the asbestos sweepings to bless that old and faithful tank.

Bob

KC_Jones

So I'm curious on this one. If they moved the "new" boiler that far away, what did they do with the slope of the mains? If we assume a parallel flow on the original system, don't the mains then become counterflow with the position of the replacement boiler? Or did they re slope everything? That is a very curious situation.

Very cool stuff indeed.

ChrisJ

It's my understanding that coal burning stoves and boilers always have a primary air "below the grate" and a secondary air "above the grate" opening.

Where's the primary air intake on the steamer?

bburd

@ChrisJ The primary air intake for coal would have been through the ash pit door, which was removed when that boiler was converted to liquid or gas fuel. You can see where the opening is mostly filled with furnace cement.

vtfarmer

That setup (the old asbestos covered one) is SO COOL!! That's really neat to see there intact like that. If I owned that house I would be pressure testing that boiler to see if it were serviceable and if not, I would be looking at the feasibility of addressing the leak(s) with something like locknstich (works great on engine block water jackets) or specialty welding rods plus preheating the iron (after having the asbestos removed)...what good is having money if you don't spend it on fun things?

Then the real question would be how to fire it. Set it up with an automatic stoker? Go full @MikeAmann and retrofit an older low speed burner with a flame retention air tube and flame retention head? That would probably end up requiring someone like @EdTheHeaterMan or @STEVEusaPA to fiddle with it for a week or more to get it set up right. It's only money...

Thanks for sharing the photos!