Malfunctioning Autofeed / Boiler Maintenance

HenryHouse

I’m a bit of a newbie with Steam, I purchased a home this year that has one pipe steam. I’ve had a few plumbing companies out for minor things and 2/3 didn’t really deal in steam and the last one the guy knew basics and tested the boiler but nothing in depth to explain it. I believe my autofeed is malfunctioning, a few weeks ago was the first time I turned the boiler on and it seemed to have a few issues. I’ve been reading through TLAOSH and am about 2/3 of the way through and that’s helped with getting things working better. Old owners of my home took care of everything poorly so I’m sure it’s behind on maintenance. Boiler is a Weil McLain EG-75 around 8 years old

Things I’ve done so far:

Repitched radiators correctly

2 main air vents, soaked in vinegar to clean them

Replaced a number of non working air valves with correctly sized gorton ones

Replaced pressuretrol, old one died over summer

Adjusted pressuretrol to just under 2psi

Replaced gas feed line, old one was just about rusted in half

Replaced gas feed valve on boiler, old one had a crack in housing

Replaced pressure relief valve

Cleaned tubes out

Replaced sight glass, old one leaked

Checked to make sure low water cut off is functioning

Issues I’ve noticed

Water is extremely brown, I’ve tried draining it down and no matter what it never runs clear

Skim tap valve doesn’t drain even if water level is high enough

Autofeed seems to be feeding when water level is sufficient. Every few days the radiators will go from quiet to banging some and the water level will go from about halfway up sight glass to about 10 gal too high

Boiler stopped working few days ago and I turned it off. It seemed like it wasn’t feeding gas. I came home today and noticed a very small puddle around a valve on a radiator. Went down to check boiler and drained a ton of water from it. This one could be user error, does the Autofeed need the supply valves manually turned off if boiler is off? I has assumed it stayed closed off if it wasn’t powered. After draining I decided to try flipping to boiler on as a test since the plumber I called isn’t available until Wednesday, it did end up Kicking on and is working fine now.

Water level was fine when it stopped working a few days ago. Should I cancel the appointment I had if everything stays functional through tomorrow evening or have them take a look anyways since I called already.

Does everything appear to be installed correctly since I haven’t been able to get a company out that knows a great deal about steam systems?
Is there anything Ive overlooked so far or should plan on addressing?
I do plan on adding a few radiators back into the house where ones have been previously removed or downsized. I’ve already checked EDR and have the boiler capacity and tools to do so.

Jamie Hall

No. the autofeeder should shut off positively when it's not being asked to feed by the boiler. However… there are two possibilities: the autofeeder valve itself may not be closing — or the low water cutoff may not be functioning correctly. The first possibility is a nuisance. The second is dangerous…

In the last picture, I see a handy ball valve on the pipe between the autofeeder and the boiler return. Set the water level in the boiler correctly, and then close that valve.

Now you really need to check that low water cutoff to make sure it does, in fact, turn the boiler off on low water. What needs to happen is shut off the boiler and then drain enough water out of it so that the indicator light on the LWCO comes on (not the green light, the other one) indicating that it senses low water. Turn the boiler back on — it should NOT run. If it runs, drain a little more water out. If it keeps running, the LWCO needs attention. It may just need cleaning.

But this is a dangerous situation — there is no safety against dry firing the boiler, and that can ruin your whole day.

But. Let's assume that the LWCO is working. Go back to that valve you closed above, open it and use the manual bypass valve to the left of the autofeeder to bring the water up to half way on the sight glass. Now close both the bypass and that valve below. Now water can't get in, even if the autofeeder is leaking by — but you will need to check the boiler fairly regularly — at least daily if not twice a day — to make sure the water level is correct.

If the water level stays correct now, or falls (refill as needed — you have a leak somewhere) you know that either the LWCO or the autofeeder is your overfill problem.

No harm to getting the person you have coming coming — see what he or she thinks…

HenryHouse

I did double check the LWCO and that is properly functioning, I filled it to halfway up the sight glass, marked it with a sharpie and closed the bypass as well as the valve at the bottom. That should confirm if the issue is a leak or the Autofeed. Will update tomorrow if there is a notable change in water level

HenryHouse

It appears my issue with excess water is the Autofeed. I’m roughly 24hrs since I shut off all supply to it and my water level is more or less the same as it was