need advice on scary steam boiler - no water in sight glass, running high pressure

the ill postino

A friend just bought a house in pretty rough shape from decades of neglect by owners. She was lucky to get a "good deal" in a tough market but I know she is low on funds after the big purchase. I went to see the place recently and the boiler freaked me out. Rusty. No water at all in the sight glass, just rust and gunk. Running at 5psi. Most of the rads are hissing steam out of old and weird vents. (This is a one pipe steam system).

Clearly she needs a new boiler asap, but I know this is financially out of the question for at least 6 months. I can replace all her vents for her and adjust pitch on the rads. But is there anything I can do about the pressure? And what's the deal with the sight glass? There must be water getting replenished in the system or it would have fried long before now.

If she calls in an expert is there any chance there's a short-term "fix" to make the system safer to buy some time before needing to drop 10 grand on a new boiler installation?

ethicalpaul

Probably the gauge glass is clogged at the bottom and not displaying the true water level. Or the valve is shut because the glass was leaking, it looks incredibly bad.

But because of that you don't know the water level and you should be scared.

Forget leveling the radiators, that doesn't do anything anyway. If it were my house I would shut it down until I could get it serviced by a professional.

I like homeowners to know how their systems work and even to be able to do some simple maintenance on them, but this boiler is too scary to mess with.

That radiator has an air relief vent of a hot water system on it I think. Inappropriate for steam.

delcrossv

You're looking at replacing the whole gauge glass assembly, pressuretrol and pigtail at a minimum. Probably the PRV too.

And installing steam vents, not water bleeders as @ethicalpaul noted.

It'd need a cleaning and combustion test as well. Unless you're really well versed in boiler maintenance, leave it to a pro.

Can the boiler be saved, maybe. But I'd start saving for a new one.

Where are you at? One of the pros here may be nearby.

Ironman

Water level unknown; boiler pressure unknown; a hot water coin vent on a steam system.

I’d shut it off and get a STEAM pro to look at it immediately. She’s literally got a potential bomb on her hands.

Where is this located? We may be able to recommend a reliable stem tech.

Grallert

Shut it down and let it cool for a few hours. Don't believe the gauge or the glass. You might be able to open a boiler drain (after it's cold) and get an idea of its water content.

the ill postino

Thank you, all — there are a couple of recommended pros from this site nearby so I'll let her know she needs to get on this immediately.

AdmiralYoda

As others have said….major safety issues here. Ninety-nine times out a hundred your typical local HVAC tech, who is versed in Hot Water type of boilers is going to tell you that this boiler is shot. You need a steam pro, and this forum will help you find one.

Most important: Fix the safety issues. Stating the obvious but it is extremely important to know what the water level is and to accurately know what the pressure is operating at. Verify that the pressuretrol and LWCO are operational, otherwise you potentially have a steam powered explosive device.

This boiler should be shut off until basic maintenance is performed and the safety devices are proven operational.

If you are capable I'd replace the sight glass assembly, its shot. Replace the pigtail that goes to the pressuretrol and replace the safety release valve. Brush all the lines out to remove any gunk. If this is a float-type LWCO I'll bet its plugged too and will need cleaning.

Replace that old gauge with another 0-30psi (required by code). Those gauges are inaccurate at low pressures even when new, never mind if they were made shortly after WWII.

Find a place to install a low pressure gauge, I'd say a 0-5psi for now using a Tee after the pigtail and before the pressuretrol. Adjust the pressuretrol as low as it will go and replace the air bleed vents with proper steam vents on the radiators. Buy some Maid O' Mist vents from supplyhouse. Way better than the cheap box store vents and very affordable.

Then see how it operates. If it is better, great. At least you will know how it is operating. Get a steam pro in there ASAP anyway for a proper cleaning, maintenance and combustion analysis.

If it still a mystery after your maintenance…I'd shut it down immediately and find alternative means for heat until a steam pro can try and bring it back from the dead.

mattmia2

I think those vents are sold as steam or hot water but they really are hot water only. They have a little celluose element that is supposed to close them when they get wet.

mattmia2

It looks rough but if it isn't leaking someone that knows what they are doing can probably clean it and get it working properly.

Long Beach Ed

What mattmia2 says.

Most of the systems we see look like this. The system needs to be evaluated and serviced. Anyone buying a home should employ a plumber to evaluate and service their heating system. Continued operation of a system that's not properly serviced can be hazardous.

Any new homeowner without knowledge of heating systems simply has to find someone competent to evaluate and service what they purchased. Contrary to many of these comments, there is no indication here of costly problems.

A heating system with neglected maintenance cannot be evaluated without seeing the system.