Looking for professional steam system maintenance

Keeganch

Hi All,

I recently bought a 100-year-old house with a steam heating system. Now that it’s gotten cold, we realize that many of the radiators do not heat and heat spreads very unevenly throughout the house for the radiators that do work. We live in Wilton, Connecticut, and are looking for a steam specialist to service and potentially upgrade our system. I’d say we have about 20-25 radiators and maybe a third of them are currently working.

Recommendations are welcome - thank you!

Charlie

Steamhead

Try @Charlie from wmass , I understand he comes down to CT. Go here:

https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/charles-garrity-plumbing-and-heating/

CoachBoilermaker

Learn about replacing stuck radiator vents. They might be an easy fix for the cold rads

EBEBRATT-Ed

Unfortunately CT does not list many (if any) contractors on this site. @Charlie from wmass is excellent if you can get him he is usually very busy. he works out of Spfld. Ma so is some distance away. Probably an hour and 3/4 out.

GOOD steam contractors are hard to find.

Charlie from wmass

I familar with the area. I am 2 1/2 hours away due to not being able to travel with a heavy work truck on the parkways and several of the neighborhoods have their roads closed to through traffic by trucks.

BobC

Is this single pipe steam with one pipe going into the radiator and an air vent on the other side? if it is are all the air vents working?

Is it a 2 pipe system with a pipe connected to each end of the radiator? If so are the valves on each end open. Some early 2 output systems also had steam vents , if so are they working. If there are no radiator vents there might be orifices that limit how much steam each radiator can have or their may be steam traps on the outlet side of the radiator - what name is on these traps?

Are there main vents on the pipes in the cellar or any steam traps? If there are vents are they working? They can fail on if the failk shy steam will not travel well.

Make a list of all the radiators listing height. number of columns per section and number of sections. Also list vent type or trap type for each radiator. This info is good to have and will help anyone working on the system. There is no way to see internal orifice plates so ignore that for now

Bob

EBEBRATT-Ed

@Keeganch

I think what @BobC posted is a good idea. I would draw a piping map of your system if you can. Draw the boiler and the supply and return (if you have them) to each radiator if you can find them. Also calculate the EDR of each radiator. This will help whomever services your system

tim smith

Post a few photos of boiler system, especially maybe standing back from boiler 10ft or so to get the surounding piping and boiler in a photo. Do from front and sides with showing back in 1 of the side views. Then a few of different radiators layouts.