spirovent

Dave Palmer

have a 5 year old spirovent thats dripping out of the vent,can they be cleaned or changed out? Thanks

Troy_3

spirovent

sure- remove the top clean the float and inside and replace the top.

bluenose_6

cage

Just make sure you don't take the cage/air accumulator, it's a dog when it falls apart.

hr

Don't even think about

going passed this point. I still haven't figured out how they load the top end of these! I destroyed the little needle ans seat arangement at the top trying to unscrew the small vent outlet.

This one leaked at the belly O-ring. I suspect bad glycol did the deed. I have seen low ph glycol dissolve the "cage" inside and start washing the wires into the pump impeller. Ugly deal! This one was on it's way there. Glycol read 5.5 ph.

I sugest replacement before you get into it too deep. If you don't want to remove the entire device, replace the top only, as the others suggested. Check the condition of your fluid just for grins and lube the o-ring when you reassemble.

hot rod

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Cosmo

I must confess

I also tried taking apart the cage and had the same problem, what a mess...It reminded me of when I was 8 and I took apart my parent's alarm clock

Dave Palmer

thats...

a beauty,changed it out this morning.Good thing about it is I piped the boiler a couple of years back so I had ball-valves to close the system and it bled itself. Thanks Dave

Dan Whitezell

Spirovent

Well it looks like the press has a slight negative tone this time. Please allow me to respond for just a moment. First off, there is a warning on the box that one should never turn the vent port itself and that is because the spring, seat and linkage assembly are all connected. The "nose" is manufactured with LockTite but if someone wants to turn it, they sure can. If the vent port drips it is usually because the floats have hung up on system contaminants that have creeped up the inside of the vent head and dried out during the off season. (These issues usually come up in the fall.) The float may have stuck this stuff and if the float had been hanging down a bit, the unit will drip. It is easy to remove the vent head and clean it out with a mild solution, check all moving parts and reinstall.

The "cage" or coalescing element inside is solid copper and will deteriorate only when the system fluid becomes agressive. If the fluid has affected the Spirotube it may be a good idea to check other system components as well. Checking the pH of the fluid is a good idea and most additive manufacturers recommend just that. Over time it is possible for the fluid to become acidic.

The unit pictured is probably about 10 years old and the Spirotube looks to be in pretty good shape which would confirm the pH given. The stains on the outside of the body were more than likely caused by a weakening of the early EPDM O Rings which did not hold up well under certain water conditions. We replaced these no charge to anyone who called and very quickly changed the material to Viton which it has been for several years now.

Thanks for indicating your concerns and feel free to e-mail us here at info@spirotherm.com with any further questions.

Dan Whitezell
VP Marketing
Spirotherm, Inc.

hr

Thanks for weighing in, Dan ,

It is always great to recieve the scoop from the manufacture. I think the intent of the post was for installers to gain knowledge on how the equipment works, and what to do when they leak, and get input from others in the field. My point was the water or fluid quality is a big factor in any "wet side" components.

I don't feel the press was negative at all, on the contrary the "mileage" you as a manufacture get by having your product shown, pictured, and discussed in front of thousands of your customers is a great deal for you. Can't beat the price for that exposure can you? I'll bet sales go up, not down when your products are mentioned here and concerns addressed.

I think manufacturers do the industry a great service when they show up here to address questions and concerns, thanks for that, keep up the good work.

hot rod

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Dave Palmer

I don't

think ANYTHING negative was said about the product,I think they are great.We install them on every hot water boiler(high and low end jobs) just because they work so well and reduce call backs for noise and no heat.I've used another brand before with many leakers.Thanks for your concern and its nice to see manufacturers reading the WALL. Thanks Dave Palmer