radiator problem

george sorrentino

If anyone has any suggestions for the following problem, please share your recommendations.

I have a single pipe steam radiator system in my weekend home.
The house is probably 1500 - 1800 sq. feet. All the radiators
fill and get hot, except for one which is probably the biggest radiator in the house
and it happens to be in a 9x11 sun porch which was added on in the fifties with a lot of windows and non-insulated walls.
This house is only used on the weekends and I leave the thermostat at 62 during the week. Only about three or four sections of this radiator get hot.When I turn the thermostat up to 68-70, the top part of the radiator will get hot, but it won't last for more than 30-45 minutes.. This is a different style radiator from the others in the house because it replaced one that leaked. It has large thick sections, as opposed to the other ones that have thinner sections. Interstingly enough, if I turn off the radiator nearest the thermostat, this big radiator will get hot all the way to the end but only
part of the bottom portion heats up. When the radiator gets hot, the room gets nice and warm, despite the lack of insulation, but the room where I shut off the radiator becomes chilly.
Also, there is a piece of wood under the feet of this radiator on the end where the steam valve is located. I guess this was done for pitch.

Finally, to give you a sense of the layout of the house, the first floor is open: the kitchen and dining room are side by side and open into the living room. the sun poch is attached to livingroom and has a glass door which we usually keep open. The thermostat is on the north side of the house in the dining room. Three of the four radiators are all on the west side of the first floor under windows and it goes dining room living room sun porch. The fourth radiator is near the stairs. Upstairs has three bedrooms and one bath.
In total there are eight radiators in the house.

I lived in this house growing up and we didn't use the sun porch and kept the radiator off. I guess because it was cheaper when it came to heating the house.

I know heating this extra room may increase my oil bill, but I don't mind, since I'm only there on the weekends.

For now, my main objective is to figure out how to get this radiator to fill properly without losing heat from the other ones.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions you may have.

[Deleted User]

Sounds like

this radiator is further from the steam main than any others on the 1st floor. That leaves a lot of air to vent on each cycle. The probable cold run out doesn't help either.

Suggestions. Insulate the steam supply under the sun porch. Add another vent to the radiator. That will double the venting capacity. One vent should be installed about 1/2 way up the radiator. There should be another 1/8" tapping at the top end of the radiator on the same end as the existing vent. Install the 2nd vent there. Leave the piece of wood under the radiator.

An alternative would be to find a Gorton #6 vent. Vents approx. 3 times faster than a Hoffman 40. Warning. The Gorton has no float and will not shut off against a flooded system. Try to stay away from adjustable vents.

Good luck.

Steamhead

Gorton #6

does have a float, Ron. I believe it was the Gorton #1965 that didn't. All current Gortons have floats in them.

The Heat-Timer Vari-Valve also lacks a float.

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David Efflandt

pitched wrong way?

Are you saying there is a block of wood under the end where the pipe connects to it (by valve do you mean shutoff valve or air vent)? The radiator should pitch towards the pipe so water can drain out of it, otherwise steam flow can be blocked by condensate.

David Efflandt

pitched wrong way?

Are you saying there is a block of wood under the end where the pipe connects to it (by valve do you mean shutoff valve or air vent)? The radiator should pitch slightly towards the pipe so water can drain out of it, otherwise steam flow can be blocked by condensate.

george sorrentino

Thanks for the advice. The current vent has a removable cap
and and a tongue-like piece that is visiable when the vent is unscrewed. Someone told me to try taking it off entirely. That seemed to speed up the flow but if I didn't watch it steam came pouring out. To install the other vent, is this pretty routine and can a plumbling and heating company do it for not to much money?

[Deleted User]

Sounds like

someone has installed s hydronic air vent on your steam radiator. Any good hardware store, not home DESPOT, should carry Hoffman #40 Steam Radiator Vents. Or call your local heating pro. Should have the proper vent on the truck.

george sorrentino

Thanks for the info. I really appreciate it.

After reading both of your emails, I was a little confused. The first one suggested that I might be better off with the Gorton #6, but there is the risk that it won't shut off against a flooded sytem.
In the second email, were you saying that the Hoffman #40 is a hydronic air vent and that I should get one of those.
Finally, whatever the brand, should I stay away from the vents that have the little tongue-like piece that screws into the radiator.

Please advise.
Thanks.

Steamhead

I'll bet the existing vent

is an adjustable Hoffman #1A or Dole #1A. Since it blows steam it should be replaced. All the names we mentioned in this thread so far- Gorton, Dole, Hoffman- make good stuff. The key is to size them correctly.

The Hoffman #40 is one of the slower vents out there, but this is perfect for small radiators. The Dole and Hoffman #1A vents, when wide open, have about the same capacity as a Gorton #6 which is considerably more than the Hoffman #40.

Also check the ends of the steam mains. There should be vents here too- big enough to vent all the air in the main in about a minute.

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chuck_6

radiator problem

All suggestions seem to be good. We previously had Hoffman valves and replaced them with Gorton valves. It seems as though the sun porch is far away from the boiler, in which case you may even want to use a Gorton C instead of a Gorton 6 vent. Double check the other vents as well. Also, make sure the steam pipes are insulated and the radiator is pitched back (1/8-1/4 inch) to the pipe. You should also put insulation in the walls as well.