steam pressure

cable 21

Ive been doing steam service as a plumber in northern N.J. For about 8 years along with other plumbing and rarely get stumped,but now im stumped.
I'm working on a three year old residensial peerless one pipe steam system that was working fine for the last 3 years until this very cold winter.
The customer asked me to see if i could try to get radiators to heat all the way like they did last three years.
I repiped near boiler piping like i've always done like in lost art part1 and never had a problem till now.
Teated boiler with steam clean and installed 0-5 pressure gauge on pigtail on header.Flused returns,installed new air vents and main vents.
Boiler seems to run for hours never buiding any pressure,very weak heat in rads half hot after half hour,skyhigh heat bills. didn't flood boiler but looked up draft box diverter no signs of steam while running or staining?
Any help or ideas? Thanks rick

gman

is it firing at maximum?

cable 21

yes firing full but all air vents are barely pushing any air.

Unknown

Rick

I am assuming by your description that this is a gas boiler. Have you checked the gas input to this boiler by either clocking the meter or checking supply and manifold pressures with a manometer? This sounds like a classic case of an underfired situation. Also fill up the boiler into the supply pipes and look for visible indications of weepage from the sections from possible internal corrosion. Hope this helps.

Glenn Stanton

Burnham Corp.

cable 21

thanks

ill clock the meter tommoro.

Tom O'Connell

Sounds like the boiler is to small i had a system like this. It wouls work in mild temps but lacked it the dead cold.. I also had a half pluged return trap (webster)
that did not help the problem.. word to from the wise do the edr on the radiators and see what the demand is.. TOM O'CONNELL