Convert Water to Steam?

Bryan_5

I see the question come up all the time about converting steam to water. I know when I was going through my own steam problems they suggested to convert to water. Thank god I found the Wall and didnt listen to them.
I have no reason other than curiosity but have any of you ever converted water to steam? Is it something feasible? To me I think steam is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I will be will be curious as to the response this may generate.
Thanks,
Bryan

bigugh_4

could not help this

Convert Water to Steam, add 970 btu/ pound of water when it is at 212*F and walla steam!
Steam came first, it was easy till folks got lazy. Water is thought to be easier now, and that is what happened. I think that retro fitting hot water to steam would blow minds today!

steve_6

conversions

Check out this link in hot tech topics if you haven't already. http://www.heatinghelp.com/newsletter.cfm?Id=22

Steamhead

I've actually worked on such a system

an old gravity hot-water system converted to Vapor. House was built in 1911, conversion probably happened in 1920s. Owner has the original house plans showing the gravity system. I had to vent the heck out of those big old pipes!

To Learn More About This Contractor, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Contractor"

Dennis - Reliable Services

I have done this conversion many times,

in a perfect world all mechanics would do the right thing and all customers would say do whatever it takes and costs to restore my system!


Allas, that would be heaven.

I have come upon many systems that are so far gone and screwed up that short of burning the house down and starting over. The system is done and conversion is the only answer.


When a two pipe system is present, and all the rads are hot water type, the change out is not a big deal.

For one very cheap landlord, I hooked up to the existing system piping in the boiler room after removing the Hartford loop, air vent, the trap elements and seats. The system worked perfectly. This was the only alterative, The traps were 90 years old all had failed in one position or another, the returns were under sized soft copper tubing, running across the floor. Most of the main piping had been repaired with copper, the insulation was long gone.

I removed an oil fired Weil Maclain model 588 firing 3.75 gph and installed an oil fired Weil Maclain firing 1.5 gph.


I made a lot of money that day as I was bidding against a large oil company that was going to install a new 588.
That landlord thinks that we are geniuses, he's right in this case.

Dennis - Reliable Services

This a great example of our poor public education system,

> in a perfect world all mechanics would do the

> right thing and all customers would say do

> whatever it takes and costs to restore my

> system! _br_ Allas, that would be heaven.

> _BR_ I have come upon many systems that are so

> far gone and screwed up that short of burning the

> house down and starting over. The system is done

> and conversion is the only answer. _BR_ When a

> two pipe system is present, and all the rads are

> hot water type, the change out is not a big

> deal._BR_ For one very cheap landlord, I hooked

> up to the existing system piping in the boiler

> room after removing the Hartford loop, air vent,

> the trap elements and seats. The system worked

> perfectly. This was the only alterative, The

> traps were 90 years old all had failed in one

> position or another, the returns were under sized

> soft copper tubing, running across the floor.

> Most of the main piping had been repaired with

> copper, the insulation was long gone. _br_ I

> removed an oil fired Weil Maclain model 588

> firing 3.75 gph and installed an oil fired Weil

> Maclain firing 1.5 gph. _BR_ I made a lot of

> money that day as I was bidding against a large

> oil company that was going to install a new

> 588. That landlord thinks that we are geniuses,

> he's right in this case.

Dennis - Reliable Services

This a great example of our poor public education system,

once again I did not comprehend what you wrote.

I did however learn enough that you would be a complete idiot to convert the best heating system (hot water)to steam. I could see installing a new system from scratch if you lived in Siberia or the North Pole of some other high heatloss area.

I have a picture somewhere of a Polish homeowner standing next to 2 cast iron radiators stacked on top of each other, each looks to be about 5 feet long and 3 feet high. I think it may have been in National Geographics.

Boilerpro_3

Dennis, I think you got the wires crossed.....

This was about converting a water system to steam.... not steam to water. I've done a few conversions myself when it made sense, such as steam convector systems or where the radiation is oversized by 3 times. Saves alot of fuel by getting nice long burn cycles on a smaller hot water boiler.

Boilerpro

Bryan_5

Dennis,
What exactly do you mean about my education? I asked a simple question about doing something out of the norm, does that make me an uneducated idiot? To make my question clearer for you. Have you ever converted water to a steam system? Now if you meant this is a great example of our public school system by the fact that there are a lot of hacks who convert steam to water because they just dont know any better then I agree with you.
Bryan

Mad Dog

Easy Dennis.......I am not an idiot and neither is Bryan........

He asked an honest question. Steam only in high heatloss areas??? Can you explain that for us? A properly insulated structure cannot tell the difference whether it has an efficient steam system or an equally efficient hot water system. When properly designed and installed, steam will run neck and neck with a comparable hot water system on radiators. Maybe you are new here, but we really try to refrain from abusive epithets. Try to be nice. My installed-from-scratch vapor system runs quite well, with reasonable fuel bills. Mad Dog

Dennis - Reliable Services

The comment about education was directed toward me

as I did not comprehend that the question was to convert a hot water system to steam. I thought that you were asking about converting steam to hot water.