Steam + tain breezer (PAH)

Dave Yates (PAH)

Beautiful victorian era row home dating back to the beginning of indoor comfort (steam wise).

Another company installed a steam boiler using the doorway sizing method and they piped both outlets straight up and connected them to the mains of this one-pipe gingerbread house. After dealing for a season with what sounded like an army of blacksmiths and air vents that squirted like a young lad minus his diapers, they finally threw in the towel and "fired" the installing firm.

Upon laying eyes on the home, I took in the hand-made glass - old wooden sashes and approximate square footage as I walked to the front door. A quick glance revealed the connected rad styles and upon entering the basement, my heart sank. Doesn't anyone bother to open instruction books??????

So, I worked with the manufacturer's engineers to arrive at the max de-rating we could perform & even at that, this beast was still way to big. Short cycling was assured and the owners declined going the new boiler for the "new" oversized boiler highway. So, we re-piped it as needed to eliminate the noises and tinkling air vents, added a vaporstat & replaced the wet returns that dated back to Lincoln's time.

Well, the system's fine, but the owner is going bonkers over the short cycling. He's become obsessed with watching the short runs. We're once again kicking around the idea of a new much smaller boiler.

All of which leads me to wonder - why not a buffer tank for steam systems? Kind of a what if notion & I wanted to hear your thoughts on this subject. I've got more negatives than positives on my mental balance sheet & doubt it would be worth the cost to install, but trying to contemplate its design for eliminating short cycling led me here to ask for your input.

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Unknown

In the Weil Mclain instruction manual

they show the piping layout for what is called a reservoir tank . Mainly used on a replacement for a large volume steam boiler , when condensate is slow to return in the new system . Would the extra " reservoir " of water make the run time on a steamer longer ? My scattered brain thinks no , but I thought I'd throw out the info anyway . Heres the website for the manual , the piping is on page 17 . Good luck Dave .

http://www.weil-mclain.com/FTP/GOLD_Oil_Manuals/Sgoboilermanual.pdf

[Deleted User]

what about

some sort of condensing coil? something with water that recirculates thru a coil and keeps the steam condensing, kind of like a resevoir tank that has a coil to keep condensing steam? something that has a main vent on it to entice the steam into it but the steam can never reach the vent without condensing on the cold water being pumped thru its jacket? just a thought..

Steamhead

Maybe a large, well-insulated tank

with a vacuum vent on it? Certainly worth a try, but it would probably have to be ASME-certified for code. This might put it in the new-boiler price range.

Have you suggested they donate their oversized boiler to a non-profit or charity organization, and get a tax deduction?

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