Sure cure for leaky Honeywell/ sparco air purgers

hr

is a fix if you can't find a new o ring. They are a funky diameter and size, not easy to find. OEM, no doubt.

Remove the cap and remove the plastic float assembly and disc. Then solder the brass cap to the body. Then a 1/8" NPT tap fits nicely, thread the old vent opening. The mesh "bubble grabber" is serviceable from the bottom, still.

Now you can use the air vent of your choice. Or add a 1/8" ball valve, then vent, for future service. Make sure the vent does not have a tang that hits the ball in the mini ball valve. Some brands do! This is a Maid o Mist brand pictured.

Jomar makes a nice 1/8"M X Fm ball valve.

I think Honeywell used a bunch of faulty, discarded propresst o rings. JUST KIDDING press fitting fans. Most o-rings, in hydronic applications, last forever :)

hot rod

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Kal Row

the ultimate cure to a leaky sparcovent is a spirovent

Dave Palmer_3

great idea

we were told employees used wrong size rings.Want to see a grown man cry, when you go back to check a system and find it scaled up from that dripping little ring.Dave

B. Tice

Uhh, if that is the case........

they have been using the wrong o-ring since about 1994! Every one I used or see in the field leak. I rue the day I went on a Sparco Powerrvent/ Zone valve policy. Luckily, it didn't last too long. I still cringe when I go out to one of the jobs where I used this stuff.

mph

Sparco Powervent

I've gotten at least 50 retrofit kits from Sparco to fix the O ring problem. (If you want a no-charge kit or 12, call Joe Beagen at Honeywell/Sparco at 401/738-4290). Whenever I fix one I write the date on the unit. Now I'm finding myself having to find room to write a second date on some of them. Apparently the "fix" doesn't fix very well.

Rather than swap the units for Spirovents (as I have started doing lately), I'll try HR's fix. Looks like it should work.

Jeff

Kal Row

com'on now, the real cure for spacrovent is a spirovent

Steve_35

Spirovent

Ever had a Spirovent "pee" all over the place? We've changed a couple out over the years. It really gripes me to pitch these things to the custoemr and then have them leak like that.

hr

I've seen Spiro's

leak at their O-ring assembly point also. And yes they will get crud stuck in the vent assembly and pee all over That air vent is not a very acessible valve, in the Spiros. You need a 1/2" threaded cap to stop them unit it can be cleaned or replaced

The beauty of my fix is those brass bucket vents are fairly inexpensive, and they have a cap for a HO to seal them off until a replacement is provided.

Again, this is where my reservations about the proPress fitting comes from. Certainly an o-ring is an excellent seal. Heck, hydraulics use them sucessfully at thousands of PSI. My theory is the fluid in hydronic systems, coupled with elevated temperatures, attack the o-ring??

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Jon_2

Honeywell/Sparco Vent

If you take a look at the air vent port, you will find that everyone that has failed has hairline cracks where the stop on the float assembly hits it. This is what allows them to leak like a sieve. The plastic can not withstand the stop impacting on the vent port and develops hairline cracks. A real good example of a good idea but damn poor engineering. Jon

Alan_6

Our company just started using Sparco air purgers. Do the new ones have a better o-ring? I had one that leaked, I used the inside parts from american 700-30 autovent to repair it. our distributor said that honeywell, did not have a rebuild kit. It is good to find out they do.

harvey

I'll take the cast iron scoop any day with the replacable 1/8" auto vent.

mph

Sparco rebuild kit

The rebuild kit comes with all the parts contained in the top end of the Power vent. It even has two different diameter O rings, neither of which seem to do the job.

I'm going to try HR's fix.

Jeff

B. Tice

Vents

I really think the B&G EAS is the way to go. Looks indestructable. They are big, though. I've used 7 or 8 over the last 4 years and no problems yet.

hr

It's the non ferrous

component that, also, makes Sparco or Spiro attractive.

With pex tube and the potential of O2 ingress, yes even with barrier tube, the concept of all non ferrous components makes sense. More and more contractors are going all non ferrous, including exp tanks.

I agree cast iron type scoops work, and have for years. But you do need some distance in the piping to make them work "best"

Spiro or Sparco types seem to work great in any application regardless of close piping.

Watts does have a new bronze scoop, fashioned like the good old cast scoop on the market. Supposed to be able to be used in either position. A bit less money than micro bubble type of air eliminators.

I don't mind paying the price for micro bubblers. I just hate the leak call backs. It shouldn't happen at all in something as simple as a air eliminator, I feel

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Kal Row

true - thats why i tee in the feed/expansion system

to the bottom of it, but have a drain ball valve dirctly under the tee, so that i can purge it, the roll of screening inside does tend to catch a lot of dirt

Troy_3

B&G EAS

I've had the same problem with the 3/4" vent on the top of the EAS. The darn things seem to all leak in a year or two. The advantage is - you can thread a new one on.

ScottMP

My Opinion

Has always been that Spirovent is a great product, but in most cases, if you pumping away and install an air scoop, you don't need it.

Just my Thoughts

Scott

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