Shutting of Steam Valves

Jay_11

We have a 4 floor house. We recently replaced the aging one pipe steam boiler with a new Burnham IN-5 and the two steam radiators on the 4th floor which previously only occassionally got warm now heat up like clockwork. (Interesting since the IN-5 replaced a boiler with a much larger btu input--perhaps the new radiator vents throughout the house and the system flushing we insisted upon with the installation of the new boiler helped in that respect).

Here's the question. The 4th floor never needed to be that warm--it is a finished attic with a guest room which is not always occupied. Now it heats up warmer than any other room in the house. I am tempted to either replace the rad air vents in that room to smaller air vents or two shut off the steam supply valve to one of the two radiators. Would this lead to unbalancing of the steam in the rest of the house? Would this save me any money on gas? Or should I just leave it as is figuring the heat on the 4th floor will still give some warmth to the rest of the house. Our house is an old 1928 house with generally poor insulation. We did last year though have a contractor install blown cellulose insulation in the portion of the attic above the 4th floor.

Biged

air vent

Don't close the valve that will cause another set of problems, get a thermostatic valve for that radiator and set it to whatever temperature you like.

Jay_11

What problem does that cause?

Fred Harwood

What Problems

Valves on single-pipe rads don't always work perfectly, and can accumulate condensate in the rad over time. Better to put adjustable vents on both rads and let them vent slowly or not at all, as needed.

Jay_11

Thanks for the info

The installer installed maid o' mist air vents on all our steam radiators which I do not believe are adjustable. What adjustable air vents would you recommend and where can I find them?

Biged

air vent

For one thing when you close the valve or throttle it, the space for the steam and condensate to flow is restricted this will cause hammering when the steam mets the cooler condensate, then you will not have any peace of mind.

Steamhead

Adjustable Vents

Vent-Rite #1

Hoffman #1A

Dole #1A

All good vents, but the Vent-Rite can be regulated without tools, so this has become my favorite.

When fully opened, all these vents equal a Maid-o-Mist or Gorton #6. So if your M-o-M vents are #4, 5 or 6 (number usually stamped near air-escape hole) the above will do the trick.

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John Shea

If you want to cut off steam to one...

You could replace the air vent on one of the radiators with a 1/8 npt plug. Cheaper that a adjustable air vent.

Jay_11

Thanks Steamhead!