1912 System

Boiler Guy

Are there any old "deadmen" out there who might be able to shed some light on what type of one-pipe steam system may have been commonly installed in central Canada circa 1912? I am quite sure it was a vacum system as each rad has a 1/4 IP protruding from the floor on the vent end. All of these 1/4" pipes are connected to type of manifold in the joist spaces which then connect to larger piping running vertically to the main floor ceiling. At that point most piping has since been removed. Original wet returns were found under the basement slab which have also been abandoned. The original boiler was coal. This is a historical research project, so any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Could the ¼" piping be part of an abandoned pneumatic control system? Have seen such with hot water systems, but presume they were made for the air vents in one-pipe steam as well.

Boiler Guy

I don't think so

Mike, because there is too much corrosion visible within the piping. Also, even based on age this would be awfull large for pneumatic distribution. Thanks for the thoughts though.

Steamhead

BG, that's an \"air-line\" system

Those 1/4-inch lines were fed by special radiator vents and terminated at an ejector or pump in the boiler room. This pulled the air out of the system in a hurry. The Paul and Eddy systems (see chapter 15 of Lost Art) were the best-known ones of this type.

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gerry gill

yup. steamheads right.

hoffman company still makes the vents for those systems..you could put it back in service..hint hint..I would...dunham company also made those systems..I think all the big names did back in the day..but hoffman is the only remaining maker of the vents as far as I know...you can put the pipes end into a chimney, or a water venturi, or a vacuum pump, ohhh dont make me druel on myself..the possibilites to save money....if the air gets out faster the steam gets in faster....

Boiler Guy

Steamhead

That is kinda what I thought too (the Paul), after reading Lost Art. I was trying to get some confirmation that this system (Paul)was used in my area as opposed to an alternate manufacturer. Was the Hoffman system very similar in configuration? Since Hoffman was/is out of Chicago and Winnipeg was known as "Chicago of the North" this could be a distict posibility. Of course all of the possible "evidence" is long gone! Thanks for the info

Boiler Guy

Forgot

to ask: Is there a picture of the air vent you refer to anywhere?

Steamhead

It was still called the Paul system

Hoffman just makes replacement air vents for it. I don't think I have a pic of one of these vents, but I'll post it if I find one.

The Eddy system was similar, and there were a couple of others, but I think they all worked the same basic way.

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