Old expansion tank

Steamhead

it didn't take long for the water to stop flowing out of that tank. You have to have a way of letting air back in. If there is a tank drainer fitting where the hose connection is, it should have a 1/8" plug on the side. Remove this plug to let air into the tank as the water drains.

If there's no other way, hook an air compressor to the tank drain and slowly pump air into it. Make sure you don't exceed 30 pounds on the boiler gauge or the relief will blow again.

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Saggs

Old expansion tank

I have a customer with an old (in the ceiling) expansion tank on his peerless boiler. All components are original with system. Keeps weeping off relief valve. I opened up the drain valve till water stopped flowing then turned the water feeder back on. The relief valve was just changed, I'm not familiar with this type of tank. I know there's a dip tube which should allow some water to stay in it. Anyone have a correct procedure for getting these un-waterlogged? Thanks

tommyoil

Ceiling tank

Is the boiler piped to the tank via a B&G ATF (airtrol Tank Fitting)mounted on the tank?

Mike T., Swampeast MO

In normal operation the tank should be about half filled with water.

This fitting, properly installed, will eliminate the problem at its source:

"B&G Airtrol"

Follow installation and filling instructions carefully. The simple air separators built in to some boilers work reasonably. If not present, you'll need a separate air separator. If an old gravity conversion system with high volume, the part of the instructions that say to disable circulator and heat to 220° (think that's the temp) don't [seem] to do much good at removing the initial air. Instead, have found it works well to run the circulator continually for a few days, then bleed the radiators. Then after a month or so of normal heating operation bleed again. After that (given no leaks in the system) air problems disappear.

Mark Eatherton1

The EASY way to relieve vacuum...

Provided that there is an isolation valve between the tank and the boiler, AND a seperate drain valve for the tank. Close the valve, put hose on drain valve. Open drain valve. When tank hits the GLUG stage, take a 1/4" ice maker tap saddle valve and tap into the line between the isolation valve and the tank. Open the valve and VIOLA, air in, water out. In less than thirty minutes, you're a HERO as opposed to the ZERO that stood there for three hours at $100+ dollars per hour watching the thing GLUG its way to empty.
:-)

ME

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Unknown

And the

> Provided that there is an isolation valve between

> the tank and the boiler, AND a seperate drain

> valve for the tank. Close the valve, put hose on

> drain valve. Open drain valve. When tank hits the

> GLUG stage, take a 1/4" ice maker tap saddle

> valve and tap into the line between the isolation

> valve and the tank. Open the valve and VIOLA, air

> in, water out. In less than thirty minutes,

> you're a HERO as opposed to the ZERO that stood

> there for three hours at $100+ dollars per hour

> watching the thing GLUG its way to

> empty. :-)

>

> ME

>

> _A

> HREF="http://www.heatinghelp.com/getListed.cfm?id=

> 88&Step=30"_To Learn More About This

> Professional, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in

> "Find A Professional"_/A_

Unknown

And the REAL EASY way

Install a diaphragm expansion tank right where the compression tank drain is . I run across this " setup " every once in a while .

Joe Mattiello

No air vent required

Hopefully no one installed air vents in the system. Plain steel conventional expansion tanks are used in an air control type system, as opposed to a diaphragm type tank used in an air separation type system. A common problem is when someone experiences air problems in the system they install air vent which are problematic with air control systems. For your reference I have attached some good reading material.
Taco, Inc.
Joe Mattiello
Technical Service Technician
joemat@taco-hvac.com
401-942-8000 X 484
www.taco-hvac.com

Saggs

Excellent suggestions from each of you. Many thanks for the reply to my problem. Yes the tank does have an air separator B$G I think mounted to the bottom of the tank itself. I think I'm going to try the ice maker tap idea or look for a bleed screw. Would replacing the drain valve with a diaphram tank work other than looking a little funky?

ken_27

expansion tank

I Would recommend Putting On A Spirovent And A #30 Bladder Tank

oil-2-4-6-gas

put a hose on the drain with a vacuum breaker fitting -cost all of $2.00

Alan_11

hanging diapragm tank

Saggs,I would not reccomend hanging the new tank from the drain tapping on the old tank.Never seen it done either in 20 plus years.When the old tank gets waterlogged aftera while you have added 30 or 40 gallons of useless water to the system. Have replaced many ruptured or leakig tanks (air + water + steel=rust) You are better off leaving the old tank empty and dead in the ceiling and finding a way to hang a diapragm tank. an isolation valve to a new tank is a great help also.