simple re-fill question..HW sys

Mike T., Swampeast MO

Downfeed radiators (and their associated piping) like the cast iron one in the "trouble" zone can be very tough to purge of air.

Think like air. Force the air where you want it then remove.

Timco

So I am draining the system to remove the old pipe to the attic tank, plug another old dead end line, and check the exp tank. All 3 zones have a 'hose bib' on the return side. What is the process to refill and purge using these bibs? I have a press regulator on the fill line, but have not checked it's pressure.

Thanks for the help,

t

Weezbo

hello........O ....:)

@:) got my all seeing eye hat on...better to see you with

Mark Eatherton1

Tim...

From the sounds of it, you have an old standing cast iron radiator system (attic tank is dead give away). This type of system can not be power purged. You have to fill the system from the bottom to the top. I suspect that the drain valves you are seeing are for just that, draining the system. Once the system has been filled and burped from the bottom to the top, turn your pump in the basement on and see if you've got flow. If you do, some additional minor air caught near the boiler may dislodge and find its way into the system. Shut off the pump and go back through and rebleed the radiators one last time.

After that, you're done.!

Enjoy the comfort...

ME

Mark Eatherton1

Tim...

From what I can see from here, you have the older style standing cast iron radiators. They must be slowly filled from the bottom to the top. THe system can't be power purged.

Start filling the system by opening the makeup valve. Let the system fill for a while to gain pressure, then using a radiator vent key, go around to the radiators, starting with those radiators on the lowest floor and closest to the boiler. Bleed the air out of the radiator. THen move outward horizontally until all rads on that floor are done. Move to next floor and and repeat, starting with those rads closest to the boiler, moving outward. When completely done, turn the heating system on and if you hear massive amounts of air leaving the boiler, turn the system off and go through and re-bleed. When done, sit back and enjoy the comfort.

ME

Timco

Weez,

Tahnks for that...I'll try to remember that and take comfort.

Mark,

I did hear a lot of water fly out as I purged, but as you said, I needed to do the rads next. All was fine. This home is 1 story. My rads are actually galvanized metal cells, crimped on the edges. Solid cells, but very flat. I isolated a section where I made a BB into a wall mount and found that after 24 hrs, it went from 15 to 0 #s. Leak must have developed some time after install where the copper meets the galv risers, as I checked it several times before closing up the floor under the addition, but found the system only lost pressure when that zone was running and isolated by the swing sheck valves. Guess I have gotten used to making pipes voltage tight but not water tight. Am I right to ssay that 15# is 15#, regardless of whether it is running in 2" zones or a 1" zone?

Thanks once again for the helpful advise. The old tank will make great target practice for the .50 and .375 H&H!

T

Mark Eatherton1

Got pictures??

Can't says I've ever seen a galvanized cellular radiator. If in fact it IS galvanized, and you've been experiencing lots of make up, you could have a system suffering from dielectric connections and galvanic corrosion.

ME

Timco

I can see galv surface under the paint on the one behind the couch. All rads have brass valves and rad 90's in line. The white one next to the toilet is iron, as well as the gold wall mount. Those 2 iron ones are all that is on zone 3.

T

Timco

I only lose pressure when zone 3 runs by itself. Just popped up the floor access I made for the wall mount CI rad, and no leaks!!! Can it be that a 1" copper run w/ 2 CI rads just runs 5lbs lower than the big zones with 11/2 & 2" runs and the galv rads? I never had this problem until separating the zones with a taco 4 zone controller and isolating the zones with the swing check valves. As I mentioned, zone 3 gets to 180*, then pressure is @ 10, when all run, temp is 120-130*, and pressure is 15-17 where I set it cold.

T

Mark Eatherton1

Hard to say...

Maybe Steamhead or someone else can ID them. They don't look real familiar to me. THe fact that you have brass fittings between the copper and the iron will act as a dielectric break though. As for the problem zone, if you can generate a drawing we might be able to ID why you're having issues, but initially it sounds like it may be an air problem. Too many PONPC's...

ME