Construction site blues

Maine Ken

Had a Baxi install last winter. Construction foreman calls with no heat. Like you, we were way ahead of the plumbers. I arrive and find zero pressure, the circ fried (Baxi circs go as long as there is a call) Not a drop of water in the system. The painters really liked the warm water to clean up with.

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Wayco Wayne_2

I'll try to keep this short

I started a big job up a couple days ago. Radiant floor in slab, 20- 5/8 loops, Prestige boiler, Tek mar injection control. Since I am ahead of the plumber, and had no water feed to my PRV, I had to fill and pressurize the system with a hose. Everything was working great. But..... everyday I would come in to check on it the system water pressure would be back to zero. No water on the mechanical room floor. My only conclusion was there was a leak in the slab. Just thinking about it made my stomach hurt. I had gone over everything non slab with a fine tooth comb but every time I'd visit the job site to check things the pressure would be back to zero. I had conceded to the awful truth of the matter that somehow, despite being very careful, there was a leak in the slab. I was just about to leave to get materials to check each loop out individually, when a laborer came in the mech room, smiled at me, (he's from china, and doesnt speak English) and proceded to use the boiler drain on the radiant floor manifold to fill his thin set morter bucket. Seems they liked the warm water to mix their morter and had been using my system water, thus explaining my drop in pressure. I didnt know whether to laugh or get mad. What a relief! Ha! WW

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Paul Rohrs_4

One of my fears also

I now carry a couple of dozen garden hose caps and wrench them on after we do the system fill. I put the channel locks on it and make it so that there is no way to loosen it by hand. It's worth the extra money to me.

Good catch!

Regards,

PR

kevin coppinger_4

i have had.....

this happen onec to me....I started putting signs up every where and then let everyone know not to touch it....I once almost lost a boiler that way 12 yrs ago before lwco were the norm....

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jackchips_2

Considering

what could have been Wayne, I vote for "laugh".

Jack

Al Corelli

Happens all the time.

I swear, the next time I do a slab job, I'm going to have tags made in 7 languages that say:

"POISON, DO NOT USE!"

Maybe then, there will be less aggravation.

Brad White_9

but then if you mark it \"poison\"

only al Qaeda operatives and Russian agents will be using Channel Locks.

hr

remove handles and cap

is my policy, after hearing of a worker take a drink of water from a boiler drain. In the summer of course

hot rod

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ttekushan_3

Seriously.

Had a guy mix a protien smoothie from a condensate recovery tank as no other water was available.

But we had not yet replaced the leaky boiler feed check valve so there were some water treatment chemicals in there.

With remarkably good humor, he reported the next day that the water treatment "really cleans the pipes out!"

-Terry

EBEBRATT-Ed

Off topic but similar.

One of our techs and I went rooftopping in the summer to look at a rtu replacement. The roofers were putting on a new roof and it was hotter than **** outside.

One of the roofers had a soda can catching the cold condensate coming out of a rtu.

Need I say more??

I said " your not drinking that stuff are you ???"

"Yup. That air conditioner purifies the **** otta that water"

He wouldn't listen. I wonder if he's still alive???


ED

Dave Yates (PAH)

World Solar Congress

When I attended the World Solar Congress in Florida two years ago, the theme was "Bringing Water to the World". One method included capturing condensate for drinking purposes. When no potable water sources exist, that no doubt looks like Perrier! They were also using plastic bags and sunlight to steralize water captured from contaminated aquifers that was brought to the surface with solar-driven pumps. Today and every day, more than one billion people go without a drop of potable water to drink.

Good chuckle WW!

Joe_75

When I was working to get my boilers certification. We had an old boilerman that would use 235f water from a DA tank everymorning to make coffee with, it sounded like a latte machine when the water would flash to steam in the pot. He had done this for years.

Ted_9

painters

Working on a job were we installed all of the heatijng and had the boiler running. while the job was still running, my boss tells me and the guy I was working with to check out a no heat. Well there was no pressure in the boiler. Just them, the painter comes down and takes water out of one of the draw offs.

Nice!


Massachusetts

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Darrell

Stop at the grocery store and pick up four pack of food coloring in the cake decorating aisle...it is readily water soluble and the painter will never get his stuff clean with you boiler water again...and the guy who drinks it will be easy to spot!

Darin Cook_6

WW

We have had that happen on a few of our jobs. The masons and sheetrockers just love our warm boiler water. They hate the backcharge for the service call though!

I did have the real nightmare last winter of multiple breaks on a brand new radiant inslab installation. After a week of many back breaking hours of chipping, cutting the slab, and about $2000.00, not counting labor charge ( one hour each way of travel), I had it repaired!!!

Wayne, If you ever have to find a broken radiant tube in a slab, give us a call. We are the proud owners of a $1000.00 leak detection tool now, thanks to last winters tragedy. If you are lucky you will only have to deal with people "stealing" your boiler water.







TSGT Darin Cook,
Air Expeditionary Forces,
Iraq