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Farewell, Mr. Snowman!

Steamhead
Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
This week's boiler job was replacing this 1920s-vintage Weil-McLain round boiler. It had been converted from coal to gas with a Janitrol atmospheric burner, equipped with ceramic radiants that would glow when the gas flames hit them. We didn't test this thing before stripping it, but the flame hitting the radiants would have probably made a lot of CO!



The photo through the door shows the radiants before they were removed, most of them had fallen off their mountings.



The gas valve on this thing had a lever which operated a damper, to only allow secondary air into the unit when the unit was running. The primary air shutters were open all the time. And apparently this valve needed to be oiled periodically, and the gas company was supposed to do it, as shown on the label. Tim M., this unit brings back some memories, eh?



And your eyes are not deceiving you: there was no low-water cutoff. It did have a Series 10 Pressuretrol though.



Our regular asbestos/demo sub, ARC Construction Services, made this old beast disappear. We'll probably see it again next year as Chinese pipe and fittings.
All Steamed Up, Inc.
Towson, MD, USA
Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
Oil & Gas Burner Service
Consulting

Comments

  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    edited October 2010
    The new one

    our usual choice for a small system such as this one, the 3-section Smith G-8 with Carlin EZ-Gas. Gordon did his usual beautiful piping job on the returns and Hartford Loop.



    We also moved a small rad that had been added to the living room, into an adjacent enclosed porch. We discovered that it had been connected to the tee for the former bathroom rad, so we left that tee there for whenever they get tired of a cold bathroom.



    We installed Vent-Rite #1 vents in the bedrooms, so the owners could adjust them easily. 



    One of my Dead Men's Books says a snowman boiler is usually only about 40% efficient on oil, and I think it was probably as bad on gas. We look forward to the fuel-savings figures on this one!
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • Brad White
    Brad White Member Posts: 2,398
    Another Before and After Inspiration!

    Something about seeing the "Before" pictures and holding off on the treat to see the final shots that has such suspense...



    Classic All Steamed Up piping job, so neat and tidy.



    Always a pleasure to see your collective work. Great job, Gordo!
    "If you do not know the answer, say, "I do not know the answer", and you will be correct!"



    -Ernie White, my Dad
  • Charlie from wmass
    Charlie from wmass Member Posts: 4,318
    Girlfriend has a snow man in the basement

    Her mother says she will change it when it leaks. I have other plans. I put the analyzer on it last fall and it said it was actually getting 70%. I am sure the readings were off from too much fresh air coming through the combustion chamber. But I had a good laugh at the readings.
    Cost is what you spend , value is what you get.

    cell # 413-841-6726
    https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/charles-garrity-plumbing-and-heating
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    Maybe

    when she sees the fuel-savings figures from this one? We can hope.........



    Forgot one pic- this thermostat was still in use. It's a Honeywell Series 10 with a wind-up clock. We changed it to a VisionPro 8000.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    Thanks, Brad

    good to have you back!
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • gerry gill
    gerry gill Member Posts: 3,078
    great looking job guys!

    Frank / Gordo, you guys really do a great job..very nice looking work..is this a regular customer where you will be able to find out from them how much it saved on the fuel?
    gwgillplumbingandheating.com
    Serving Cleveland's eastern suburbs from Cleveland Heights down to Cuyahoga Falls.

  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    He's a regular customer

    and we hope to have the figures next summer. It used to take up to a half-hour for the snowman to get steam to the rads' inlet valves, even with proper main vents. Now it takes about 10 minutes from the time the G8 starts up cold, this includes the boiler warm-up and the main venting stage.



    We've been advising him to replace that snowman for some time, and he finally did. 
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • gerry gill
    gerry gill Member Posts: 3,078
    30 minutes...jeeeezzz

    i bet you cut his gas bill in half...he better buy you a beer next time he see's you..
    gwgillplumbingandheating.com
    Serving Cleveland's eastern suburbs from Cleveland Heights down to Cuyahoga Falls.

  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    We'll settle for

    some referrals!
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • SBoston
    SBoston Member Posts: 61
    Copper above the water line



    I noticed that you used copper above the water line; is this an issue with the steam (expansion and contraction)? I thought this was generally a bad idea?

    Very nice job, I wish the guy that installed our Burnham Independence had told us about the Smith boiler with a power burner, or did a nice piping job (live and learn).
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    edited October 2010
    In the equalizer

    It's not an issue if steam doesn't get that far. If your Hartford Loop is properly configured, it won't. Also, expansion in the equalizer does not strain against the other end of a cast-iron boiler, so the joint-breaking torsion isn't there. 



    All the piping that steam travels through is black steel.



    Smith doesn't do a good job of marketing the G-8. Slant/Fin could also do better marketing the gas-fired Intrepid. Both are much better than atmospherics.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • SBoston
    SBoston Member Posts: 61
    Last Question

    Why not use both taps? Wouldn't that slow the velocity of the steam going into the header?
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 16,796
    The manual for these boilers

    says two risers are not needed until you get to the 6-section boiler. But, as you see, the header is 2-1/2", which is one size larger than specified. We cap the second tapping if it's not going to be used, rather than plugging it, since we can then remove the cap if we need to flush out the boiler with a hose.



    For the 6-section, we'd use a 3-inch header.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • Danny Scully
    Danny Scully Member Posts: 1,416
    edited October 2010
    And lets not forget

    And lets not forget, you're running a business here! Increasing to 4" would slow the velocity of the steam as well! Hehe
  • Gordo
    Gordo Member Posts: 856
    One Thing The Customer Did Say Regarding Fuel Savings

    When we first looked at this old snowman earlier  this summer, we noticed that the boiler was really warm as if it had been run recently.  We realized that the standing pilot was large enough to heat the boiler significantly and we shut it off right then and there.  The customer subsequently reported a noticeable drop in fuel consumption. 
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    "Reducing our country's energy consumption, one system at a time"
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Baltimore, MD (USA) and consulting anywhere.
    https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/all-steamed-up-inc
This discussion has been closed.