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Pump Lifespan Question

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nycpa
nycpa Member Posts: 108
in Strictly Steam
Hi,  From experience what do you guys think is the average lifespan of a circulator pump for a hot water loop from a steam boiler, cast iron versus bronze verses stainless steel.  I know that stainless steel and bronze have a longer lifespan do to being able to handle the corrosive nature of steam boiler but what about the other parts of the pump that might fail and render the entire pump useless.  Thanks.

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  • JStar
    JStar Member Posts: 2,752
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    Pumps

    We've seen cast-iron pumps fail every month, like clockwork. Brass pumps...never seen them fail from corrosion. The 3-piece motors and couplings can go bad every 5-10 years.
  • ChrisJ
    ChrisJ Member Posts: 15,671
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    gravity

    Is it possible to do a gravity hot water loop off of a steamer?
    Single pipe quasi-vapor system. Typical operating pressure 0.14 - 0.43 oz. EcoSteam ES-20 Advanced Control for Residential Steam boilers. Rectorseal Steamaster water treatment
  • STEAM DOCTOR
    STEAM DOCTOR Member Posts: 1,967
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    yes

    If loop is above the water level of boiler. Don't use flo checks. If zone is overheating then throttle the isolation valves a bit. Will take some trial and error. Would leave a circulator in place, just in case loop calls and steam portion hasn't been calling for a while.

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