What brand of radiator air vent do you suggest/avoid ?
Here are two that I've heard mentioned:
925005-00 Angle VARI-Valve (Heat Timer)
Vent-Rite #1 VR1 VR-1 Adjustable Steam Radiator Vent 1/8″ Male 3 PSI
Comments
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I hate Vari-Valve
I've never used Vent-Rite but some people seem to like them OK.
I use Maid O Mist and sometimes Gorton
Some people like Hoffman
Just never buy any vent at a big box store. Buy them at supplyhouse.com is my recommendation
NJ Steam Homeowner.
Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el
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Wouldn't use VV if I got it for free.
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On the cheap maid of mist ,bear in mind the quality has gone down from what i ve seen do not get from big box . Personally i use gortons yeah u may end up w a bad one but over all the better vent and if going adjustable possible hoffmann 1A
peace and good luck clammy
R.A. Calmbacher L.L.C. HVAC
NJ Master HVAC Lic.
Mahwah, NJ
Specializing in steam and hydronic heating0 -
I've had better luck with Maid-o-mist than Gorton. YMMV
Trying to squeeze the best out of a Weil-McLain JB-5 running a 1912 1 pipe system.1 -
I concur with comments to avoid Big Box Stores that won't miss your business. Do, buy from your local Plumbing Supply store if available in town and keep these knowledgeable small businesses in business that provide quality advice and products
Regards,
RTW
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Keep your pressure low enough and you won't have much issue with any of them.
I use MoM, Hoffman 1a and Ventrite 1and I even have a box store vent on one radiator. My system operates now such that radiator with the box store vent never 100% fills so pretty easy duty for any vent.
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For fully adjustable vents we use Ventrite #1 almost exclusively. On a budget, we use Maid o Mist #4. #5, and In rare instance #6 (huge church size radiators and really screwed up condo systems) with removable orifices. We will use Gorton, #4, #5, #6 for people that are looking for higher quality fixed venting rates ( like in rentals) People tend to remove the orifice on the Maid o mists. Maid o Mist also makes fixed orifice type vents too.
We like the ventrite because even when set for the highest setting, they are still a much slower vent than others…so a system is not thrown out of balance by excessive radiator venting. The Hofmann adjustable are not very repeatable….2 different vents set for the same number will vent at very different rates. …so we stopped using those many years ago. Anything that can vent real fast like the Maid o mist or Gorton C or Ds, and the Heat Timer varivalves (equal to 16 conventional vents) will tend to cause the system to go out of balance and/ or the radiator to spit.
We also recommend people stay away from Big box store vents….we have seen several case (and others here have reported) seeing them split open. We had one condo building run into several thousand dollars of emergency repair calls for the boiler and then a unit owner came home from a vacation to find about 1/3 of thier unit totally destroyed by steam and water damage due to the vent splitting open.
To learn more about this professional, click here to visit their ad in Find A Contractor.
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THANKS for the advice.
No bigbox. I like to use local biz for stuff like this, where shop can also offer advice/ local contacts.
VariValve bad.
Stick with Gorton, Hoffman, or VentRite
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Are vents all the same thread size?
Or do I have to remove first and bring to supply shop ?
For vents without a nut at base, you just grab it and twist to remove?
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All the same size for radiator vents.
Trying to squeeze the best out of a Weil-McLain JB-5 running a 1912 1 pipe system.0 -
@CoachBoilermaker Unless you have an oddball out of left field, they are all 1/8" NPT. And yes, just grab and twist! lefty loosey, righty tighty!
Gorton has a good diagram of which ones to use and where…. Gorton's Website
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I used to keep a 1/8" NPT tap on hand and clean out the threads a bit any time i was changing a vent.
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Missing something basic.
The 1/8" tap is only used to clean the threads, right?
In the video, he uses an 11/32" drill bit. That is much larger than 1/8 (or 4/32). In fact, that is 3x larger !!
If you drill out the hole, it's now bigger than the original 1/8" and the vent will be too small for the enlarged hole?
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It comes with a drill in case there is no hole where you want there to be one
NJ Steam Homeowner.
Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el0 -
Gorton has a BAD diagram…
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Right, I never tapped any new, just cleaning out 90+ years of crust from existing before trying to put something new in there.
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1/8" NBT pipe has an OD pf .405" (~13/32) that is why the associated drill for tapping is 11/32".
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The correct tap is 1/8" 27 NPT?
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ok. Makes sense. Thanks for your patience
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The nominal inside diameter of the pipe
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Just like Mad Dog, I will keep it positive. Gorton & Hoffmans ONLY.
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You pay for what you get …
There was an error rendering this rich post.
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I picked up a Hoffman 1A and am skeptical of the design. There is so much slop in the spinning cap that it can easily block the hole, or leave it wide open. It does not feel accurate at all. I am thinking of returning it. What am I missing? Just make sure cap is fully seated before tightening cap nut? Seems so easy to seat it crooked.
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@ethicalpaul @STEAM DOCTOR Why do you hate Vari-Valve brand?
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it’s too fast, hard to adjust and spits if I recall correctly
NJ Steam Homeowner.
Free NJ and remote steam advice: https://heatinghelp.com/find-a-contractor/detail/new-jersey-steam-help/
See my sight glass boiler videos: https://bit.ly/3sZW1el3 -
I bought a VariValve at the local supply house to be polite and buy something.
I noticed it does not close when you blow into it when upside down.
Is this a different design? Always open, or only closes when steam enters?
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Yes, and they're way too fast for normal use.
Trying to squeeze the best out of a Weil-McLain JB-5 running a 1912 1 pipe system.0 -
The "new" design 1A's are a pain to adjust. IIRC, they're all pulled off the systems I service in favor of fixed orifice vents
Trying to squeeze the best out of a Weil-McLain JB-5 running a 1912 1 pipe system.0 -
Can you explain this? The VariValves are too fast? What effect does that have?
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And they fail way too quickly.
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Anyone need my bucket of failed Heat-timer Vari-Vents?
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Fail by leaking ?
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No, the Heat-timers fail closed when the bellows deforms and dismounts from the cap, fouling the orifice it controls. About 25% of several hundred did this in the 18 months. A nice loss for us.
A well-made valve with a flawed design.0 -
How many homes did you have to revisit ??
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We loved them at first for our properly piped jobs with dry steam. Then the calls began coming. Removed them from probably 40 jobs, again and again. Eventually we'll probably revisit every job. Call backs every month.
When they work they are silent, very fast venting and slow closing, which use some water. Many fail and remain closed.
Opened some and found the problem. Shared an engineers' report with the manufacturer. We really wanted them to work reliably. They're little beauties — with a flaw.
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