treatment chemical for steam boiler

angelotrivelli · October 20

It's that time of year again when I've got to go in the basement soon and turn on the steam boiler and hope it works. This is also when I add the anti-corrosion chemical.

I've used Rectorseal 8-way in the past, that's what I put in it when I turned it off last spring, but it doesn't seem to be on Amazon anymore.

Is this still the popular recommended anti-corrosion chemical? Are there better ones? What do folks recommend?

delcrossv · October 20

Just get 8 way from supplyhouse.com.

ethicalpaul · October 21

I agree with @delcrossv but your question makes me wonder: What happened to the 8-way you added last year?

angelotrivelli · October 21

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815474#Comment_1815474

I added a quart of it after flushing the boiler out and before refilling it last spring.

I will soon flush it out again before starting it up for the cold weather and add a fresh quart of 8-way.

Is that the way to use it? Add a quart every time the system is flushed?

My usual source was Amazon, but for whatever reason they don't carry it anymore. Ordered it from supplyhouse.com instead (thanks @delcrossv).

ethicalpaul · October 21

I think a quart is more than you need. Get a little book of litmus paper PH test strips from Amazon for like $5 and just add enough to get your PH to 10 or 11.

But more important, I would not drain the whole boiler every year. I just don't think there's any need for it. Have a look at this uncharacteristically short (for me) video I made where I didn't drain anything for a year and then drained just a little to see how much mud was in my boiler. Link to video

By not draining very much you will minimize the introduction of fresh, oxygenated water.

So I would just drain until the water runs mostly clear, then monitor the PH and add just enough 8-way to keep the PH at 10-11 or so.

You'll save a lot of money on 8-way too.

angelotrivelli · October 21

Yeah, I am embarrassed to say, I neglected my boiler for quite some time. It has had A LOT of junk in the water. It came out very very dark the last few times I've flushed it.

Also, there was a problem one year where I had a leaky pipe under a crawlspace of an addition. The leak caused the system to inject fresh city water at an alarming frequency. That's fixed now, but I suspect it started a lot of corrosion and shortened the life of my boiler. So, am hoping to keep it going at least one more year. Then I will be in the market for a new one.

I will also do a pH check, at the very least that will be interesting. Thanks!

ethicalpaul · October 21

The damage might not be a bad as you think. I was in your shoes with my old boiler when I bought my house in 2017 and I never could get the water to remain clean, so I replaced my boiler in 2018, but after that I smashed apart the old boiler and it seemed to have a lot of life still in it.

Knowing what I know now, if I were you, I'd just keep that PH around 11 and drain 1/2 - 1 gallon once a year and see if the water starts to clear up. It could have many years of life remaining, like MANY.

Yeah check the PH with your current water in there. After adding a whole quart of 8-way I would suspect yours is at the top of the scale like mine was in the video above.

Remember, a lot of the mud you are seeing could be ironically from your annual flush. If you just flush a little to get the mud out once a year the water will eventually clear up. All the boiling action will eventually free up the rust and scale, and if it doesn't, no harm done. What does get freed up will fall to the bottom where you can drain it once a year.

ARobertson13 · October 22

I see this topic of water treatment coming up regularly on this and other sites. As I have mentioned before unless:

1] the boiler manufacturer directs you to use a chemical or product and in the concentration they specify or:

2] you know the chemical composition of a product and understand the boiler water chemistry involved or:

3] You are a water treatment specialist:

you should not put any chemical or product in your boiler tor water treatment

Remember: cast iron and fire tube units have different water chemistry and requirements. All boilers are not the same.

ChrisJ · October 22

I use treatment in my cast iron home heating steam boiler without issue.

I use Steamaster, but I guess that's not available anymore.

The only side effect I have had from it is erosion of the gauge glass. But I'd rather change that then a boiler.

ethicalpaul · October 22

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815638#Comment_1815638

This is a great point @ARobertson13 that I will remember. In this thread, the boiler is is someone's basement so I assume it's cast iron.

For reference, Peerless recommends 7.5 to 11

Velocity / Crown and Burnham says 7 to 11

W-M and Utica recommend 7 to 8.5 but I'd rather not replace my boiler every 10 years, thank you very much

Jamie Hall · October 22

A sort of general note… besides a comment that anything higher than 7 is probably fine…

With any treatment chemical, too little probably won't hurt anything. Probably won't do anything, either. Just enough chemical is OK, if you really need it (you may not). Too much chemical can be very harmful.

ethicalpaul · October 22

Too much chemical can be very harmful.

There are surely different chemicals out there, but what are some of the very harmful things that can happen to a cast iron pot with some pipes connected to it? (The question is worded somewhat flippantly, but is serious)

ChrisJ · October 22

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815690#Comment_1815690

Some of our cast iron pots have rubber seals.

ethicalpaul · October 22

Setting aside for now whether that's a bad idea…

Do the boiler treatment chemicals hurt them?

ChrisJ · October 22

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815704#Comment_1815704

No idea.

It hasn't bothered mine. So far.

SlamDunk · October 22

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815690#Comment_1815690

To a cast iron pot…maybe not much. I'm pretty harmful…… when I can't sleep because I put too much 8-way in my boiler. It becomes very noisy.

ARobertson13 · October 22

The main factor in water treatment is the material that the boiler is made of. There are different grades of cast iron based on the carbon content and added materials. There are different grades of mild steel based on the carbon content. This is why I warn people about using Surgex, 8 way, this way or that way. My Coop at my demand, replaced the contractor [40 years experience] who was servicing boiler because he was not properly treating the water according to the manufacturer. When the new water treatment company tested the water before they treated it, they found that the PH of the water was 2 levels off and a lot of corrosion.

ethicalpaul · October 22

two levels off in what direction?

ethicalpaul · October 22

https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1815707#Comment_1815707

Thanks. I wish I was there. I purposely put tons of extra 8 way in mine as a test and I couldn’t get it to surge, but my water was pretty clean

treatment chemical for steam boiler

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