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moving pipe (I know) for structural work in basement

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haro1
haro1 Member Posts: 2
in Strictly Steam

I'm a happy and intimidated new owner of a 160 year old house with a one pipe steam system. To start with: I read We Got Steam Heat! cover to cover and had a blast. Already got to work on fixing a whole bunch of things the previous owner had wrong, and the heating system feels happier by the day. This forum is such an incredible resource.

Unfortunately the heat isn't the only thing the previous owner(s) managed badly. Some very bad decisions in the basement mean that we need to put a new center beam under the old one. This is a must-do, we're not at immediate risk of collapse but the half-**** solution was attempted 20 years ago and wasn't enough.

Problem: there's a supply pipe to the master bedroom radiator crossing right under the old beam. See the image below: the beam in question is the one supported by the red columns. The supply pipe comes vertically off the main, then almost-horizontally (properly graded) under the beam, then vertically to the second floor. In this photo the boiler is to the right and the main slopes down right-to-left.

20260103_171311~2.jpg

To fit the new beam we need another 7" give or take of clearance here. The vertical rise off the main is over 8" between fittings, so in theory we could drop that and preserve the grade on the horizontal run. I'm not sure if the very short riser would be an issue (steam making a tight U-turn up while water makes a tight zigzag down).

Alternatively, most of the runs to the radiators come off of the main at a 30-45 degree angle out. We could mimic that here and angle the riser off the main down, so that it could stay longer without gaining as much vertical height. For an example of what I mean, here's the run to a different radiator: imagine if we replaced the vertical rise with something like this, but a bit longer, and then turned back.

20260103_171450.jpg

The first plumber we asked about it refused and suggested taking out that radiator entirely and putting electric baseboard in the bedroom. (Ugh.) I saw the various parts of We Got Steam Heat! that very clearly warned about moving basement pipes. Unfortunately this isn't a matter of wanting more headspace in the basement, it's necessary for the structural integrity of the house.

Are either of my ideas plausible? Will we regret it? Any alternate ideas that don't involve baseboard electric?

Mad Dog_2

Comments

  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 15,739

    you can shorten the nipple and drop the lateral closer to the man as long as you keep slop on it. it would work with a close nipple or street ell or you could make a swing joint if you wanted to get fancy.

    Robert_Hharo1
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 19,721

    Just cut that riser off above the tee and cap the branch the riser is coming out of with a new nipple and cap.

    Cut a new tee in the main to the right (in the picture) next to the other tee and pipe the existing radiator riser into that. That should clear the beam. You will nee a cap and nipple for the old tee. A new tee to reconnect the riser, a union and 2 nipples. Find a good heating guy and its a piece of cake.

    mattmia2haro1
  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 15,739
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1880732#Comment_1880732

    you mean put it where it should have been in the first place…

    haro1
  • haro1
    haro1 Member Posts: 2
    edited January 4

    Thanks, both of you! It's reassuring to hear these straightforward suggestions. I think I've heard/read too many blanket warnings about how steam pipe layout is an art and making any changes at all is dangerous, without any real insight about which kinds of changes are harmless and which are bad.

    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1880732#Comment_1880732

    This solution sounds great and would definitely give us the space we need. It's not clear from the perspective in the photo, but if my memory is right (I'll check tomorrow) the new tee in the main would have to be very close to the existing one, definitely where that piece of insulation is now. Is there a distance I should keep between them? Does it not matter at all?

  • mattmia2
    mattmia2 Member Posts: 15,739

    they can butt up against eachother. the steam needs to be able to get in and the water and air need to be able to get out, that is mostly all there is to it.

    Grallert
  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 19,721

    @haro1 as @mattmia said it doesn't matter.

    You could also put the new tee on the other side of the existing one if you want. If it is a one pipe system you should come off the tee with a 45 if possible……like your second picture shows. The pipe should pitch up towards the riser 1/4"/foot. More pitch is ok less is not

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