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Low water cutoff and water feed Suggestions

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drew1942
drew1942 Member Posts: 3
in Strictly Steam
I have an old Weil McClain steam boiler Mode E3 ( Model EG currently is similar).
The water feed and the low water cutoff combo stopped working years ago due to leaks, so I started to fill the water manually with no problem. However I plan to leave in the winter coming up for an extended period and I want to add the cutoff and the water feed back.

I just bought the Model 67 Mcdonnell Miller LWCO as I got a good deal on it and now I am looking for a compatible water feed unit to work with it. I have seen several advertised
WFE24 Unimatch
WFE 120 Unimatch
101A-120
101A-24

I believe I need the 24 volt versions in each case. I am leaning towards the WFE24 Unimatch unless someone knows of a better part to use. The others are more expensive. I have heard the 101 A-24 gasket leaks
Any ideas?



Comments

  • JStar
    JStar Member Posts: 2,752
    We use the Hydrolevel VXT models. Big benefit is that they have a built in water usage meter.
    KC_Jones
  • Jamie Hall
    Jamie Hall Member Posts: 27,276
    I'd prefer the Hydrolevel -- I have one, and the built in water meter is very handy indeed.
    Br. Jamie, osb
    Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England
  • nicholas bonham-carter
    nicholas bonham-carter Member Posts: 8,579

    Does the Hydro level VXT measure the actual gallons of water fed, or merely the time the valve is open?

    I have resisted an auto feeder up to now, but now have a very small leak in one of the rubber gaskets between sections of my 2007 installed PB 211A-1,050,000 BTU, (confirmed by an overfill test).

    Maybe I just should bite the bullet, and have the end section taken off for examination as soon as the heating season is over. However, if one has developed a leak, I wonder about the others.-NB-C

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 20,100

    @nicholas bonham-carter

    If it has not been leaking long you can probably just rejacket that section

    Big Ed_4
  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 8,672
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/155076/low-water-cutoff-and-water-feed-suggestions

    My idea is leave it like it is and have a friend check your house once per week.

    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

  • Big Ed_4
    Big Ed_4 Member Posts: 3,522
    edited March 8

    Hydrolevel measures by the gallon…

    There was an error rendering this rich post.

  • STEAM DOCTOR
    STEAM DOCTOR Member Posts: 2,586
    https://forum.heatinghelp.com/discussion/comment/1890958#Comment_1890958

    Not really. They measure by the assumed gallon. It has no mechanism to measure how much water actually passes through. It just measures how many minutes, it's supposedly feeding. It assumes that it's one gallon per minute. Let's say for example you shut the ball valve upstream of the feeder. It will feed nothing, but it will still register the minutes that it thinks it's feeding.

    ethicalpaulBig Ed_4
  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 18,421

    Even so, the VXT is by far the best choice.

    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • Big Ed_4
    Big Ed_4 Member Posts: 3,522

    That's good to know ..

    There was an error rendering this rich post.

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