Peerless Steam ECT3 install photos

photos

We installed this boiler and before I finish insulating I thought it might be helpful to post photos. We tried to follow all your great advice but obviously feel free to tell me where we could have done better or if we really messed up something.

One question I have is that the "dead-man" only put one vent in the shorter wet return (see piping photo)just before is drops down to the boiler. The system seems to run fine but should I add vents at the ends of the mains as you religiously tell us to? The house is a small bungalow sytle home. A single 30'long, two inch main supplies all seven radiators. The boiler tees into the main 10' from one end. This is a one-pipe system.

Thanks for all your help and running such a great site!

answers

I'm just the lowly plumber's helper and home owner but I'll answer your questions as best I can.

Dale - The pressuretrol was factory installed by Peerless so we left it the way it came. There is a slight pitch in the equalizer but it is close level so hopefully it is OK. The original piping has a 2" tee where the steam enters the main so we kept it that way. The main is 10' in one direction and 20' in the other. It seems to work fine.

Skimming: I did the skimming after running the boiler for a few days. Those first "steams" sure made the house smell like gear oil! After letting it cool to 100*F I flushed it a few times by filling it and then letting it drain out the 1" "boiler drain" at the bottom. Then I poured water solution containing TSP Substitue per Peerless's instructions, fired it up to just below steam temp and skimmed out the skim port for a hour or two until the water flow was clean. Refilled, flushed and filled with water. I am connected to town water so I hope the water is OK.

The gear oil smell is gone but there is still some oil/dirt in the system. The site glass is a little dirty. The water level slowly bounces when steaming. Every day or so I blow off through the LWC and about 1/4 gallon comes out looking like weak coffee. Same with the boiler drain at the bottom. Will it ever run clean?? My oil guy gave me the bottle of 8Way cleaner you see in one of the pictures. He suggested it but I have not added anyting at this point.

Ron - I thought in a steam boiler the pressure relief was OK like this. I'll move it if there is a safety issue. We did not install drop headers because we did not think it was essential for this small a system. There is no banging, spitting, etc so are we missing some benefit that we are unaware of? The mains are not even vented and everything seems fine. From cold boiler to steam in all radiators takes 25 min.

TCR

drain valves

I usually install drain valves on the return tee where it enters the boiler and on the lowest part of the return. It makes it easy to flush all the junk out.

Steamhead

Steamhead,

You are correct --- with the footnote that it is actually a single 2" main with a tee 10' from one end. Steam from the boiler enters here and travels in both directions (20' to the other end).

Here is a repost of the details: *** Regarding Vents: Tappings already exist for vents at the end of each wet return. In the Back-Right photo you can see one and the other is plugged. Will putting vents here (because it's already drilled and ready to go) be almost as good as drilling/tapping at the end of the mains? ***

So is tapping new holes for the vents 15" from each end of the main significantly better than using the existing holes located at the end of the wet returns?

Thanks,

TR

Vent sizes

a Gorton #1 or Hoffman #75 on the long section and a Hoffman #4A on the short section will do the trick. As long as the pressure is kept low and you're not making wet steam, the existing tappings should be OK.

Regarding that tee- you have a "bullheaded" tee which can make the water level bounce more than it should. If you have any work done to that piping, repipe it to eliminate the bullhead.

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Steam learning curve

Everyone,

I hope my photos and all the expert suggestions are helping you as much as they are me. There is no doubt the "devil is in the details" and I am really happy I went with a boiler installer that knows what he is doing and backs up his work. Many people said to wait until the boiler "totally failed" before replacing it. If this had been a no-heat, rush job in the middle of the winter I don't see how it would have been done right (the first time).

I'll follow up on these suggestions and any others that get posted.

As a small "thank you" to everyone I'll offer the services of my company. We're big ($240 million in sales) but I will be happy to help you on any logo apparel you put your company name on. If your current supplier is working well for you stick with them. If not feel free to send me an email and I will see what I can do. trich@americanbus.com

TR