Does The Color of a Radiator Matter?
I recently came across this circular sent out by the US Department of Commerce’s National Bureau of Standards on July 19, 1935. It’s fascinating stuff and I thought you might want to keep it on file. Here ’tis
How To Tell An Engineer From A Contractor
If an engineer takes the train to work, he is likely to keep track of the miles traveled and the time elapsed between each station. He will keep these records for years in spiral notebooks and drive people crazy by sharing this useless drivel with them at a moment’s notice
Why Do Steam Coils Freeze?
Our problem is that five out of hundreds of univentilator coils freeze up on a regular basis. They are part of two pipe steam systems with pneumatic control valves and condensate pumps. The F&T traps have been replaced and the coils are grading down to the returns
How An Undersized Steam Boiler Can Still Heat A Building
An engineer called the other day to ask if I had any output ratings for some oddball steam radiators he needed to measure before he could specify a replacement boiler. These radiators were a bit strange but I managed to find a rating for them in one of my old books
Memories Of A German Office Building
Some buildings just live on and on in my mind. Some are old and some are new, but each began as someone’s idea and then became real only by the power of imagination and engineering
Why You Should Insulate Steam Pipes
When you take an old house under your wing you sometimes also get to take possession of an old steam heating system and an awful lot of asbestos insulation that goes along with it
21 Great Reasons To Choose Hydronics
With hydronics, you use water instead of air to move the heat around the building. Water holds more heat than air. Everybody knows that. Water allows you to use small pipes instead of big ducts. Since small pipes take up a lot less space than bulky ducts, you wind up with more living space
Pressure Differential & Steam Systems
A New York City contractor called me last winter to tell me about a situation that he had gotten himself into. We’ll call him Augie because that’s close enough. “The old steam boiler was up on this pedestal,” Augie told me. “The new one, I put down on the floor because that’s where the engineer wanted it.”
Steam Tips – Part 4
When water turns to steam (at 0 psi) it expands 1,700 times. That’s what moves the steam from the boilers to the radiators. High pressure goes to low pressure – always! What stands
Steam Tips – Part 3
Piping pitch is crucial to steam heat, whether the system is one pipe or two pipe. The rule is that the pipe should always pitch in the direction of flow at least 1″ in 20 feet. If you have
Steam Tips – Part 2
When confronting a lack-of-heat complaint, the urge to crank the pressuretrol up can be so strong as to cloud your mind and make you temporarily stupid
The 25 Steps In The Repair Of A Vacuum Steam System
Long ago, a Dead Man decided to heat a big building with a steam system. Since it was such a big building, and since pipe, valves and fittings have never been cheap, the Dead Man decided to use a vacuum pump to suck the air from the system. By doing this
Steam Tips – Part 1
Always install a union and a gate (or ball) valve on the outlet side of an automatic water feeder. This will allow you to perform the “broken union” test if you have a flooded boiler
What I’ve Learned About Steam Pressure
It had stood on this corner just off Wall Street in Manhattan for nearly a century. It stood witness to the comings and goings of countless people who never gave much thought to its many windows and its 25 stories that were served by one-pipe-steam radiators
Things To Consider
Consider the smaller boiler. If you have a choice between a big boiler and a smaller boiler, give that little one a second look. I say this because I’ve been in boiler rooms on days when it was so cold outside I thought that the sunshine might freeze
Why You Should Never “Dead-Head” A Circulator
When I was still young and very wet behind the ears I worked for the Bell & Gossett rep in New York City. It was my job to go out into the field with the contractors and look at things that had gone wrong
Tips On Balancing One-Pipe Steam Systems
Vent the mains quickly. This will help the steam get to all the radiators at about the same time. Steam is a gas and it will always look for a way out of the system. When it leaves the boiler, it heads toward the air vents
Thinking Like Air
Grownups sat in the shade of the latticed porch and waved off the summer heat with paper fans. If you close your eyes, you can still see them there
Considering Modular Steam Boilers?
The people who sell Modular steam boiler systems promise ease of installation and energy savings. But how you pipe those boilers – both individually and then together – will either make or break the job
PEX Choices
You have options when it comes to the tubing you bury or staple up on a radiant job. You may choose to go with a particular supplier and never question the type of tubing they provide. That’s a legitimate choice, if you trust the supplier
