We have an official (and rather important) answer to yesterday's question (see below) about the area that I *thought* was where the oil tank was once situated (we're on gas, not oil now). Those two pipes are actually the whole-house sewer trap. Opening those up would lead right into the sewer. There's a chance we might need access to them if there's ever trouble, but ideally we should just leave them alone! They're a sign that the house is quite old.
But on to the real reason for his visit: the boiler:
The most shocking thing we learned was that there was an important safety feature missing from our boiler. If too much pressure builds up in the system, there's a pressure release valve. We do have one of these (which is important!), however, the opening for it was pointed over the top of the boiler and across. It's the thing sticking straight up from the top in this picture. It was previously pointing forward, now it's turned around to a more appropriate position (away from the boiler switch):
As the expert explained, IF the pressure release valve needed to do its thing, it would blow steam at very high pressure across the top of the boiler and the room, which could:
1) hit a support beam and even break it
2) prevent anyone from getting near the boiler to turn it off
These are bad things. So he added additional piping and switched the direction, so now it points in the opposite direction (away from the boiler switch) and down to the floor:
He also suggested that sometimes this piece gets removed because basically, it's an easy-to-remove length of copper pipe, and copper is pretty expensive these days. I'm glad we have this all set up in a safe way now.
There is one other safety feature that it would be good to have, but we don't: most systems have an on/off switch somewhere upstairs. I thought perhaps that the mystery switch in the kitchen was it, but he confirmed that it was just a regular light switch (though to what, we still don't know). We're OK without the switch, but it seems like it would be nice to have it.
After the safety improvements, it was time for the boiler cleaning, which involved several steps:
1) draining the water and replacing it (this is something we can do ourselves). This takes out all the sludge that has settled to the bottom of the boiler.
2) opening the top drain, filling the boiler, and taking off the sediment that was on the TOP of the water. Basically, there are oils and things in the water that rise to the top (rather than settling to the bottom) so it's important to get rid of these things, too. He used the yellow-knobed spigot for this. There was some nasty gunk in there!
3) removing the pressure gauge and the "pig tale" for cleaning. That's the curly piece of pipe that looks kinda like a pig's tale, if that pig were made of copper piping. The pig tale was completely clogged to a solid mass. The pig tale connects to the pressure gauge, so it's pretty important. If left as it was, it could have forced the boiler to stay in the on or off position exclusively (both of which are bad!). So it's particularly good that we got this part fixed.
4) cleaning out the area where the gas flows: the shiny metal tubes you see on the bottom here are where the flames come out. He cleaned these out (mostly rust and cobwebs) and checked them for holes (there were none).
In other boiler and heat-related issues, one wire inside the system (a grounding wire) was a bit singed. He suggested we replace it before it breaks.
Also, he suggested that we buy all new vents for the radiators. Here's what some of them look like:
Some people even change these every five years. New vents would make it easier to adjust the temperature in an individual room, and generally make the system more efficient. He showed me exactly how to take them off and put them on, so I think a trip to the hardware store and a little DIY improvements are in our future.
The vents control how quickly or slowly the radiators fill with steam. The newer versions have clearly marked numbers so you can see whether they're on fast or slow speeds. These ones are a little tough to read. Also, over time, they can accumulate sediment and be generally less effective. They screw in and out, so it seems like a reasonable DIY project.
Other questions answered:
Remember that hole in the bathroom floor? It was the subject of this post: http://83durant.blogspot.com/2006/12/whhhhhaaaaat-part-2.html We thought it was from a radiator that had been removed, since there is currently no heat source in the bathroom. As our expert pointed out, it's not in the right place to be for a radiator. In fact, in houses this old, they wouldn't have heated the bathroom! He suggested that the hole was probably where the bathtub plumbing came in. There was probably an old claw-foot tub, and that was the water for it. The washer hook-up now taps off of the water pipe that was there. Another WHHAAAAATTTTT??? question solved!
And speaking of solving things, Jake has improved his lighting design from yesterday's post, after safety issues were raised. The addition of another bungee cord keeps the lamp lower, so there's no danger of igniting the insulation.
Well readers, what do you think? Is Jake's solution safe? Is it sane?
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