After an hour and a half of phone calls, worrying, more phone calls, more worrying, and repeated trips to the basement to stare at the boiler, the boiler is now on again.
We don't know why. We didn't do anything to it, other than worry about/at it. Maybe that's what it needed -- it needed us to worry about it, just to know that it mattered, that it was important. After all the fuss over the water heater, maybe the boiler was just jealous?
I have no idea.
We're going to bed.
Showing posts with label heat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label heat. Show all posts
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Boiler Blues
Our boiler isn't working. We just realized this at about 10pm, which is of course, a prime time for such things to happen. It may be that it's actually been off all day, since we were all out of the house. The weather here has been warmer, so we didn't notice. The thermostat, though set to 65, reads 62. There is no flame, and the whole system is stone cold.
We're awaiting a call back from a 24 hour service number right now.
I am weary of homeownership.
We're awaiting a call back from a 24 hour service number right now.
I am weary of homeownership.
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Boiler Tune-up, Questions Answered!
The boiler repair guy just left, and boy, he had SO much information for us! It was a very informative and improving morning for 83 Durant!
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?
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?
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Cold-hearted furnace
As I begin this entry, we are in fact in the middle of our current house crisis. I guess I'm using the blog to focus my nearly debilitating anxieties at the moment.
About an hour ago, I noticed that the thermometer reading on the thermostat was weirdly lower than where we'd set the thermostat, and that although the little icon said the furnace was on, it was clear from the behavior of the radiators (i.e., the lack of steaming and banging) that it was not in fact on.
A trip to the basement confirmed that the furnace was not on, and a shiny red light indicated that the water level was too low. That green box on the left is the shutoff for low water -- there's a tiny red light on the top of it.
The home inspector, those long many months ago, told us something about draining the boiler, but we don't remember what it was. There is a red lever on one of the water pipes that we suspect might be the way to add water to the system.
But we're not entirely sure this is what we should do. And given that this is a steam boiler, which, apparently can cause all kinds of horrifying damage to persons and property (if you read the right sources), I'm worried about a) hurting ourselves and b) doing something that completely fouls up the boiler.
At the moment, we're waiting for the pipes and system to cool down. When they do, we will try the red lever. And see if things work. After that, we call for help.
Outside, it is snowing madly, with temperatures below freezing.
We are heading to the basement right now.
Updates forthcoming.
Update: 1 pm:
We drained the system of its dirty water (gross!) and slowly added new water. We had read that we needed to raise the water level to between 1/2 and 2/3 or between 2/3 and 3/4 (depending on the source). Here you can see the gauge at its (we hope) correct level.
We turned the thing back on...
and nothing happened.
For about two minutes.
Two long minutes of (my) panic.
Then the thing fired, and at this moment, it is heating up all that water.
Hopefully, soon, the steam will start heating up the radiators.
Update: 1:15
It seems that everything is in order. Radiators are heating up and the temperature is rising. And the furnace is still running and the water level looks OK.
We are tentatively declaring victory.
We would like to thank:
The Lost Art of Steam Heating, a ridiculously comprehensive book we bought just last week.
There's precious little good information available on how to do these things, so it was all a bit nerve-wracking. We'll just need to keep a close eye on that water level. Some post-emergency researching has helped us find some good online information in a few places.
If you're wondering how steam heat works, here's a handy and informative page I just found via the BBC. We have what's called a one-pipe steam system, where just a single pipe feeds the radiator with steam and carries away the water.
My ongoing online research has also uncovered this terrific site -- a "Homeowner's Library" that has lots of great information on steam heat.
Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day. May your heart and your home be warm!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)