Steam boiler removal for flooring
Hooker
| Posted in Energy, Heating & Insulation on
Hello all, I have boiler fed steam radiators in every room of our house as the main heat supply. I am planning a kitchen/bath remodel which involves new flooring and will require the removal of three radiators to finish the flooring.
What is the sequence of draining and temporarily removing these things?
Is this even a project for me, or should a trained pro be involved? I’m just a carpy, not a boiler man, with basic wrenches and such.
Thus being the weather here in WI, it is imperative these get replaced in a somewhat reasonable time. Although lately the nights haven’t been so bad for early Nov.
Any input is much appreciated!
I get paid to do carpentry. That makes me a professional.
If I work on my own house does that make me a DIY?
Replies
I've done the same. There is no reason to drain - only air in them when heat is off. Undo the unions and just cap them temporarily until your job is done. If you change the floor height you may have to extend or reduce with a new nipple to line things up again. You might have a little play if you're lucky. This will probably be the hardest thing you do since you may need access underneath and they are usually either rusted or cemented in pretty good. Get a big wrench but be careful because the union fittings are usually brass and soft. If you bend something up which can happen, your plumbing supply should have all the parts.
Dave
Thanks for the input. I am somewhat concerned over the height issues, but hopefully enough play will be there. Ideally I can do most of the work in all rooms up to the units and have them all down at once. This is my own house, though, and we all know how these projects go.
Thanks again for the advice.I get paid to do carpentry. That makes me a professional.
If I work on my own house does that make me a DIY?
But there will be some water and crud lying in the bottom. Have a wet/dry handy to clean up. When you are putting them back, a little black high temp automotive gasket silicone on the union face can save some grief.
The silicon gasket is a good idea. It'll be an experiment fer sure. If I can get away with capping them and sacrificing the heat in those rooms for a while, it'll make things much easier. I don't want to remove these things any more than needed!
Thanks for the input.I get paid to do carpentry. That makes me a professional.
If I work on my own house does that make me a DIY?
>What is the sequence of draining and temporarily removing these things?
As mentioned with steam there shouldn't be anything to drain. Pretty easy technically.
Last night I just moved my radiators back after removing carpet and refinishing the floors. Some of my steam pipes have zero play in them, make sure you can get your radiator height correct. That's not too hard though. Its really all about moving them. A living/dining room size radiator will be heavy. crazy heavy. Get a couple strong backs or a strong dolley of some sort. Getting them back on without scratching your new floors is a bit of a challenge.
Also while they're off you may be tempted to clean them, because you will never want to take them off again.
eric
All good points. You are correct about not wanting to remove them any more than necessary. Hopefully my elevations are doable. I do wonder about resetting the radiators back onto the laminate flooring that's going in, or making a "pad" to bump the flooring to. Concerned about the weight on the floor. I think there is a fair amount of play in the pipes from underneath, we'll see.
Thanks for the input.I get paid to do carpentry. That makes me a professional.
If I work on my own house does that make me a DIY?