Steam Radiator

[jchiz]

Hi,
I'm going to convert from steam (One pipe system) to hot water and have (5) radiators that I need to remove the bottom and top plugs. I was able to heat the bottom of the radiator and remove the bottom plug, but the top one had the grip round out. Can I try to drill out the plug and break it out with a chisel, or maybe just tap it for the air vent? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[johnjh2o]

I would drill and tap it. If you try to chisel it out there is a good chance that you will crack the radiator. Also keep in mind that a radiator used with hot water will have less of a BTU out put then if it was used with seam. You may require a second or larger radiator to heat the same space with hot water that you did with seam.

John

 

[jchiz]

Thanks John,
Appreciate the advice. I had gone ahead with my plan with the chisel before hearing from you, but what I did was to use a sawzall to cut the end off the plug. The plug was hollow where the threads are, so I was able to make a couple of careful cuts through the plug, and without too much effort, use a cold chisel to break out the smaller piece where I made the cuts, and then spin the rest of the plug out. Did all the radiators in less than an hour.
Jan

 

[johnjh2o]

Good job Jan. I would also do a heat loss to be sure you will have enough BTU's to heat your space. You have a job ahead of you removing the old piping. Are you aware that the fittings on the old piping were cast iron and all it takes is a heavy whack in the fitting to crack them. It makes removal much easier.

John

 

[jchiz]

Good advice John. I had cut some of the piping away to get the old boiler out, but this could make life much easier!
Thanks for your help. Much appreciated.
Jan

 

[johnjh2o]

Jan when trying to crack the fittings hit them on the heaviest part of the fitting. That is were the pipe enters the fitting. What you are trying to do is crack the fitting. That will allow you to unscrew the pipe very easily,or you can continue hitting it in the same area until the fitting falls apart.

John

 

[jchiz]

Excellent! Thanks again John.