Is Steam Heat Any Good?

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NoSmoke
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Post by NoSmoke » Mon. Apr. 06, 2020 6:53 am

I am going to college to learn about High Pressure Steam Boiler Operations, so I have a new interest in steam. So now I am looking around the internet a lot, and found a book written in 1992 about all the merits of old fashioned steam heat. True steam heat, like cast iron radiators and everything. The author was very driven to say how much of a loss it was for residential heat to get away from an "ideal heat". But my question is, was it?

I am not arguing for, or against low pressure steam heat, it just seems to me, the amount of BTU's required to make water into steam, would not be as practical as other means of residential heat. Yet, I am not so dumb that I do not know that you can do some amazing things with steam.

Again, I am just asking because I know so little about old steam heat in residential applications.

 
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tsb
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Post by tsb » Mon. Apr. 06, 2020 8:26 am

Think of the other end where the BTUs come out.

 
franco b
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Post by franco b » Mon. Apr. 06, 2020 10:20 am

Steam works very well. The biggest problem is balancing the system, with the most distant radiators failing to heat quick enough. Single pipe has to be properly slanted to avoid water hammer.

Simpler than gravity hot water.


 
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McGiever
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Post by McGiever » Mon. Apr. 06, 2020 10:40 am

Oh Boy! Where's *Sting*? Calling *Sting*, where are you? :)

 
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Post by Pacowy » Mon. Apr. 06, 2020 10:53 am

I've had a few steam systems and been very happy with them. The good: they throw a lot of heat fast with less sf of radiation than hot water, you don't have to worry about pipes freezing, the high operating temp makes them effective at generating DHW in real time, and you don't need all of the pumps, valves, expansion tanks, dump zones, fancy controls, etc. that generally are found in hydronic systems. The bad: they provide only a rudimentary ability to provide "zone-type" control of output, and the high operating temp generally leads to higher standby and pickup losses than in a hydronic system. I should note that my experiences with steam have been in big, old, drafty houses that made effective use of steam's good features. I wouldn't think of it as being a good fit for new construction.

Mike

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