Steam Heating Equipment

Learning Outcome
When you complete this module you will be able to:
Describe the operating principles of steam heating equipment and components.

Learning Objectives
Here is what you will be able to do when you complete each objective:
1. Describe the construction and operation of steam heating system devises used
to transfer heat from the steam to a heated space.
2. List and describe the auxiliary equipment used in a steam heating system,
including air vents, radiator valves and traps, and condensate return
equipment.

1
HVAC 6021

INTRODUCTION
The method of heating buildings by the use of steam involves the generation of
the steam in a centrally located boiler and the transferring of the steam through
pipes from the boiler to the radiators, convectors, unit heaters, etc., which are
located in the various rooms of the building. The steam gives up its latent heat
within the radiators, etc., and condenses from a vapor to a liquid. The liquid
(condensate) then returns to the boiler to be converted to steam once again.
Although hydronic (hot water) and warm air heating systems are more commonly
used for residential heating, steam is a widely used and efficient means of heating
larger buildings, such as schools, shopping centers, and factories. Many types of
steam heating systems have been developed over the years.
Before describing the different types or designs of steam heating systems, it will
be necessary to discuss the various pieces of equipment which, apart from the
boiler, make up a heating system.

HEATING EQUIPMENT
Heating equipment, also called heating accessories, is taken to mean all the parts
of a heating system, apart from the boiler and its fittings, such as radiators,
convectors, traps, air vents, and pumps.
Radiators
Radiators are constructed in such a manner as to present a large surface to radiate
heat from the steam or hot water contained in the radiator to the surrounding air.
The older type radiator was made of cast iron and built in sections which were
connected by means of screw or push nipples.
Modern radiators are made of light steel pressings welded together. Besides being
more attractive and modern in appearance, they also are considerably lighter.
Radiators are classified as: floor type - radiators equipped with legs and stands on
floor, window type - for installation where height is limited such as under
windows, or wall-hung - legless type of radiator.

2
HVAC 6021

Convectors
Convectors have largely replaced the cast-iron radiator in modern installations. In
these units, the steam or hot water flows through a copper or steel tube. Attached
to the tube are metal fins, which serve to increase the heat transfer from the tube
to the air circulating through the convector. The heating unit is enclosed in a
metal case having grill openings at the top and sometimes at the bottom as well.
Fig. 1 is a cutaway view showing the basic construction of a convector and Fig. 2
illustrates the natural circulation of air through the convector.

Figure 1
Convector (Cutaway View) (Courtesy of Dunham-Bush)

Figure 2
Convector Air Circulation

3
HVAC 6021

Note in Fig. 2, that the air circulates naturally without the aid of a fan. Cool air
enters at the bottom and as it is heated by contact with the finned tube, it rises
upward and flows out of the top grill. Some heat is also radiated from the warm
cabinet surface.
Radiators and convectors should be placed against outside walls, especially under
windows, so that the rising warm air from these units will mix with the cold air
coming down from the cooler surfaces above. This will prevent cold drafts on the
floors, and more even temperatures throughout the rooms will be obtained.
Unit Heaters
A unit heater is a convector type heater that employs a blower or fan to force the
air through the heating coil instead of using natural circulation. This results in a
large heat output for a fairly small unit.
Unit heaters are supplied either as cabinet units - mounted on floor, wall, or
recessed in the wall - or as units designed to be suspended from the ceiling which
discharge air horizontally or vertically.
Fig. 3 shows a cabinet unit heater with its front removed, showing the
twin-blower and heating element. This unit is often used in corridors, lobbies and
other hard to heat areas.

Figure 3
Cabinet Unit Heater

4
HVAC 6021

Fig. 4 shows a sectional view of a ceiling mounted unit heater with vertical air
discharge.

Figure 4
Vertical Discharge Unit Heater
Fig. 5 shows a cutaway view of a horizontal discharge unit heater.

Figure 5
Horizontal Discharge Unit Heater

Ceiling suspended unit heaters are generally used for the heating of large spaces
as in factories, stores and other commercial and industrial buildings.

5
HVAC 6021

Fin Coils
In larger buildings, the air to be heated is often drawn from the rooms by a fan
and moved through a duct system to a central point. The air is then forced through
a steam or hot water heated fin coil placed across the air duct. This fin coil
consists of one or more rows of parallel tubes fitted with fins to increase the rate
of heat exchange. The heated air is then returned to the various rooms through a
warm air supply duct system. Individual room temperature is usually controlled
by dampers that regulate the amount of heated air passing into each room.
Unit Ventilators
Unit ventilators, also called univents, are basically cabinet type unit heaters
which, in addition to the standard heating coil and blower or fan, are also
equipped with an air filter, several dampers and an outside air inlet to admit fresh
air for ventilation.
Fig. 6 illustrates cross-sectional views of a blow through type of unit ventilator
with the dampers shown in various positions.

Figure 6
Unit Ventilator Cross-Sectional View
Referring to Fig. 6, the action of the thermostatically controlled unit is as follows:
(a) The room temperature is below the setting of the thermostat. The mixing
damper prevents outside air from entering while keeping the room air inlet
wide open. Coil bypass and anti-wipe dampers are wide open so that all air
discharged by the fan is forced to pass through the heating coil.

6
HVAC 6021

(b) Room temperature approaches the thermostat setting, less heat is needed
now. The mixing damper opens the outside air intake slightly, simultaneously
reducing the amount of room air entering the unit. The coil bypass damper
closes in, allowing part of the air mixture to bypass the heating coil. The antiwipe damper also closes in, forcing the heated air to mix intimately with the
unheated, bypassed air.
(c) Room temperature is hovering near the thermostat setting and is now
controlled by the mixing damper allowing more or less outside air into the
unit for ventilation and by the bypass damper regulating the amount of air
passing through the heating coil.
(d) When room temperature exceeds the thermostat setting, as is often the case
during warm weather, the mixing damper admits a maximum amount of
outside air and a minimum amount of room air. Bypass and anti-wipe
dampers close the heating coil off completely.
Unit ventilators are often equipped with three-speed switches which regulate the
speed of the fan so that the amount of air passing through the unit can be
controlled as well.
Fig. 7 shows an inside view of a draw through unit. Note that the fan is
mounted in the upper part of this unit and draws the air through the heating coil.

Figure 7
Unit Ventilator Inside View

Air Vents
When a steam heating system is started up, all piping, radiators, and convectors
will be filled with air. This air must be removed from the system to make way for
the steam. Also, under certain conditions, air may enter the system while it is in
operation.

7
HVAC 6021

The presence of air is undesirable since it will block the free flow of the steam,
reduce the heat transfer from the convectors and other heat exchange equipment,
and promote corrosion in the system, especially in the condensate return piping.
Older steam heating systems had manually operated vent valves placed on the
high points in the piping where air tended to collect. During start-up and
occasionally during operation, these valves were opened to remove the air.
Convectors and other heaters were vented by means of small petcocks.
Modern systems are automatically vented. Fig. 8 illustrates an automatic air vent
used to expel the air from the risers and main headers of the heating system.
Smaller models are used on radiators and convectors. The valve permits air to
leave the system, but closes tightly when the system is completely filled with
steam.

Figure 8
Air Vent
The air vent consists of a small housing containing a sealed cylinder, partially
filled with a volatile liquid, to which a needle valve is attached. The bottom of the
cylinder consists of a flexible diaphragm which rests on a stop.
When relatively cool air surrounds the cylinder, the needle valve will be open,
allowing the air to escape. However, when most of the air is expelled and hot
steam starts to surround the cylinder, the volatile liquid will evaporate, increasing
the pressure in the cylinder and, as a result, increasing the height of the cylinder.
This forces the needle valve up against its seat, effectively preventing the escape
of steam.

8
HVAC 6021

When air collects again in the valve housing, the vapor in the cylinder condenses,
the pressure drops, the cylinder contracts and the valve opens up again.
Some steam heating systems operate under a vacuum in order to use steam with a
temperature below 100C. The vent valves used on these systems must not only
allow air to escape when the system operates above atmospheric pressure, they
must also prevent air from entering the system when the pressure drops below
atmospheric.

Radiator Valves
Manually operated radiator valves, used to control the flow of steam to the
radiators, are a special design of globe valve. They are made in either a straightthrough or an angle design. Some types are packless in order to avoid the trouble
of leakage around the valve stem and the necessity of repacking.
The packless radiator valve, Fig. 9, has a bronze diaphragm that completely seals
off the valve body and so prevents steam from leaking out around the valve stem.
When the valve stem is turned, the button pushes down against the diaphragm and
the diaphragm in turn pushes down the operating levers. The levers force the
valve disc against its seat thus closing the valve. When the stem is backed off, the
spring lifts the disc off its seat, thus opening the valve.

Figure 9
Packless Radiator Valve
9
HVAC 6021

Radiator Traps
As the steam in the radiator gives up its heat to the room, it condenses to water
which must be removed from the radiator as fast as it is formed. The radiator trap
is a device which allows the condensed steam or water to be discharged from the
radiator but prevents any steam from discharging. The type of trap commonly
used for this purpose is the thermostatic trap with either corrugated bellows or
disc.
Condensate Receiver and Pump
In many steam heating systems the condensate, discharged by the steam traps
from radiators, convectors, or other heating equipment, drains by gravity through
the return piping to a condensate receiver. A condensate pump delivers the water
from the receiver to the boiler.
Fig. 10 shows a condensate receiver with a horizontal condensate pump. The
pump operation on this unit is controlled by a float switch on the receiver. Note
that the condensate receiver is vented to atmosphere so that the pressure in
receiver and return piping is therefore atmospheric.

Figure 10
Horizontal Condensate Pump
Vacuum Pumps
In building complexes covering large areas, such as shopping centers, schools,
and factories, the resistance to flow of the condensate in the return piping of
steam heating systems is quite high. In such systems, vacuum pumps are often
used to assist the condensate flow as alternative to using higher steam pressures in
steam supply lines and heat exchange equipment to force the condensate through
its piping, or using condensate receivers with pumps for each section.
10
HVAC 6021

The vacuum pump performs two major functions:

1. It creates and maintains a vacuum in the return piping so that the back
pressure is reduced and the condensate flows easier to the condensate tank.
2. It returns the condensate back to the boiler.

Fig. 11 shows a common type of vacuum pump with condensate tanks and piping
arrangement. Condensate returns flow to the accumulator tank. When the water in
this tank reaches a predetermined level, the float switch starts the vacuum pump.
However, the suction of this pump does not draw the water from the accumulator
tank but from the air separating tank, as is shown in Fig. 12. The pump discharges
the water via the exhauster to the top of the air separating tank.

Figure 11
Vacuum Pump

11
HVAC 6021

Figure 12
Pump Schematic Diagram

The exhauster consists of a series of nozzles through which water is forced by the
pump. As the water leaves the first nozzle at a very high velocity, it draws air,
water, and water vapor from the accumulator tank, entrains it, and so creates a
vacuum in the accumulator tank and return lines. The water vapor is condensed as
it combines with the water passing through the nozzles and this also helps to
increase the vacuum. The water-air mixture then passes through the remaining
nozzles and discharges into the air separating tank.
The air leaves this tank through a vent to the atmosphere, the water collects
below. When the level of the water in the tank rises, a float causes the discharge
valve in the boiler feed line to open and the excess water is pumped to the boiler.
The linkage between float and discharge valve can be seen in Fig. 11.

12
HVAC 6021