From campfires to fuel cells, man has discovered many fascinating ways to keep warm. One method is heating with steam. A vessel fueled by coal, oil, gas, or wood boils water and produces steam. The steam travels through piping to radiators and gives off heat. Although steam boilers are seldom installed in new homes, there are tens of thousands of systems in use today. Because many of these systems have been altered over the years, it is necessary for today’s technicians to have a solid working knowledge of steam heat fundamentals. Today we will look at some of the basic components of a steam heating system.
A one-pipe system uses a single pipe to both supply steam to radiators and return condensate to the boiler. (See Figure 1.)