Boiler plumbing

[johnp]

Does all the piping from the boiler to the valves need to be black pipe?

Schedule 80 or 40?

When can I use copper? Anything after the valves?

[Lopez Mike]

I guess no one is ready to jump in here.

A short answer is yes. Use schedule 80 between the boiler and the first valve. This includes the safety valve where there is, of course, no shutoff valve.

The main reason being that schedule 40 pipe is too easily busted off by kicking it or any mechanical forces. With our pressures there isn't a problem with bursting schedule 40. But the threads cut away most of the wall thickness.

After that first valve, copper is fine as long as you stay clear of soft solder on steam lines. Also, stay clear of compression connections with copper. They have gotten soft and come loose in the past. Stay with flare fittings.

Go to the N.W. Steam Society web page and download the boiler safety PDF file. Good practical stuff.

Mike

[artemis]

... Go to the N.W. Steam Society web page and download the boiler safety PDF file. Good practical stuff.

Mike

And since many won't bother to look it up here's the direct URL http://www.northweststeamsociety.org/Pa ... safety.htm
Thanks Mike, this is one of the ways it's meant to be used.