great idea , thanks . my elementary school had radiators . every so often , an ancient truck w/no muffler would show up w/a load of coal . made such a noise the teacher wouldn't even try to shout above it for the 1/2 hour while it unloaded . can still picture that beloved truck 55 + years later .

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Lovely! I am sure your school was using some interesting equipment there! I bet the coal delivery guys were fascinating individuals with lots of stories to tell!

So thrilled to see you have updated this absolutely fine and decorative heater output unit from the past. I always knew there was a way to update old heat source units,such as this radiator, those little round wood or kerosene stoves. I love your idea. 👍

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you!

Very innovative and what a charming heater at that! I grew up with Steam heat from a coil fired boiler in the basement. Definitely not instant heat but boy was it cozy and never had to worry about dry air :)

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you! This is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

This is such a great way to utilize one of these. There isn’t steam heat in my area, but I’ve always wondered if there was a way I could have a functional radiator in the house. Thanks for sharing!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video and hope you are able to do a similar project. Be aware this is the first one of these I have done and I have no idea how long it will last. It's just an experiment.

That's great. Now I'm on the hunt for one.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! This is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

This is seriously on of the coolest up cycles I’ve ever seen, self contained “portable” steam radiator.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you!

Very cool. Perfect day for an extra heater too!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

That it is! We have had some bad cold weather for sure.

That was definitely a nice standalone heater conversion

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Very creative of you!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks Nicholas!

Nice point about oil being flammable. It might still be worthwhile to put a thermal fuse in the control box, in case the thermostat contacts weld themselves on.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! I did testing and even at 100 duty cycle overnight, the radiator didn't overheat. The surface area is enough to dissipate the heat. If I were to build such a project for someone else, I would put a secondary safety device of some sort in place, but for my own use, it's good enough.

I love it!!! Great idea to use such a beautiful radiator. It’s perfect.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you!

I want one too! Great idea David

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! They are out there. From what I hear, up north they are "everywhere." If you road trip, keep your eyes out!

Very............cool!😊

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Love the project! Great to see old equipment with new life. Hello from Rhode Island.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks Peter! I appreciate your comment!

Awesome. I pulled a similar unit out of the scrapyard here in VA -- it is cosmetically nice & I just couldn't bear to see it get destroyed. My current house is 154 years old & never had a boiler...but you've given me some hope that I could actually use mine instead of it just sitting in the basement. Thank you David!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! I expect you can build something similar to this with yours. Just full disclaimer; this is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

Don’t listen to the haters, they don’t matter. I had thought about doing this last winter; I have radiators in the house, but not in my bathroom upstairs, and it would be extremely difficult to plumb in. I didn't consider steam; I was going to fill with water/antifreeze for corrosion control, and leave it vented. I thought if the element did not go through the last fin, normal convection current would keep the water circulating. I still plan to try this, but I have to find the right size small radiator.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you! I am certainly not worried about the haters! They are a fact of life on the Internet. This is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

Wow!! Really love this project!❤❤❤

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

This was really interesting. I had a thought of doing this last year. You've given me a lot of great ideas of how to carry it out. Was going to use it as a hot water radiator filled nearly full with an anti-freeze solution. Your way is simpler and safe as well. Thank you for the well done, thoughtful video. Have a great day.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it! Hope to see your conversion when that time comes. This is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give.

See, in my eyes you just made an R718 passive heat pipe. Gotta tie it back somehow.

@davida1hiwaaynet

8 күн бұрын

Yep, I guess you're right... Technically that's what it is!

This is pretty neat! Im thinking of ways to give extra heating to my upstairs and a few of those on a dedicated circuit would be cool. Much nicer looking than the usual baseboard heaters

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

That would be a great way to warm your upstairs!

There were all kinds of things made of cast iron for several decades that were ornate, and I've collected cast iron hardware, and my wood cookstove is similar.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Definitely love the ornate cast iron things! Have many motors, compressors and other vintage iron stuff.

Great idea maybe add wheels to move it and a light indicator lite to show it's plugged in and heating.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Definitely needs wheels! I may put it on a small wooden base with casters under a wood skirt. That would make it more finished appearing.

@m.m.radiochannel1969

6 ай бұрын

@@davida1hiwaaynet yes especially it weighes a ton. I like it though. Why don't u think things last longer these days. You won't find a Samsung fridge from today running 20+ years from now.

@m.m.radiochannel1969

6 ай бұрын

@@davida1hiwaaynet I have my channel with some repair videos if intrested in. youtube.com/@m.m.radiochannel1969?si=nPSAFQlX4eeNfvGC

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

LOL about the Sam sung craptastic fridges! Those are a running joke in the vintage appliance world, as you well know! Thanks for dropping your channel link. I'll look at it soon.

@m.m.radiochannel1969

6 ай бұрын

@@davida1hiwaaynet my parents had one was a POS more problems than anything they got rid of it and got a no thrill fridge an Amanda I think (whirlpool) my mom has an old stove from the late 40s or 50s all manual no thrills it still works.

Interesting concept! I may have to try it myself. I can get about 50 linear feet of radiator sections at an exceptionally good price, i think. 🎉

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks for the comment! Wow at the thought of a 50 foot radiator! That would take quite a few kW worth of heating elements!

That's super cool!

@davida1hiwaaynet

5 ай бұрын

Thanks!

I absolutely love this! I have been wondering if it would be possible to do something like this with some antique radiators I’ve had for years. I’m going to give it a try. Great work and explanation of the process!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! I hope you are able to get yours going. I would detail more of the process but this is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

It is a bygone era. It was a time when they thought 'let's make our product beautiful.' And if you think about it, it really didn't cost them much to do so. They had some woodworker carve that into the mold master, basically one time. (Well, a few times for different size radiators pieces.) Personally I would've put a blow off valve on it. Just for peace of mind.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

I can only imagine the level of artistry and care which went into the design of this. The same goes for the other ornate iron things like the Sturtevant fans and blowers, and Century motors from this era. Love all this stuff. As for a pressure relief valve, the heating element doesn't have enough power to overheat the radiator, even if run at full power continuously. I ran it for a couple days without a thermostat in place, as a test. The only way it could overheat is if it were covered up (which people definitely do; such as for warm towels etc.) This is my own personal project, and the first one I have done, so I am willing to use it as is. I would likely use some form of electrical overtemp cutout, like a thermal fuse. Would rather not have scalding hot fluid escape. If some sort of fusible plug was used, I would have to make it so that it would discharge downward or in some other safe direction.

@madmanmapper

6 ай бұрын

@@davida1hiwaaynet You could probably put a thermal cutout on the bottom of the radiator. Do heating elements already have a thermal fuse?

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

@@madmanmapper These elements don't have a thermal fuse. They are rated for 240V but are running on 120V so I don't know if they would survive dry-firing or not.

so clever. There are so many uses for old radiators as heat exchangers for example.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! I've wanted to use a smaller one for a condenser heat exchanger on a custom refrigeration system.

This is something I've wanted to do years ago when I had an old cast iron radiator that was saved from a cousin's house when they did a remodel. I looked into several ways to do it, but never attempted anything (I got the "you'll burn the house down with it" and "it'll blow up" comments as well). The radiator is long gone now. I've also had my eyes peeled for one of those vintage 30s-40s Burnham electric steam radiators. I finally stumbled across one at a local antique sale a year or two ago with the cord cut off and in well worn condition....$200, and seller wouldn't budge on price.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks for the comment! I really appreciate it. It is sad how people are so quick to chirp about gloom and doom when they know nothing about the subject matter. Several have mentioned the Burnham electric steam radiators. I have looked briefly and it seems they employed a very similar concept to this one. In fact, the man who explained how to charge and purge this system got the idea from servicing Burnham units.

I like this much better than the cheap China oil filled ones. Those will not run continuously on high as they trip out the 900 watt element, even with the thermostat on high. And the possibility of an oil leak always made me nervous.

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks! Yeah i would worry that it might seep oil. If this one seeps out the water, it will simply stop heating except for the area around the element. No harm.

Great Job! Now I want one!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

What a great idea!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Great idea!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Brilliant!!☻

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Maybe tap a small prv in it. i know they sell replacement cappuccino maker prvs threaded. Side note. Ive decide to grab a cheapo ultrasonic cleaner, and ask what brand size is good for hvac parts ect. David i turned 40 last year and i realize someone has to carry on fixing things right. I ran my own hvac company butni can no longer stand behind todays products. There are not a lot of people near me doing vintage restos and i would like to converse on how to get into the vintge niche, please.

@davida1hiwaaynet

5 ай бұрын

Feel free to send me an e-mail so we can chat about it. Look on my channel about page, and there is a link to see the e-mail. If I type it here, I will get spammed to death.

@Islandwaterjet

5 ай бұрын

I would like to hear about this too. Perhaps a good topic for a future livestream.

@leahcim38

5 ай бұрын

Friend there is no email in the about...

That is so cool!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Neat idea!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Glad you think so!

That's cool! didn't know you could do that

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thank you! This is my first one, so I can't say how long it will last or what sort of experience it will give; but for now I love it. Will follow up!

nice!!!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Neat!

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Not fair to say there is a special procedure to stop the steam from creating excessive pressure without saying what is that special procedure. Any thoughts on an additive ie automotive antifreeze that would act as a corrosion inhibitor ?

@davida1hiwaaynet

5 ай бұрын

Sorry about that. I can explain the procedure. You notice the brass vent fitting on the side? After filling the lower 1/3 of the radiator with water, leave that port open and attach a hose to it. Route that hose into a bowl of water. This will form a water trap where steam can escape but air can't draw back in. Then, power on the radiator with it wrapped in blankets. Allow it to reach a strong boil (bypass thermostat etc.) As the air is pushed out and replaced with steam, the bubbles forming in the water bowl will change in appearance and sound. Once it is pure steam escaping and collapsing in the water bowl, the air is gone from inside the radiator. Carefully and using gloves, remove the hose with the radiator continuing to boil. Place the cab over the fitting, trapping the steam inside. At that point, take the blankets off the radiator to allow it to return to normal operation temperature. Definitely don't want antifreeze inside due to the boiling. It will put deposits on the heating element. Once the radiator interior is air-free, corrosion won't happen. This works as long as the system is sealed properly.

This is very cool. What about filling it with oil like the mini store bought radiators?

Looks awesome! Any thoughts on putting an antique fan behind it? It could probably heat up a room in no time. :D

@davida1hiwaaynet

5 ай бұрын

Thanks! These are designed to work by convection, so no fan is needed! The heating element is only going to produce 1.2kW of heat regardless of how much air flows. If it had a real steam boiler behind it, a fan would help get much more heat from it.

Could control it with a pressure stat like a espresso machine just keep it at like 10 psi

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

Yes! I had actually thought about that. My concern is that due to use of water it could clog the switch or attachment tubing with deposits; or if there were a leak in the system it might not disable the heater when the water is lost. currently, the temperature well is located next to the heating element and will detect temperature even if there is no water in the unit.

@MillersMotors

6 ай бұрын

hmm maybe put a big T fitting and then the pressure stat in a reducer so that it wont clog so easy. keep the thermostat you have as a overtemp safety ? cool stuff an thanks for sharing! @@davida1hiwaaynet

@davida1hiwaaynet

6 ай бұрын

@@MillersMotors That; or use a gauge isolator with a diaphragm in it. That would keep the little lines from being exposed to water.