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Cast Iron Rad Leak

1077 Views 12 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  COLDIRON
Hey! Hope everyone is having a great new year so far!
My q is with regards to an old cast iron radiator in a guest br. I've noticed water running from out under It the other morning. I look and notice a slow drip in what looks like a joint between fins at the bottom. . Can this be fixed w/o having to drain the system and stand on a two ft long pipe wrench to break the rad loose? Maybe some high heat sealant?? The system is steam heat. Your suggestions are appreciated.
Best!!
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No, I dont see how anything is going to resist hot steam under pressure. You cant caulk a boat from the inside.
jagans said:
No, I dont see how anything is going to resist hot steam under pressure. You cant caulk a boat from the inside.
My thoughts were that as well. But it's not steam that is coming out as I am able to touch the area where it is dripping. I was wondering maybe some boiler putty or some kind of dealer.
Any thing applied on the outside is not going to work.
Your seeing water because the steam is cooling.
Be very very careful. Take your wrenches and give the bolts(that hold the rad together) a slight snug and see if that stops it from leaking.
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There are Architectural warehouses, that you can purchases reclaimed rad's, etc. that are pulled from old structures before razed. Here is one company I found through a Yahoo search http://www.oldcastironradiators.com/ Keep in mind, that piping is as old as the Rad, and since it rusts from the inside out, you may find that you are opening up a large can of worms, once you start working on it.
I remember researching the rads ( Hw) in our old house.

preferred method of repair is to take rads apart, clean all edges, and reassemble.

easier to buy a reclaimed (pressure tested of course) or have someone who does repair repair it. very easy to crack cast iron if not careful.
Hey Beenthere, should he hit the nuts with PB Blaster for a couple of days prior to trying?
Not really. Won't hurt.
Thanks to everyone. I will try to tighten the nuts first...
I dont get that answer at all. Not really, Wont Hurt. :laughing::laughing:

I think he ought to wire wheel down through the 6,580 coats of paint that is always on old radiators, and try to get some PB-Blaster into the threads. Maybe even heat them up a little? Carefully, so no crack?
I dont get that answer at all. Not really, Wont Hurt. :laughing::laughing:

I think he ought to wire wheel down through the 6,580 coats of paint that is always on old radiators, and try to get some PB-Blaster into the threads. Maybe even heat them up a little? Carefully, so no crack?
Thats why I didn't tell him to really torque hard on them.
Listen to gregzoll and replace it, your looking to get burnt or open up a can of worms that you won't be able to close.

Make sure you have all the wrench's, fittings and new radiator before your mess with it.

Or call a Pro.
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