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I have a water softener that performs on-demand regeneration based on the amount of water we use. Ever since we replaced our old water heater (gas-fired) with an indirect tank off a boiler, we have been regenerating every 2-3 days. Looking at the softener diagnostics, it thinks there is a...

My wife and I like the "classic" look of a 3-handle valve, but I'd prefer to have a thermostatic valve. I could swear that I have seen a valve that provides both, with the handles controlling temperature, pressure, and showerhead/tub instead of hot, cold, and showerhead/tub. Does this ring a...

I'm happy leaving the outswing door. Can you sketch what you mean about the 66" custom shower? Larger showers are good :)

Roughly 1"/1' scale. The door is 24" wide, so yeah - tiny. Which makes me wonder how they got the current tub in, now that I think about it... In the first picture, the toilet is centered in a 36" wide space. In the second, 3' 4". Let me see if I can get dimensions...

I'm planning a gut and redo of our downstairs bathroom. The room is small - 6'8" deep and 6' wide - and I'm planning on taking it down to the studs and starting over. We'd like to put in a toilet, sink, and shower; a tub is not necessary. I've got two rough layouts that I'd like comments on...

I'll definitely look into sealing the basement. The band joist is plastered over (did I mention plaster, plaster everywhere??) so getting in there hasn't been a priority. Should be one, though. And the problem with the double-hungs is air coming through the access ports as well as the pulleys...

Windows... let's see. I'm going to categorize since they vary. "Classic" double-hung (uninsulated sash pocket, no weatherstripping): 12. "Upgraded" double-hung (1" foam in the sash pocket, nylon pile weatherstripping): 5 1 vinyl slider, 1 vinyl awning, 5 modern casements, 6 modern...

1600 square feet, 2 stories. There's a bump-out that's about 150 square feet per floor, the rest is a cube shape. 4-6 windows per room, all double-hung. The storms aren't great. I definitely don't feel drafts in the winter, though. Blown-in insulation in walls and ceiling, plaster walls. I...

We are aggressively setting the temperature back, so that might be it. The morning/evening temps are 68*, during the day is 65*, and night is 58*. I don't believe we are very well insulated (if nothing else, double-hung windows with no weatherstripping and uninsulated sash pockets). Does it make...

I'm also looking at replacing the current cast iron monster with a more efficient system. I was quoted a 110K Triangle Tube Prestige Solo; I'd like to double-check that with you folks. I live in a 1900-era house, which has had cellulose insulation blown in and storm windows. It's not at all...

I see, thanks. Would it make sense to put in the bypass no matter what to ensure that I'm not going to shock the boiler? I'm definitely capable of working in a loop of that sort and taping a thermometer to the cold return. I really appreciate the help!

I am officially daunted. As a "technical" type, I often really underestimate how difficult projects are. The current system is set up as two zones (upstairs/downstairs), since that was the easiest way of connecting the pipes. I'll abandon the second boiler and look into purchasing an...

I will look into insulation. I was poking at this mod-con because it's $600 - which makes a damn cheap gamble. At this point it's all about the "cheap". I'll check the foundation and sill. The basement is entirely plastered (as in wall covering, not drunk, unfortunately) which makes spotting...

Thanks for the response! Things are making a lot more sense now. One last question based on Dana's post. If we're using big-iron radiators, is there still any benefit from the buffer tank? I wouldn't expect boiler-fed DHW in the near future, unfortunately. The purpose of the buffer tank is...

I definitely see where you are going. One complication - in real terms, in a place like Madison (frozen north, heh), how much does the "modulating" nature get us? As of last year we spent ~$100 in gas, per month, for the downstairs boiler. This was including a _ton_ of short-cycling as we kept...

Reworking is free; I'll be doing the work myself. I'm simply replacing existing piping runs and adding a manifold to the one boiler. The other will be disconnected and abandoned in place. Well, okay, it'll cost piping, but that's in the small number of hundreds. And I know I had short-cycle...

Unfortunately, I think a new one is out of the budget. Even with the 1500 credit we're still talking multiple thousands. Also, our taxes are likely to be low this year (one of the benefits, I suppose, of not making a lot of money) and so we wouldn't even see the total 1500. So it looks like...

We are not planning to re-split the house, no. It started as a 2-flat and we're recombining it into a single family home. WRT efficiency, the opinion seems to be that efficiency drops over time. My wife thinks the current boiler is ~25 years old, so would it still be kicking out 83%? Is...

Some background: I own a 1600 square foot house in Madison, WI. When we bought it it was set up as a two-flat, upstairs and downstairs. Each floor is heated with a boiler and cast iron radiators. The current setup is a pair of Bryant (?) boilers, 112K BTU in and 93K BTU out. I have no idea how...

Ahh... I see. So instead of the code (which has us running two tubs + sinks + toilets + washing machine... all at once) I want to go with what actually can happen and then possibly round up a bit. That makes a lot of sense. Thanks!