Cast Iron Radiator Ribs Removal: Tools & Techniques for Old, Large Radiators

Question

Hello!
I have the following problem: I have an old large cast iron radiator and I recently found out that it is possible to unscrew the ribs from it.
I do not know with what key to do it and whether this key will fit any cast iron radiator.
Help me!

mirrzo · Answer

If you make your own key, it will fit all cast iron radiators. But it's a higher driving school - no offense.

kemot55 · Answer

Apart from the key, you need a lot of effort (or a suitable gear) to unscrew the old radiator. I did it once. Primitive key -> vaulted rebar (fi 15mm) but it worked. It is best to buy one connector, see it and add device to it. Just pay attention to the direction of unscrewing the internal connectors (I think there are left threads - I don't remember) and the threads on the plugs -> I suggest a feeling approach (I do not know if it is possible to determine which is left and which is right ).

mirrzo · Answer

This is the higher driving school

MarudaP · Answer

You can try in two ways: heat the connection with a torch and then use a wrench, or cut the connector with a ball (to avoid damaging the flat surfaces, grind the teeth of the ball).

cirrostrato · Answer

And if nothing can be done (if the old age has solidified with limescale and rust), go for scrap, you will even find brand new cast iron radiators.

mirrzo · Answer

Neither one nor the other. Both ways have disadvantages. Heating with the burner strains the cast iron, and if you do not operate the burner properly, you will destroy several adjacent ribs. Ball cutting? You already have 2 adjacent ribs ready for scrap metal scrap. Wouldn't it be better to smash it with a hammer and lose only ONE rib? When it bursts from impact, you only lose one thing. Safe and proven method. For that, recovered ribs NO.

gauden19 · Answer

So a flat tip is enough as in a screwdriver ?? At the hardware store, he told me he needed some kind of hex key.

kemot55 · Answer

Rather, it will be a giant screwdriver But roughly it is. I started the 30-year-old version and somehow I didn't destroy anything. And the hexagon could also fit, but it will be expensive because it must have nice dimensions.

mirrzo · Answer

It will not fit; I have not met such a connector Just something like that. The nipple has 2 fins inside and you should twist them.

krisi3 · Answer

Unscrew the plug and you will know what the left or right threads are.

This is more or less what this key looks like.

Sory for the drawing done quickly, but I hope you will have a picture of what this key looks like.

mirrzo · Answer

Can you give which way to turn? Except that it is left to the right and right to the left

krisi3 · Answer

Turn in the right direction until it is unscrewed.

tob53 · Answer

Hello
Also so far I was forced to dismantle the ribs once, a 10-element radiator was "poked" in the door in the basement, I made a key from a ?20 rebar, 65 cm long, 55 cm arm was torn at the end 3x3x1 cm, a little force and it was done. I determined the direction of winding up experimentally, it did not go one way, I tried the other, and then it was downhill.
Pictures of this key attached.

Regards

Anonymous · Answer

Typically, there is a left-hand thread on the back of the radiator (full plug), which means that by inserting the key into the hole on the rear plug, unscrew it to the right. (Left thread indicates the direction of tightening)
There is typically a right hand thread on the front of the heater.
This in turn means that we turn to the left.
This also applies to couplings (I anticipate the questions) because the couplings have half threads - right and left.
The whole "bajer" is this key (homemade) and the job is best for two people.
It happens that the connectors are so seized that a second person has to stand on the radiator to "load it".
Because sometimes the heater wants to "jump" after the key.
ps. it happens that one rib has to be "sacrificed" and hit with a hammer, but one of my colleagues has already written it.
No cut between the ribs - as they say, nothing by force - just a hammer. :-)

wodyn · Answer

The key in the photo is lovely, and on the other hand, a eye was made hot / welded to the key with the end / and so that you could insert a pipe into it, a piece of about 1.2 m in diameter. 1.25 inch it was the best to spin. Previously, installers with a lot of such work on the radiators used to make barbell wrenches like this.

czyzyk64 · Answer

question whether I understand correctly.
I want to add a few cast iron ribs to an already installed cast iron radiator, I have to add these three ribs as a whole (another old radiator), or to add it to the old one, I have to unscrew it (these three ribs) and add one rib in turn, Can I add a total of three at once?

mirrzo · Answer

Of course three. You just remove the plugs and add yours in full.

andk1eltd · Answer

You can screw / unscrew in any configuration, you only need to hit a specific connector with the wrench. When adding fins, it's not a problem because you can see the connector and (at least for a moment) the end of the key. When unscrewing, put the key to the radiator, mark the distance to the fitting of interest on the key, insert the key inside to the marked depth - and unscrew it.

czyzyk64 · Answer

aaaaaaa, I think I understand, i.e. I have a twisted cast iron radiator with three ribs and these three ribs to attach to an already installed radiator, e.g. with 10 ribs, then I unscrew the end plugs on the 10th and I add these three, and from the middle of these tighten the coupler respectively inside three. . Crap quality is confusing,. But thanks in advance for the answers. Regards.

Zbigniew Rusek · Answer

When adding these 3 ribs, you need to remember about the appropriate gaskets between the already existing ribs and the additional ones. Of course, when you screw in the radiator plugs after attaching these ribs, you also have to remember to install new gaskets. When such a renovation is already done, it is worth installing a quill vent (replace the top plug on the last rib with a blind one with a 1/2 '' hole and screw a vent into this hole).
Tighten both these extra ribs and radiator plugs STRONGLY (to avoid leakage).

kemot55 · Answer

I will also add from myself: the vent must be decent (not some "Chinese plastic") and you tighten not the "nipple" but the couplings and alternately - a little up, a little down.
And it is not better to ask someone who knows about it?

czarny_1963 · Answer

What for ? I have a central one for over 20 years and I have 240 cast iron ribs spread over 10 rooms and I have no vent on any of them, and none of them has ever aired. Heaters should be slightly tilted towards; supply slightly higher than the end of the heater. The largest panel is 30 ribs. And there is no problem with unscrewing and screwing, you only need a key like a few posts above, but you need to use a bit of force, as the ribs have some years of operation, and the seals must be replaced with new ones every time, this is standard. When turning, you just have to remember to tighten alternately a few turns, once up and down until completely tightened. The same goes for aluminum radiators. That's the whole philosophy of cast iron ribbed radiators, and you don't need any skilled professionals, don't laugh.

Zbigniew Rusek · Answer

Theoretically, everything should run without vents, but there are exceptions. For example, the system is filled with the supply and not the return pipeline (i.e. not as needed), especially when the water is released too rapidly. Then there is air in the radiators. Another reason is, for example, the radiators turned off when the cooperative fills the installation (the turned off radiator will then remain air-tight, even if the water is turned on correctly, i.e. by returning and slowly) and we often turn them off, if only to avoid heat in September (often immediately fill with hot water). This means that a vent is sometimes useful. As for the 30-rib radiator, you can sing how heavy it is. I think it is in a very large room (eg with an area of 50 m2), because with a smaller area such a large radiator would cause Saudi Arabia inside.

czyzyk64 · Answer

thanks a lot for all the tips. Regards So now let's go .....

mirrzo · Answer

But first drain the water from the installation.

czarny_1963 · Answer

Exactly ,,, but it should be filled from the side of the boiler, that's what the connector is for, for draining and filling, and if there are appropriate drops on the radiators, no problem. And this is a problem of the cooperative, if these radiators do not heat up, you report it to the cooperative and they should worry, you pay the rent and you should not be interested in anything. A colleague asked about tightening 3 ribs, i.e. the conclusion that he lives in a private house because you cannot do such things on your own in a block of flats. I agree, it is heavy as hell, and it stands in the hall and staircase open from the ground floor to the first floor, it is large and, in addition, cubature and it is not like in Arabia. Regards.

bob770 · Answer

Hello and welcome. What do you think about cast iron radiators? They heat better than the record ones? Because every seller or producer praises his own. What do you think about such stylized:

Zbigniew Rusek · Answer

Do they heat better than plate heaters - a relative thing. Theoretically, plate heating should be better, but ... at a low temperature of the heating medium, they can heat cast iron a little better. In general, they have completely different properties. The plate ones have a very small water capacity and the cast iron ones - large, so that the plate ones heat up very quickly, but they also cool down quickly after turning, and the cast iron ones heat up a bit longer, but also cool down MUCH longer and often after turning off the heater remains hot for a long time. This makes temperature regulation difficult. For example, when there is a weather regulator, panel radiators are much better for them, because they cool down faster and due to their low capacity, the installation will cool down faster when the regulator switches off, and at the same time it heats up faster when the regulator switches on the heating. However, when using an individual boiler, they can be better made of cast iron, because due to thermal inertia (large capacity), the clocking of the boiler will not occur so often.

bob770 · Answer

Thanks to, that is, such a strong advantage of cast irons is probably only their durability. Although there is a 10-year warranty on the Brugman panel radiator.

Cast Iron Radiator Ribs Removal: Tools & Techniques for Old, Large Radiators

How do I make or choose a key to unscrew the sections of an old cast-iron radiator, and will one key fit any cast-iron radiator?

Topic summary

FAQ

Quick Facts

What size and shape key do I need to unscrew cast-iron radiator ribs?

Will one homemade key fit any vintage cast-iron radiator?

How do I tell which way to turn—left or right?

Can heating the joint with a torch help?

What’s the safest way to split ribs without damaging neighbours?

How much force is usually needed and how can I get it?

How do I add extra ribs to an existing radiator?

What sealants or gaskets should I use on reassembly?

Do I need an air vent after extending a cast-iron radiator?

What’s the 3-step method for dismantling a radiator for scrap?

Are cast-iron radiators more efficient than modern panel models?

What common failure stops disassembly?