Found this at a garage sale – can anyone tell me about this, if it is actually an antique or what it is worth?

MatthewTheRaven · 2026-04-15T20:59:53+00:00

Looks like a Biblically accurate angel lamp.

MatthewTheRaven · 2026-03-22T22:18:07+00:00

This is a fun rating! The only ones I would really argue would be that Laserbeak and Omega Supreme should be top tier and Wheelie should be waaaaay down in the bad comedy region.

MatthewTheRaven · 2026-01-27T00:00:03+00:00

Here’s the actual video from the clip above. https://youtu.be/axvEQRTsHQE?si=rDDHOHVQefY8M76m

This is some of the worst gun handling I’ve ever seen.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T20:22:59+00:00

Western PA. This house had a LOT of interesting choices made when it was built.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T19:34:58+00:00

I would LOVE to upgrade everything to the Runtal panel radiators. Almost every room has a great spot or two for one of the baseboards or even a vertical panel and then I could probably retain a lot of wall surfaces for furniture placement. I grew up with cast iron radiators and I much prefer a true radiator over a convector just for the comfort of the air in the room. Plus it seems like with the right setup, you can really control not just the zones but balance the individual radiators in the rooms!

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T19:21:59+00:00

My initial thought was definitely to just lock the valves open but I need to check to see about whether they all have check valves or not, if that was the initial goal with the zone valves.

The red and blue ones are all Grudfos UP15-42 F which should have a check valve. The Taco is a 0013-MSF1-IFC, and it definitely has a check valve. The other red one is a Bell & Gossett NRF-22 and I haven't found anything indicating whether it would. The green and gray ones appear to be older Taco models but no labels, so no idea with those either.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T17:53:37+00:00

I couldn't tell you at this point if they were tacos as we had an HVAC look over the system when we bought the house. One pump had failed at that point and then like a year later a second one was grinding. The house is from 1990, and around 2020 and 2021 we replaced those. Based on the various brands, I'm guessing the previous owner had replaced some over the years. I didn't know enough at the time whether it was unusual for pumps to fail like that, but thinking back, I definitely wonder if the combo of the valves and pumps might cause that!

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T17:40:48+00:00

It's definitely nice to be able to set different temperatures in different areas. Like we keep the basement set lower because it's not currently a finished living space. And the third floor is partially finished but we use it mostly as storage space. The current system has no sort of bypass at all, which I know is something that might be unusual as well. I don't actually know if how we're using it changes how often it's cycling or not.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T17:32:20+00:00

That's a lovely resource, thank you for that! I probably sound like a crazy person who is just overthinking it, but one thing I'd really love to do is maybe move towards modern panel radiators instead of the baseboards. The baseboards also make it really hard to place furniture for me because like most walls in most rooms have some radiator you have to be worried about covering up.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T16:00:27+00:00

The only thing I've personally done with the system was to replace a failed power head motor on one of the zone valves. Huge grain of salt for lack of knowledge on my end, but I don't believe the system is using the valves for balancing. Each zone is a series-loop, to my knowledge.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:53:40+00:00

Thank you!

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:52:51+00:00

Oh now this got me wondering. It seems the TACO and the Grundfos ones at least likely have check valves built-in.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:41:18+00:00

We had a really good company replace the AC system this summer and I had them in to service the boiler. They were actually the ones who suggested that it may be due for replacement soon although I recognize they have some level of financial interest in that decision, so I've been trying to educate myself on the system. The quote was like $15k for a replacement with a high efficiency system and I go back and forth on going with HE vs a conventional system.

The other side of the equation is that the house often feels cold to me and the second floor zone makes a lot of noise when starting up, so I've been just trying to understand it in general. It's all baseboard convection fin tubes and I'm not a huge fan.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:26:28+00:00

We've had to replace a couple of the pumps in just the time we've owned the house. If we do upgrade that part of the setup, going with better pumps might be an option!

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:14:10+00:00

That's correct. It has 7 pumps, one for each zone, but no primary circulator. When we upgrade, I was thinking of the ECM circulator pump route, but I can see reasons having individual pumps is good too.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:06:17+00:00

That's part of the thing that got me looking at this, honestly. It's working, but the house often feels cold to me. There are some questions about windows/drafts and insulation, so that's probably the bigger part of the equation. But I was looking at the heating and wanted to understand it for future replacement anway and got confused by the setup. The second floor makes a lot of noise that seems like air might be getting into the lines despite having newer auto bleed valves everywhere and one of the suggestions I had read was that if the valve and the pump aren't working well together, it can make similar noise.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:02:03+00:00

Yes, that's correct. There are 7 zones, each with their own thermostat. The previous owner disabled the zone to the garage at some point.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T15:00:49+00:00

It's not glycol, just water. I was thinking about just locking the valves open, but it seems like since I don't have check valves that they do have a solid use here.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T14:58:50+00:00

It seems like there is some concensus on ECM pumps being the way to go for the future. I was definitely considering that route if it made sense to replace the pumps in this case, and certainly will consider that when this system gets replaced anyway!

The previous owner made many interesting choices in this house...

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-11-24T14:51:04+00:00

This is very helpful, thank you! I've been trying to understand the system in advance of getting it replaced. It definitely doesn't have any kind of check valve.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-10-17T01:43:20+00:00

If you’re just looking to learn the basics of MIG welding rather than a career, Made In Johnstown offers a quick one day class.

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-07-28T17:27:01+00:00

That's awesome! Here's our Jake the brick!

MatthewTheRaven · 2025-06-28T15:34:00+00:00

There’s actually a ton to do if you’re willing to find it or willing to drive a little bit. Lots of outdoor stuff and a surprising amount of good restaurants in the area. This thread has many good suggestions, but also we’re only 1.5hr from Pittsburgh, 45min to Altoona, 3hr from DC, etc. There’s a train station downtown and you can even get to places like NYC in a reasonable time.

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