Recommend a plumber who specializes in residential steam boilers? (Arlington: house, asbestos)

[OccamsShaver]

Hi-
I'm trying to find a qualified professional to replace my 93 year old "snowman" boiler (just bought the house and this is what they had). I've had one plumber come look at it and he hasn't yet sent me the estimate that as he said he would. I understand that these are pretty specialized systems that require extensive knowledge on the part of the contractor. Anyone that you would recommend?

Thank you!
OS

[alex_toth]

Fun stuff, I replaced one in 2011. We had to get the asbestos removed as well.

We used Lovett Plumbing, based out of Arlington. He's a great guy, probably not the foremost expert on steam but knows enough not to do dumb things. He was cheaper than others as well.

If you want to spend more or if your area is different, go to the steam forums on heatinghelp.com. You'll always see posts by plumbers there helping people out. They know their stuff and use the forums to solicit business.

Finally, if you haven't read it yet I highly recommend reading "We Got Steam Heat!" by Dan Holohan before letting the plumber do his work. It will give you tips on how the system should look so you can make sure they're following the correct procedure.

[OccamsShaver]

Originally Posted by alex_toth

Fun stuff, I replaced one in 2011. We had to get the asbestos removed as well.

We used Lovett Plumbing, based out of Arlington. He's a great guy, probably not the foremost expert on steam but knows enough not to do dumb things. He was cheaper than others as well.

If you want to spend more or if your area is different, go to the steam forums on heatinghelp.com. You'll always see posts by plumbers there helping people out. They know their stuff and use the forums to solicit business.

Finally, if you haven't read it yet I highly recommend reading "We Got Steam Heat!" by Dan Holohan before letting the plumber do his work. It will give you tips on how the system should look so you can make sure they're following the correct procedure.

Thank you very much. I called a plumber the other day and he recommended both the Holohan book and web site. I've since spoken with a steam boiler specialist and received one estimate. I'll look for one or two more bids before proceeding.