Gorton No. D Angle Vapor Equalizing Valve

I own a 105-year-old brick home with a 225K BTU boiler that pushes to a single-pipe steam radiator system. The home was purchased in Summer of 2009. After suffering through a couple weeks of uneven heating during the first cold-spell in late-Fall, I figured that something wasn't right with the radiators (the boiler had already been inspected). By doing some research online, I found that having old radiator vents/valves might be the problem. I purchased a couple of Gorton "C" and "D" valves from Pex and replaced the ancient valves on the top two floors' radiators...PROBLEM SOLVED. If you have a similar issue with uneven heating, it is important to use correctly-sized vents on radiators in different parts of the house. The Gorton "C" and "D" vents should only be used on far-end radiators that are a distance from the thermostat. These vents allow the radiators to purge air more quickly, thus allowing the radiators to warm up rapidly. Other smaller sized vents should be used on radiators that are closer to the thermostat or boiler to ensure that these radiators warm up more slowly and do not prematurely end the boiler's heating cycle. You do not want the room with the thermostat to get warmer before the other rooms in the house. Stay away from the vents that are sold in the big box home improvement stores. The Gortons are a little bit more expensive, but if properly placed, they will ensure that you do not have uneven distribution of heat on the single-pipe steam systems found in many older homes. I definitely recommend this product. Installation was simple...Just turn off the heat, let the radiators cool down for a couple of hours, unscrew the old vents and replace with the Gortons. Piece of cake. Mike - Conshohocken, PA

I purchased a Gorton D valve for my steam radiator. When the valve arrived, it showed clear signs that it was a used valve. SupplyHouse quickly exchanged it, so at first, I thought it was just a strange error and appreciated the great customer service. Unfortunately, SupplyHouse sent me a #6 valve as the replacement ... and by the way, one that also looked used. I contacted SH who apologized for the mixup, and they again sent me a replacement. Meanwhile, I had to make a trip to the UPS store to return the valve they sent in error. After about a week of use of the 3rd valve (a D valve), the valve failed this morning. Steam escaping through the valve was so loud that it awoke me two bedrooms and a hallway away! I've used Gorton valves in our steam system since we moved to this house 8 years ago, and this experience with what appears to be used valves + a clear failure suggests strongly the way SupplyHouse keeps their prices so low is by sending used (or refurbished) parts. I am now returning the failed valve and have simply asked for a refund.