Central Heating problem?

Question

Hi, I think I have more than one problem on our Central Heating system. Its a 1930's house, just bought so little cash for expensive repairs.

Downstairs rads have a twin pipe (10mm) going into each rad valve on one side only. Upstairs is 15mm conventional, pipe in one side, out the other.
Upstairs, one rad (bathroom) works great, others are cold with feed pipes also cold. Why? Air blockage in pipe that tees off to bedroom? If so how do I resolve?
Thanks for your time!

Answer 1

Shall we begin with a carpenters Joke ! Why NOT ?
Michealangelo that most unredoubtale of Italian Marine Architects who after building the WASA up Stockholm was often heard muttering under his breath as he trod the ways of Pompey whilst builing the VICTORY for old woodeneye , " Damnit , measure twice and cut once . " the thing is that nobody ever knew he was a great fan of Confucius . [e-mail]

TRACE the whole piping of the heating system throughout the whole house
2. Is your system topped up with water ?
1. How + Where is water introduced into your heating system ? ! ? ! ?! ( CLAUDE do not not get any strange or eerie feelings if after circumbabulating the estate it disappears back into the water heater / boiler )
3. Is there either an overflow outlet pipe / pressure valve somewhere in the system ?
( check to see if your system / piping goes up into your loft or attic that might well be where you shall find either one or the other or perhaps both incorporated into one unit . )
4. Now find out how your system is " fed " water !
( this could be done by either of two quite simple methods . )

( A ) The simplest ( least time / labour consuming for the homeowner / tennant is based on your toilet bowl / toilet cistern , floating ball principal , i. e. as the water . . . . . .( very gradually " disappears " out of the system through evaporation , / through the overflow pipe due to the difference say between summer & winter mean temperatures + expansion of volumn of water created by temperature changes ) . . .
. . . level lowers inside the cistern it also lowers the floating ball which at a certain measured level automatically ( connected by a chain ) opens the valve allowing water to be re introduced into the cistern and this inflow of water shall be again automatically shut off once the water reaches its measured level , thus keeping the " header tank " / cistern always full and ready to top up the system .
If you think you are losing the plot , quite simply take the lid off any one of your toilet cisterns and observe what happens as you flush that toilet a couple of times , irrigate your imagination and imagine this magnificent event taking place in your attic and Bob's yer uncle !

( B ) This would / could be quite simply a " tap " in the line into the heating system , which the owner / tennant has to physically operate so as to introduce water into the system . . .
. . . ( this shall probaly be located somewhere at the bottom / lower end of the system ) + ( there may be two of these taps in the system one " before " water reaches and enters the water heating " heater " and the other " immediatelly after " the heated water leaves the heater .
WHY ?
Because this can be used to isolate the 3 different parts just mentioned . . .
. . .( piping before water reaches the heater , the heater , piping after the heated water leaves the heater ) . . .
. . . in order to facillitate repair or replacement work .
At this point ZZZ zzz may be part of the problem but please take my word for it that this is not part of the answer ZZZ z.z.z. answer !

CAUTION ! ! ! make sure the top end , example heating system PRESSURE valve functions WELL / or as it should , this means that the moving part , again probably a marble sized " ball " with spring over it contraption moves / can rise and fall " FREELY " within its mounting / holder !

ALSO make sure that the drainage of the system especially at the top / ATTIC is clear of debris and even if it appears to be clean , pour a kettle ( easier to not spill as you cart it up into the attic ) of water into that drain to make sure it drains / clears itself properly before you . . .
. . .Start of / off in the cellar opening this valve and then your better half , whatever his name is says " OOOOooh look @ that lovely valve across there " and then trying it also , before stopping of , on your huffing and puffing way up to the attic , in the kitchen for a ciggy and a cuppa' then you eventually get back up into the attic and find a swimming pool , of which the local council will not , ho hum , approve .

TRACE the complete system throughout the whole house and make sure evey moving part , moves as it ought to . . .

THEN if you are satisfied with that aspect in its entirety , then , think about filling the system with water ( are there individual draining cocks on every radiator DO THEY WORK / MOVE AS THEY SHOULD , , , CONGRATULATIONS after you know that they are all closed ! ! ! ) .

KEEP your eye on the piping FOR LEAKS as you refill the system and be prepared to STOP the refilling process immediately , should a leak appear , this may mean that you have to drain all or some of the water out of the bottom end of the system .

Air blockages / airlocks , are there any airlock valves on the Tops ( = air is lighter than water , whosaidthat ) of your radiators or elsewhere for that matter , do they work / move ? These are based on the same principle as the valve which mainains the air pressure inside bicycle tyres . ( you may have to partially open these by adjusting with a screwdriver or wrench ( proper sized spanner = best ) , do not loosen these to the point where they shall "fall" out . . .
. . . because , Confucius says , " He who wishes to bleed air from home central heating system must first needs to fill said system fool of water ! "
Begin this process of air bleeding the system from the lowest level by beeding valves downstairs then moving systematically upwards through the house. ( water is heavier than air , whosaidthat )

NOT so as to reinvent the wheel make sure every moving part moves as it should before introducing water into the system , if neccessary drain the whole system completely , and do not pick up your $200 until this task has been severly defeated !

NEXT after all that lot has proven successful , like myself , right now , you'll be off for a ciggy and a cuppa'
Good luck
have just read up on the answers since began writing and allthough not being much of a gambler I wouldnt mind putting some of love sea ' s money on that the whole pipes and radiators are made of IRON ! how about it some of your money against some of my old boots ?

Answer 2

Yep, the problem is most commonly at the valves. First try to bleed the system of any trapped air by openning the valves. If this doesn't work, then flush the radiators and see if that helps. However, if these things fail, the pipes are probably clogged at the valves. It may be that you can re-plumb the and clear the stopped valve to get the down-line radiators operational. However, due to the age of the system, it is likely that they all have some significant degree of blockage. If it were me, and if the lower level is working, I'd re-pipe the whole upstairs to start. When you say 'conventional pipe', is it galvanized steel pipe or copper? Galvi, which was commonly used, rusts from the inside out and over a period of years, slowly strangles the pipes flow. Galvi is now considered an inferior material for plumbing, except for venting purposes. Consider, if you are dealing with Galvi and disconnect the pipe in question, it could be so badly rusted that it may crumble. You may not find enough good pipe to couple a quick fix repair. At minimum, be prepared to re-pipe the length between that good bathroom to the next radiator. Replace Galvi with copper. If it's more than you are comfortable with, then hire a licensed plumbing contractor for that bath to bedroom part of the job. Watch the plumber do the work, then maybe you can by the materials and do the rest yourself, especially if you have wrenches and can solder. The materials won't be too expensive, but the plumbers labor and profit margin on a complete re-pipe will not be cheap.

Answer 3

I had a similar problem with a few of my radiators this year. The weather has been so mild they had not been used very much. I drained the system to investigate and found that (a) one of the valves had become stuck fast because it had been so little used (b) a couple of the radiators had become a bit sludged up from various crud that had worked its way through the system.

I take it you have bled your radiators of any air pockets using the bleed valves at the top of each one. Sometimes that kick starts things going.

If your radiators have not been used for a long while it may be a good time now (before the weather gets too cold...brrrr) to drain the system, flush out each radiator with a hose, clean the valves, refill the system (with some anti-corrosion fluid) and see if things work better.

Answer 4

Could be loads of things, but check for a seized thermostatic valve. Remove the head and push the pin on the body in, it should come out again by itself. If not pull it in and out a few times,the hot water may flow now?! You may have to replace the body or gland.

Answer 5

Sounds like you need an expert. I called All Round Heating Services Ltd. and they helped me to resolve the issue with my pipes.

Answer 6

Find pump usually near boiler.
Using a 2p coin unscrew the brass screw on the end of the pump.
Insert an electrical screwdriver and give it a flip either way.
It has been sitting idle all summer.
Should rotate. If not buy a pump.
Replace brass screw, dont worry about the small dribbling of water.

Answer 7

Sounds like air in the pipes, you need to bleed the system

Answer 8

check that the circulating pump is working by putting the metal end of the screwdriver against the pump and put your ear to the handle. make sure that the pump is turned on. Another fault could be that the room thermostat is turned down (if you have one). Finally, if all this is in order, then you will have to open a drain off in the system and pull water through until it is hot. thats all I can suggest. Hope it helps.

Answer 9

take off a connection to one of the radiators and with a hose pipe force water into yhe system. worked for me

Answer 10

Could be blockages or bad valves that are ineffective.