Rads not heating after heating.

the-ging

Hey All,
I have read a good few post on here and here is my problem...

The rad in my bedroom was not heading up. (I actually think this happened not long after I got my boiler serviced but could be wrong).

SO I went and blead the rad, this was fine there was lots of air in there, but then after the rad was still not really heating up. So I went and turned off all the other rads so that the bedroom was the only one on. But this was still only getting luke warm. Like if I touch the pipe coming into the rad on one side its really hot but not hot on the other side.

Now same thing happened with a rad in the bathroom, its gets a bit warmer than the one in the bathroom but not much.

Anybody got any other suggestions that I can check?

BTW, I like in a two bed apt with a gas boiler.

Thanks in advance.

J

georgejetson

the-ging wrote: »

Hey All,
I have read a good few post on here and here is my problem...

The rad in my bedroom was not heading up. (I actually think this happened not long after I got my boiler serviced but could be wrong).

SO I went and blead the rad, this was fine there was lots of air in there, but then after the rad was still not really heating up. So I went and turned off all the other rads so that the bedroom was the only one on. But this was still only getting luke warm. Like if I touch the pipe coming into the rad on one side its really hot but not hot on the other side.

Now same thing happened with a rad in the bathroom, its gets a bit warmer than the one in the bathroom but not much.

Anybody got any other suggestions that I can check?

BTW, I like in a two bed apt with a gas boiler.

Thanks in advance.

J

You need to balance your heating system.

Starting with the rad that heats first when heating is put on and using this method on the other radiators.

On the lock shield valve of the radiators. (thats the smaller plastic type head) Adjust from slightly open to fully open on your rads until all radiators are heating in sequence.

Before you do this in your hotpress on one of the pipes going into the side of your cylinder. There is a valve . Turn this to the right until its fully closed and just crack it open to the left.If the water does not appear to be hot enough after the heating has been on .adjust slightly to the left until it heats correctly.

If this has little or no effect on your rads. Use the method I mentioned first.

gdavis

are rads that are not heating,upstairs?is there enough pressure in system,if balancing does not work u may have sludge in system

the-ging

georgejetson wrote: »

Before you do this in your hotpress on one of the pipes going into the side of your cylinder. There is a valve . Turn this to the right until its fully closed and just crack it open to the left.If the water does not appear to be hot enough after the heating has been on .adjust slightly to the left until it heats correctly.

So you mean close these ??

Billy Bunting

The lowest valve is the balancing valve, it should have been adjusted day one and then the red handle removed, the smaller of the 2 valves is your by-pass, this again should have been adjusted by the installer, but should not be closed fully.

the-ging

The wonders of buying an apartment at the height of the market. There are lots of stuff that they probably should have done.

I'll try and balance the system, so on all the rads open the lock shield fully on them all and note in which order they are heating, then the ones that are heating first I need to only have the lock shield open a quarter and the ones towards the end of the system open more??

Thanks for all the help.

Billy Bunting

Have a quick look at this .........

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUWbxccVDpc

heinbloed

@ the OP:

The heating system needs hydraulic balancing, the radiators have to get warm.

Get a competent person to do this. Your thermal buffer/immersion barrel has little or nothing got to do with the output of the radiators.
And get all pipes insulated once at the job.

gdavis

eh ur "thermal buffer" has indeed got something to do with the output of ur rads.to be more specific,the valve on the return has

the-ging

Thanks all for the help, I tried to balance the system and the two rads that were causing the problem still are not heating.
Either I didn't do it right or there is something else wrong.

Is there anything else I can try before going down the route of calling a plumber?

heinbloed

@the OP:

What temperatures are you reading at the outlets of the radiators?

@gdavis:

A

buffer tank

is installed in-line with the flow or return pipe. Therefore it has no balancing valve.

It should have isolation valves.

A buffer tank is not a radiator, not branched-off from the flow or return pipe.

If the immersion tank is installed to act as a buffer tank then there is no balancing done. This would reduce the flow rate of the entire wet system, being contraproductive.

Bruthal

heinbloed wrote: »

A buffer tank is not a radiator, not branched-off from the flow or return pipe.

If the hot water coil valve is fully opened, the flow from the boiler has a free, open flow route. It has to be balanced just like the rads.

is installed in-line with the flow or return pipe. Therefore it has no balancing valve.

It is in parallel with the rads, between the feed and return. If it happens to be last in the line, it will just have the flow and return into it, and seem like it is just inline, but it is still in parallel with other rads, and the flow through it is independent of the rads, so if its balance valve is fully open, it will reduce the flow to the rads.

It is often on its own zone too, and new installs have this, which again will reduce the flow to other rad zones if its balance valve is fully open.

Bruthal

Billy Bunting wrote: »

The lowest valve is the balancing valve, it should have been adjusted day one and then the red handle removed, the smaller of the 2 valves is your by-pass, this again should have been adjusted by the installer, but should not be closed fully.

Fully open would not be great either i would imagine.

Billy Bunting

robbie7730 wrote: »

Fully open would not be great either i would imagine.

Well i would imagine that if both were fully open the OP could forget about his heating all together.

the-ging

I have the small valve open a quarter turn and the bigger open a full turn (or there about)

I'll try and get a thermometer later to get the temps across the input and output of the affected rads.

Billy Bunting

Forget the thermometer, its not needed to get it hot.

Can you post a pic of your radiator.

the-ging

Billy Bunting wrote: »

Forget the thermometer, its not needed to get it hot.

Can you post a pic of your radiator.

This is the one in the bedroom that was the first to cause problems.

keith_kiki

you may still have air in your system, that rad may be feed from above so there might be air in the pipe above in the ceiling restricting the flow to it,

sludge might be an issue too so you still might have to call a plumber,

hope this is useful

Billy Bunting

the-ging wrote: »

I have the small valve open a quarter turn and the bigger open a full turn (or there about)

.

Don't think you’re at these quite right, lots of confusion and unnecessary info that can confuse, lets give it another go.

Open the "bigger" fully and the other another quarter a turn.

the-ging

Billy Bunting wrote: »

Don't think you’re at these quite right, lots of confusion and unnecessary info that can confuse, lets give it another go.

Open the "bigger" fully and the other another quarter a turn.

Hey Billy, what I meant for the bigger and the smaller was the valves going into the hot water tank in the first pic I posted.

At the moment, on the rad in the bedroom I have both valves open fully. But I'll try your suggestions later when home.

the-ging

Hey Guys, Sorry been away last week. Still no joy.

So anybody recommend a GOOD plumber in Finglas?

PHIJOE

DID YOU GET RADIATOR WORKING.