Attic radiator not getting water

Useful.Idiot

Hi all,

I read up on a few relevant older threads but wasn't really sure which applied to me. I rent a fairly old house that has an open vent system with water tank in attic. My bedroom is a converted attic and the radiator there started off only heading up at the bottom so I bled it and now it won't heat at all. All other radiators work fine on both floors below.

Tried bleeding it a couple times with heating both on and off but not sure of next step. I haven't tried turning off all other rads yet and I haven't really fiddled with any of the red valves or levers where the pump is in the hot press downstairs. From what I can gather it might be an airlock or low pressure? or even a leak. Is there anyway I can find out if this is the case and is there anything I should try before getting a plumber in? Thanks

chuck eastwood

Useful.Idiot wrote: »

Hi all,

I read up on a few relevant older threads but wasn't really sure which applied to me. I rent a fairly old house that has an open vent system with water tank in attic. My bedroom is a converted attic and the radiator there started off only heading up at the bottom so I bled it and now it won't heat at all. All other radiators work fine on both floors below.

Tried bleeding it a couple times with heating both on and off but not sure of next step. I haven't tried turning off all other rads yet and I haven't really fiddled with any of the red valves or levers where the pump is in the hot press downstairs. From what I can gather it might be an airlock or low pressure? or even a leak. Is there anyway I can find out if this is the case and is there anything I should try before getting a plumber in? Thanks

The circulating pump will always feed the rads with the least resistance first. As it is a floor higher it naturally take more effort to pump water to it. Have you tried balancing the rads, leave the one on the top floor wide open. It could well be that your pump cant feed that many rads and one at that head.
. How many rads off the pump in total and what pump is it

agusta

Useful.Idiot wrote: »

Hi all,

I read up on a few relevant older threads but wasn't really sure which applied to me. I rent a fairly old house that has an open vent system with water tank in attic. My bedroom is a converted attic and the radiator there started off only heading up at the bottom so I bled it and now it won't heat at all. All other radiators work fine on both floors below.

Tried bleeding it a couple times with heating both on and off but not sure of next step. I haven't tried turning off all other rads yet and I haven't really fiddled with any of the red valves or levers where the pump is in the hot press downstairs. From what I can gather it might be an airlock or low pressure? or even a leak. Is there anyway I can find out if this is the case and is there anything I should try before getting a plumber in? Thanks

When you bleed the rad ,do you get water out?, Have you checked the small tank in the attic to see if there is water in it

Doctors room ghost

If the system is zoned turn on the heat and turn off the rads downstairs.then turn off the rads individually upstairs starting off in line with what’s first fed from the pump.turn them off as you go along the line leaving on the problem one and bleed that then.with other rads off the pump will blow out the air to the end of the line and you can then turn back on all other rads.
If this works you will have to spend time balancing the system as it’s possible it’s overloaded and can’t handle all the rads

Useful.Idiot

chuck eastwood wrote: »

. How many rads off the pump in total and what pump is it

Not many, about 4 or 5. One downstairs, two/three the floor above then the attic one. Not sure what pump will check tomorrow, and will indeed try turn all the others off, thanks.

agusta wrote: »

When you bleed the rad ,do you get water out?, Have you checked the small tank in the attic to see if there is water in it

Water didn't come out of it no. Maybe a tiny bit of moisture on the bleed valve after the most recent attempt at bleeding. Yeah the tank is fairly full, have never touched it.

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

If the system is zoned turn on the heat and turn off the rads downstairs.then turn off the rads individually upstairs starting off in line with what’s first fed from the pump.turn them off as you go along the line leaving on the problem one and bleed that then.with other rads off the pump will blow out the air to the end of the line and you can then turn back on all other rads.
If this works you will have to spend time balancing the system as it’s possible it’s overloaded and can’t handle all the rads

Cool thanks will try this tomorrow! Not sure if they're zoned can find out off the LL.

agusta

If your not getting water out of the rad,then this is the issue.how high above the rad is the small tank.do you have a big tank and a small tank

Useful.Idiot

agusta wrote: »

If your not getting water out of the rad,then this is the issue.how high above the rad is the small tank.do you have a big tank and a small tank

the rad and I think the small tank (one with the ball in it) are pretty much level! there could be a bigger tank somewhere but haven't seen one

agusta

The small tank should be higher.it is too low in relation to the rad

Useful.Idiot

agusta wrote: »

The small tank should be higher.it is too low in relation to the rad

Would raising the actual water tank make any difference or is it the height of all the pipes connecting to it that is the issue?

I've lived here for a few years and the rad always worked to some degree as far as I recall, maybe was never as warm as the downstairs ones.

JamesM

If the rad used to work, then you should not need to raise the tank. As it stands at the moment, you do not have enough water in the system. Either there is not enough water in the small tank - the ball valve might be stuck in the up position, or there is a (closed) valve on the line linking the tank to the system, or there is a blockage - in an old system, it is often where the pipe exits the small tank.
Jim

Wearb

On a system like yours, it is very prone to pumping over, where some of the water from the circulating pump comes out of the vent pipe over hanging the small tank. This could cause sludge and a blockage.
As said above, you need to get water into that rad as a first part of the cure.

btw, you system would benefit greatly from a conversion to a sealed system...assuming that there isn't any impediment to that.

Useful.Idiot

So i turned of all the rads one by one, and then when I turned off the rad in the room just below, which is the one closet the boiler, water started pumping into the attic one. I realised after that the rad in the room below didn't have its valve fully closed, and it was still heating up fairly well but it wasn't very hot like before. Tried to bleed the attic radiator then as the top of it was still cold, ended up breaking two bleeding keys :rolleyes: , so maybe I have jammed the bleed valve with all the bleed attempts.

So this seems like a balancing issue to me? Or not enough water in system for all the rads? There seems to be a good amount of water in the small tank.