Added sealant to Heating system...

Melted

Hi all, I added sealant to my heating system directly into a Rad on advice of a plumber to combat a leak. That was yesterday and there was no issues at the time.

The problem I have now is that the toilet cisterns are filling with copper colored water (same as the sealant).

I have an un-pressurized system that feeds the Rads from a header tank and I have a 2 zone heating system.

I always thought the cisterns were filled from the main tank and not the header? How is the sealant getting to the toilet? could this explain the 'Leak' in my central heating system?

Melted

Expansion pipe was coming straight out of the header tank into the main tank :mad:

Lazy plumbing.

Nice to know all the dirty water from the heating system was being used for teeth brushing etc.

John.G

Do you mean the overflow from the header (feed&expansion) tank is piped into the main tank?. Even if it is, it shouldn't be overflowing at all, normally.

Melted

John.G wrote: »

Do you mean the overflow from the header (feed&expansion) tank is piped into the main tank?. Even if it is, it shouldn't be overflowing at all, normally.

Yes that’s what I meant, I’m not sure why it overflowed, when the heating came on today I went up a couple of times to observe. There was no water coming from the ball cock or expansion pipe, all was quiet with no movement.

Cerco

Could it be a leaking coil in the hw cylinder? Do you notice it in your bathroom basin?

John.G

The two tanks (bottoms) should be at the same level but the water level in the CWST should be higher than the header tank water level, if so then ensure no one is using any hot/cold water supplied by the CWST and see if it is still making up via the ball cock, this may show if you have a leaking coil as it will leak from the coil outside to its inside and then to the header tank. Also make sure that the two expansion pipes are going to their respective tanks.Some systems had the header tank sitting on top of the CWST, in this case the dirtier water would always leak from a holed coil into the CWST and discolour it but the header tank would be constantly making up in this case.

Melted

John.G wrote: »

The two tanks (bottoms) should be at the same level but the water level in the CWST should be higher than the header tank water level, if so then ensure no one is using any hot/cold water supplied by the CWST and see if it is still making up via the ball cock, this may show if you have a leaking coil as it will leak from the coil outside to its inside and then to the header tank. Also make sure that the two expansion pipes are going to their respective tanks.Some systems had the header tank sitting on top of the CWST, in this case the dirtier water would always leak from a holed coil into the CWST and discolour it but the header tank would be constantly making up in this case.

Sorry to ask, what’s a CWST? There is another pipe what looks like an expansion pipe going to the main tank, I presume that’s the hot cylinder one?

John.G

CWST = Cold Water storage Tank, it supplies toilet cisterns, upstairs sinks/baths (& sometimes electric showers), it also supplies the hot water cylinder. The expansion pipe from the top of the hot water cylinder should go (hooked over) to this.
Are the two tanks on the same level and is the water level higher in the CWST (bigger tank)?.

Melted

John.G wrote: »

CWST = Cold Water storage Tank, it supplies toilet cisterns, upstairs sinks/baths (& sometimes electric showers), it also supplies the hot water cylinder. The expansion pipe from the top of the hot water cylinder should go (hooked over) to this.
Are the two tanks on the same level and is the water level higher in the CWST (bigger tank)?.

Ok gotcha, my two tanks are not at the same level. There are two 2x4’s laying at cross the top of the CWST and the header tank is sitting on top of that, I have not noticed the header tank constantly filling with water except before I added the sealant as I was told the reason for that was because the rads central heating is calling for water because of a leak.

Would it be worth turning on zone 2 for the hot water cylinder and check what’s going on up in the tanks?

John.G

Edit
Sorry misread that, so the header tank is higher than the CWST, in that case there should be a trickle of water constantly making up to the header tank if leaking coil but it shouldn't be overflowing, if there is no one using hot/cold water then the CWST water level should start rising but it could take a long time.
You could turn on zone 2 as the hotter water might leak at a greater rate, but the header tank should eventually start to make up once the boiler system water has expanded normally.